FOREST AND STREAM. 



[Feb. », 1888. 



THE HUNTING RIFLE. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



For years people have been discussing in the columns 

 of your paper the choice of a hunting rifle. 



Numerous articles, intended to be exhaustive, have been 

 written upon the subject of trajectory, and other com- 

 munications have dealt with different details of construc- 

 tion , sights, and the like. I have read nearly all that you 

 printed about these matters, and although I'have hunted 

 every year, I am still using the same guu I did ten years 

 ago. I could get a better one— that is to say, there are 

 many that have a flatter trajectory, use more powder, 

 carry more lead and possess I know not what other ad- 

 vantages, if such they are and not merely differences— 

 but why should I? I can do all I wish to do with the rifle 

 I have. I can knock off a grouse's head at 20yds., or kill - 

 a moose at 200. The gun is an ordinary '73 model, 20in. , 

 round-barreled Winchester; a weapon that to some of 

 your correspondents would be a thing to be avoided as 

 incapable and deficient in nearly every requisite of what 

 is then- ideal of '-a hunting rifle." Now, I have an idea 

 which the majority of w iters on "choice" have not. I 

 do not wish "a hunting rifle." Give me a fail rifle and I 

 will do the hunting myself. My idea is that the discus- 

 sion should be rather as to the "choice of a rifle for a 

 hunting man." That a man who can hunt should have a 

 good gun is sensible, but that any man, hunter or not, 

 should have "a hunting rifle" such as seems to be in the 

 minds of a good many of the choosers — a weapon that, 

 like the magic ones in the fairy tales, has only to be 

 pointed vaguely anywhere in the general direction of the 

 object desired to insure its downfall — is nonsense. 



Hunting is one of the things that, in this age of mechan- 

 ical contrivances, cannot be done by machinery. I know 

 of no apparatus for determining the freshness of tracks, 

 their direction, which is which, what they show as to the 

 whereabouts of game at any moment, etc., etc. The 

 hunter, fortunately, must do something himself, although 

 it is true that this is opposed to the spirit of the age, 

 which desires to do as little, and get as much for it, as pos- 

 sible. Of course, the use to which a gun is to be put 

 must affect the choice of a suitable one. The largest 

 animal we have east of the Mississippi is the moose, and 

 a gun that will kill one of these at 200 or 250yds. answers 

 every purpose. 



In the hunting in this eastern region very few shots are 

 made at as much as 200yds., still fewer over that distance, 

 and I can see no necessity for the large bores and heavy 

 powder charges advocated by so many people. 



In a late number of your paper I read an article prais- 

 ing the powers and performances of a Sharp gun, describ- 

 ing the geographical distribution of the fragments of a 

 squirrel which had been sitting on the ground and near 

 which a ball from this formidable "hunting gun" had 

 struck, and also the wrecking of a deer's head by another 

 shot from the same battery. Now of what use would 

 such a weapon be to any hunter this side the great river 

 or in Ontario and the eastern Canadian country ? I am 

 sure I do not want a gun that destroys game; that casts 

 the fragment of an ear of a squirrel one place and the 

 half of its hindleg another; that "wrecks" a deer's head 

 or that makes a hole into which one's unclinched hand 

 can be passed. I prefer to use a weapon with which I 

 can kill such game as I wish at any reasonable distance, 

 and kill it with the least injury to the carcass, hide, etc. 

 If my hunting and shooting powers are deficient, I would 

 rather go on as I am than make up for these shortcom- 

 ings by the us 3 of a cannon that is sure death if it hits 

 within three feet of where I would put a ball if I could. 

 This is somewhat in accord with the principle that actu- 

 ates a fisherman to use a light rod and tackle instead of a 

 pole and cord. I have never hunted west of the Missis- 

 sippi, but if the numerous articles published from time 

 to time in the Foeest and Stream, describing the events 

 in that region, are true, the plan there seems to be to 

 shoot when any game comes in sight and to keep on 

 shooting as long as it remains there. Of course, in that 

 kind of shooting, one needs something that will kill no 

 matter where it hits, if at all. So, also, if a man is to 

 potter about after grizzly bears he will be likely to ask 

 for a heavier gun than mine, because his object is to 

 destroy a noxious, dangerous beast, not as in deer hunt- 

 ing or the like., to kill so as to save the animal in the best 

 possible condition. So much for guns in general, now a 

 word or two as to sights. 



East of the Mississippi, where in hunting the shooting 

 is seldom over 200 or 800yds., as I have said, there is no 

 necessity for using an elevating sight. If a man has a 

 sufficiently correct eye to tell at a glance how far away 

 game is— and he must do that to be able to set his sight 

 at the proper elevation — it should be correct enough to 

 enable him to make a proper allowance in aiming with a 

 fixed sight, and he should do this at once easily and 

 naturally, without conscious thought and effort, or esti- 

 mation of distance and subsequent calculation of allow- 

 ance. 



1 use a simple solid flat-topped hind sight with a rather 

 coarse V-shaped notch in it. The front sight is filed flat 

 on top, so as to be about wid3 enough to fill the notch 

 when down level with the top of the hind sight. This is 

 the sight for 100yds. ; for other distances it is easy to 

 draw coarse or fine as required. Some fifteen years or 

 so ago Capt. A. A. Clay, of Pennsylvania, invented the 

 only peep sight I know of that is really a good hunting 

 sight. It is made by drilling a hole through the hind 

 sight just below the bottom of the notch. As the size of 

 the hole and the distance from the notch depend upon 

 the shooter's eye, and whether the sight is to be on the 

 barrel or the small of the stock, they can be determined 

 by making cardboard or other patterns and frying them. 

 The front sight is cut under a little at the rear so that its 

 top is nearer the eye than its base, and has inserted in 

 this top at au angle so as to catch the light, a small bar of 

 silver, ivory, or the like. This is a good sight and infinitely 

 preferable to the Lyman. Using it is not like squinting- 

 through a knot hole; it allows the game to be seen and 

 aim to be taken as quickly as with an ordinary open 

 notch. As soon as the f i ont sight drops down into the 

 notch of the bind one it naturally finds the center of the 

 hole into which the notch apparently opens, for the bar 

 which separates the two disappears. The hind sight can 

 be set on the small of the stock or on the level as best 

 suits whoever is to use it. A good many hunters and 

 good shots have used this si.?ht and like it. I have one I 

 have had since 1875. but used very little because I prefer 

 a fixed sight to an elevating one, and a plain notch to any 

 kind of peep hole. No doubt many of your readers will 



think my style of sight, especially on so short a barrel, 

 too coarse for any sort of good work, but when I look 

 back over a record of hunting from 1870 to now, with 

 this kind of sight— for I hunted of course before then— I 

 do not see how I could well have bettered my shooting 

 with any kind of sight, nor do I see where any of those 

 I came in contact with did any better, whether on squir- 

 rels with long, old-fashioned "mountain rifles," or with 

 modern breechloaders after moose and the like. 



Cecil Clay. 



Washington, D. C, Jan. 28. 



Editor Foi-ent and Stream: 



The following is submitted as demonstrating the wide 

 range of usefulness covered by a single weapon, and 

 which may be developed by very simple and practicable 

 means. 



Personally I prefer the .32-cal. rifle to the .22, even for 

 short range and fight shooting, as being less trifling and 

 not so much like a plaything, and as being instantly 

 available, under judicious management, for much more 

 telling work than the .22 is capable of under any circum- 

 stances, while it may also be made to answer most of the 

 requirements of the latter with very little trouble. 



Under this idea 1 recently set a bout making some trials 

 with a view to bringing out the possibilities in both direc- 

 tions from what may be considered middle ground. 



As a preliminary matter I procured samples of the fol- 

 lowing named bullets, all of the grooved variety, viz. : 

 Ballard .82-165, Maynaid .32-158, Remington .32-125, 

 "Winchester .32-115, Smith & Wesson .32-85, and a round 

 bullet of about SOgrs. (180 to the pound). Of these I 

 fouod all but the Ballard and Remington samples to be 

 interchangeable, the former being larger than any of the 

 others in diameter, and the latter much smaller. These 

 were consequently laid aside. 



As all rifles by the leading makers may be regarded as 

 about equally good, the sportsman may safely be guided 

 in a selection by his individual preference for such mat- 

 ters of detail as breech mechanism, style, etc. In my 

 own case the Maynard rifle was chosen mainly because of 

 the facility with which the barrel may be detached and 

 the arm packed for transportation. The barrel is 24in. 

 long and adapted to the Winchester .32-20-115 cart- 

 ridge. 



In my experiments with the round ball I found that by 

 using from 5 to 15grs. of powder I could get accurate 

 work up to about 50yds. The best results were obtained 

 by loading the shell three-fourths full of powder, placing 

 on it a thick wad cut from ordinary gun wadding with a 

 No. 10 "belt punch" (to be had at any hardware store) 

 and seating the ball with sufficient pressure to make it 

 bind firmly in the mouth of the shell. If the ball is of 

 proper size a little more than half's it bulk will be exposed. 

 Contrary to my expectations I found that the bullet, 

 when thus inserted and a moderate pressure exerted, was 

 held quite firmly and would not fallout under fair usage, 

 even though the larger part was exposed. 



The advantage in selecting a ball rather full in size lies 

 in the fact that it will more completely fill the bore and 

 take the rifling better than a smaller size, it being shot 

 naked, but of course lubricated in the usual manner. 



By reducing the amount of powder and increasing the 

 wadding this cartridge may readily be adapted to indoor 

 shooting, if desired, and a minimum of noise, smoke and 

 cost be realized. 



Touching the matter of expense, to which some of us 

 at least are not indifferent, it may be stated that the cost 

 per hundred shots may be figured down to about forty 

 cents, when full quantity of powder is used. The shells, 

 as a matter of course, being considered part of the orig- 

 inal outfit, as they will last a long time. 



Allowing the above to suffice as showing what may be 

 accomplished on the descending scale in the .32 line, I 

 will state as an illustration of its capabilities in the other 

 direction, that a well-known and very successful hunter 

 and guide of the Cheat River region in West Virginia, 

 whose acquaintance I made last fall, was using a ,32-20- 

 115 Winchester rifle as a general hunting arm. When I 

 expressed surprise at his choice of so small a size, he told 

 me that during the short time he had owned the gun it 

 had killed eleven deer, none of which had gone out of 

 his sight after being hit. 



His somewhat remarkable success may, however, be 

 considered as largely owing to his skill as a shot. He can 

 usually put his bullets where they will tell most 

 effectually, in which event one size is about as good as 

 another. * I do not wish to he understood as advocating 

 so light a cartridge for deer shooting generally, but cite 

 this instance simply as an example of what so-called 

 "pop-guns" are capable of when put to the test. 



For distances between 50 and 100yds. I have found the 

 Smith & Wesson 85gr. bullet very satisfactory. In fact, 

 I find on referring to my score book, that the best shoot- 

 ing there recorded at both the above distances has been 

 done with this bullet and the full powder chai'ge without 

 wadding. Its advantages, within the limits named, are 

 less dangerous range, entire absence of perceptible recoil, 

 lower curve, involving less trouble with elevation, etc., 

 and some difference in cost compared with the regular 

 bullet. 



I have also tried, with fair success, a bushing or false 

 chamber made by drilling and reaming the rear end of 

 the regular shells, which is somewhat bottle shaped, 

 until an ordinary ,32 short C. F. cartridge will enter freely. 

 The head of the 20gr. shell must also be reduced in 

 thickness so as to make room for the rim of the straight 

 one. The thickness of metal around the base of the 

 former is ample for this purpose. Although I have not 

 made a thorough test of this device, I am persuaded that 

 it affords a practical method of changing from the use of 

 the one kind of ammunition to the other whenever cir- 

 cumstances may make such change temporarilv desirable. 



In altering the 20gr. shell it should be left full length, 

 the forward part serving to guide the bullet of the short 

 cartridge into the riffing with the requisite precision. 



W. D. Zimmerman. 

 Norristown, Pa. 



Leavenworth, Kan., Feb. 3.— The two weeks of warm 

 weather we have had have started the streams to run- 

 ning and the lakes and ponds are filled with water. 

 Several large flocks of wild geese have been seen in the 

 past few days, and quite a number have been killed. A 

 few flocks of ducks have also made their appearance. I 

 note that prairie chickens seem to have wintered well, as 

 there are several large flocks of fifty or more in each on 

 my farm in Atchison county. Quail are very scarce. — Jr. 



SAILING FOR DUCKS. 



NEW YORK, Jan. 27.— Editor Forest and Stream: In 

 your issue of yesterday I noticed an article on Long 

 Island duck shooting, in which the writer states that he 

 cannot see how running ducks down with a steamer can 

 do more harm than stringing a line of boats off a point. 

 Admitting that the harm is equal, two wrongs do not 

 make a right. We must allow duck shooting within a 

 limit, and if a certain ratio of ducks that come to our 

 bays in the fall and winter are to be killed, is it not better 

 that most if not all devotees of the sport should obtain a 

 few ducks, than that a few sportsmen should have all? 

 Certainly the average sportsman cannot indulge in the 

 luxury of a steam yacht, and if he could the shocting in 

 our waters Avould be of short duration. If we are to have 

 Bteamers going at the rate of ten miles an hour constantly ^ 

 chasing ducks from their feeding grounds, we can with 

 safety pronounce the last solemn rites over beach and 

 point shooting, as they will be things of the past. 



I am not familiar with the shooting at Mamaroneck or 

 Captain's Island, but I am thoroughly familiar with that 

 to be had :n Gardiner and Peconicbays. Previous to the 

 passage of the presentlawthe beach and point shooting was 

 excellent along those bays, beginning Oct. 1 and ranning 

 far into cold weather. AVhere it was not uncommon season 

 before last for a fair shot to bag from six to twelve birds 

 for a morning's work, this season he would be fortunate 

 if he got one duck in from six to twelve mornings. This 

 was the case at all points along these bays. Now 

 there certainly must be some cause for this radical 

 change. The feeding grounds are there still, and the 

 cold weather brought along the birds as in previous years, 

 why did they not remain until the bays closed with ice, 

 as they had always done? For the simple reason that 

 they were driven out and off from their feeding grounds. 

 As soon as the open season began two or three men in 

 their steam yachts commenced at the headwaters of 

 Peconic Bay and chased everything before them almost 

 to Montauk Point. Every day from sunrise to sunset 

 they were cruising about under full head of steam chas- 

 ing the birds until the ocean from Montauk to South 

 Hampton was black with them. And while they got a 

 few birds, they prevented every one else from getting 

 any. They do a great harm for very little sport, If this 

 law continues, duck shooting will soon become an un- 

 known thing on the east end of Long Island. The law is 

 very obnoxious to sportsmen in general in this section, 

 and ought to be repealed. J, M. M. 



SAILING FOR ANTELOPE. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



I don't like to see so much loose criticism in the papers 

 about my hunting adventures on the prairies, and espe- 

 cially my manner of shooting antelope, so I will tell your 

 readers how it was done. I built a wind wagon (if you 

 know what that is) and rigged it up with sail enough to 

 drive it over the level prarie, when the fall breezes blow. 

 Then taking my crew of four, well armed with repeaters 

 and shotguns, we would sail around till we got to wind- 

 ward of a herd of antelope, when we would run slap-dash 

 at them, and as they always run up wind, we'd give 

 them Hail Columbia as we passed. We always got more 

 or less as we had plenty of cartridges, but we never 

 could get the cripples, for they could run up wind faster 

 than we and able to beat our wind wagon. Still, as we 

 went to shoot, that didn't make any difference, as we 

 were always able to kill enough to take home. 



After several days of grand sport we found the ante- 

 lope getting wild, so my friend, Major Smith, of the 

 Fifth Regiment U. S. Horse Marines, then stationed at 

 Fort Mercury, kindly loaned me a Catling which, mounted 

 on our bow, did great execution. We enjoyed a week or 

 so hunting, when the horrid hunters banded together and 

 complained that we were ruining the hunting (did you 

 ever hear anything so absurd?) and made it so unpleasant 

 for us that finally Ave had to stop. 



Was it not a shame to make a row? And then it must 

 be remembered, too, that we did not get more than one 

 antelope out of every six or seven knocked down, so there 

 was a plenty left, if they got well of their wounds. 



Sangwillah. 



Middlesex County Association. — The Middlesex 

 County Association for the Protection of Game and Fish, 

 held their first banquet at Hotel Chafee, Middle town. 

 Conn., Jan. 31. The members convened at the hotel at 8 

 o'clock, and after transacting business adjourned to the 

 spacious dining-room, where an elaborate dinner was in 

 readiness.. It was voted to purchase trout fry and stock 

 the streams in this locality, also quail, to replace those 

 that had succumbed to the severe winter. Steps were 

 taken to induce farmers who knew of any destitute quail 

 in their locality to report the same to the association and 

 they will provide feed for them. The society in the past 

 few years has stocked the streams with 67,000 trout fry, 

 in addition to those gratuitously furnished by the State! 

 It was also voted to take steps for the formation of 

 other societies of a like nature; and also toward a State 

 association for the protection of game. Mr. Collins, of 

 Hartford, warden of the Hartford County Association, 

 gave some very interesting facts about his success as 

 game warden. The following members were present: J. 

 W. Alsop, Col. John C. Broatch, Capt. C. W. Harris, A. 

 W. Bacon, E. N. Hubbard, Samuel Russell, C. E. Jack- 

 son, A. R, Huntley, Win. Lyman, Jas. K. Kelsey, John 

 H. Sage, Frank Brainerd, 0."V. Coffin. J. N. Camp, Wm. 

 VanDuersen, John R. Pitt, Wm. Jamieson, J. W. Tran- 

 tuin, Geo. M. Pratt, T. P. Bill, M. W. Hennigar, G. N. 

 Clark, G. H. Parkinson, A. G. McKee. Wm. Lane, Geo. 

 A. Chafee, S. A. Robinson, C. G. R. Vinal, Mayor C. R. 

 Lewis, Edward Jackson, A. Putnam. Host Chafee, of 

 the hotel, who is a member of the association, displaj T ed 

 considerable taste in decorating the tables, and the feast 

 was all that could be desired. The following officers 

 were elected: President, Hon. Joseph W. Alsop; Vi e- 

 Presidents, Robert N. Jackson, James A. Kelsey, Middle- 

 to wn; William Lyman, Middlefield; John H. Sage, Port- 

 land; Secretary, Col. John C. Broatch; Treasurer, Capt. 

 ( '1ms. W. Harris; Executive Committee, Samuel Russell, 

 Augustus Putnam, Geo. A. Chafee, Albert R. Huntley; 

 Counsel, Silas A. Robinson. 



Sharp-Tailed Grouse are sold in the Boston markets 

 under the name of prairie chickens. For the table the 

 sharp-tailed is the finer bird. 



