Sept. 19, 1889.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



165 



fynu §ng ntut 



PATTERN AND PENETRATION TESTS. 



GREENER 10 GAUGE. 



IN OUR report upon the Greener gun of Mr. Such, 

 given in the last issue of Forest and Stream, 

 mention was made of the trial of the gun with No. 1 

 shot. The figures on this will be interesting to a large 

 number of gunners who have chance at large game 

 across watpr ranges. The firing of the cartridge loaded 

 with this shot was done along with the other 7 and S-shot 

 charges. In fact, the order was at 40yds., first, the No. 8 

 shot for 10 rounds, 5 from each barrel, then the No. 7 in 

 like fashion, and finally the No. 1 shot. When the 60yds. 

 range was reached the No. 1 shot rounds were fired first, 

 then the No, 8, winding up with the No. 7, with the few 

 shots with the left-over Scott gun cartridges sandwiched 

 in between the two last-mentioned. The remarks of last 

 week upon the weather hold good for the test, only it 

 must be stated, to correct the error of last week, that the 

 gun weight was 9f lbs. instead of lOf. The shooting, it 

 will be seen, ran very even under the admirable weather 

 conditions prevailing. The gun, too, was holding very 



GREENER 10-GATJGE, 40YDS., RIGHT BARREL, 72 PELLETS, NO. 1 SHOT 



close on the mark, and it will be noticed from the follow 

 ing tables for the struck and aimed circles of pach shot 

 that at 40yds. the average improvement by shifting the 



GREENER 10-GAUGE, lOVDS., LEFT BARREL, 82 PELLETS, NO. 1 SHOT 



center was but 10 per cent., and at 60yds. but 14 percent. 

 The table stands as follows: 



No. 1 Shot— 40yds. 

 Right Barrel. Left Barrel. 



Aimed 

 Circle, 

 Pellets. 



72 



52 



58 



63 



71 



Av.83 



34 

 26 

 31 



32 

 28 



Struck 

 Circle, 

 Pellets. 



72 



57 



63 



35 

 30 

 33 

 36 

 32 



Dist. 

 bet. cen- 

 ter. In. 



3 

 3 



Aimed 

 Circle, 

 Pellets. 



73 



64 



61 



m 67~ 

 No. 1 Shot— 60tls. 



m 24 



5^ 28 



i% 23 



5 29 



5^ 28 



Struck 

 Circle, 

 Pellets. 



79 



69 



82 



26 

 33 

 34 

 32 

 29 



Dist. 

 bet. cen- 

 ter. In. 



5 

 2 



i% 



i 



Av.30 33 5 26 31 6^ 



Looked at in the way of percentage of shot accounted 

 for on the circle, the gun makes a very good average. 

 When fired with this charge at 40yds. the aimed circle 

 gives an average of .60 per ct , while the selected circle 

 for best pattern rises to .71 per ct.; at 60yds. their respec- 

 tive percentages stand at .26 and .'60. 



In the matter of penetration the great 20grs. pellets 

 were twisted and flattened out of all shape in getting 

 through the closely laid paper pads, but they managed to 

 tear through witn great force and rolled up to over 40 

 sheets average at 40yds., and over 20 at 60yds., and this 

 with patterns so well distributed that it would be a very 

 small duck, indeed, that would get away if once within 

 this chaimed circle of shot. The weights of powder and 

 shot respectively stand at 1^9 and 666, showing a tremen- 

 dous propelling power with shot heavy enough to carry 

 force when they did hit. 



The formal record of the test stands: 



C'LAREMONT, N. J., Aug. 8, 1889. 

 TEST MADE AT FOREST AND STREAM GUN-TESTING SCREEN. 

 6-un — Greener ejector hammer] ess. Cost, S350. No. of gun, 

 35,937. Weight, 9%\ bs. Length of barrels, 32in. Gauge, 

 10. Right barrel, full choke. Left barrel, full choke. 

 Weather— Cloudy. Direction of wind, 9 o'clock. Force of 

 wind, 3 miles per hour. Thermometer, dry, 73° . Do., 

 wet, 69° . Humidity, 82° . Barometer, 30.15in. 

 Clutrrie, as given by holder of gun : 



BOTH BARRELS. 

 Shell— Winchester. 



Pcnvder, Brand — Du Font's Eagle Ducking No. 2. 

 Powder. Quan tity— 5 dra. 



( Make— Tath-m's Soft. 

 Shot-] Quantity— iy, oz. 



( Size— No. 1. 



CARTRIDGE ANALYSIS. 



Three Cartridges Taken a,t Random. 



BOTH BARRELS. 

 Loading. Powder. Shot. 



Card over shot; two ( 1. . .129 grs. 666 grs. 107 pellets. 



B. E. wads and card - 2. . .125 grs. 604 grs. 107 pellets, 



over powder. (3... 128 grs. 064 grs. 107 pellets. 



Average 127 grs. 664 grs. 107 pellets. 



TEST AT 40 YARDS. 

 Five Shots per Barrel from rest at fixed 30-inch Circle. 



RIGHT BARREL. 

 Pattern. Penetration, s pellets. 



72 pellets. 

 52 pellets. 

 56 pellets. 

 63 pellets. 

 71 pellets. 



36 sheets. 

 44 sheets. 

 43 sheets. 

 46 sheets. 

 43 sheets. 



LEFT BARREL. 

 Pattern. Penetration, spellets. 

 73 pellets. 44 sheets. 



64 pellets. 

 69 pellets. 

 69 pellets. 

 61 pellets. 



44 sheets. 



45 sheets. 

 .. sheets. 

 41 sheets. 



Av. 63 pellets. 42 sheets. Av. 67 pellets. 43 sheets. 



Tlvree shots at 4-foot square; 30-inch Circle selected from 

 best pattern. 



RIGHT BARREL. ■ LEFT BARREL. 



1 72 pellets. 1 79 pellets. 



2 64 pellets. 2 82 pellets. 



3 73 pellets. 3 77 pellets. 



Average 70 pellets. Average 79 pellets. 



TEST AT 60 YARDS. 



Five Shots per Barrel from rest at fixed 30-inch Circle. 



LEFT BARREL. 

 Pattern. Penetration, spellets. 

 24 pellets. 30 sheets. 



RIGHT BARREL. 

 Pattern. Penetration, "pellets. 



1. 34 pellets. 26 sheets. 1. 



2. 26 pellets. 31 sheets. 2. 28 pellets. 39 sheets. 



3. 31 pellets. .. sheets. 3. 23 pellets. .. sheets. 



4. 32 pellets. 8 sheets. 4. 29 pellets. 6 sheets. 



5. 28 pellets. 18 sheets. 5. 28 pellets. .. sheets. 



Av. 30 pellets. 21 sheets. Av. 26 pellets. 25 sheets. 



Three shots at 4-foot sepiare; 30-inch Circle selected from 

 best pattern. 



RIGHT BARREL. LEFT BARREL. 



1 35 pellets. 1 33 pellets. 



2 33 pellets. 2 34 pellets. 



3 36 pellets. 3 32 pellets. 



Average 34 pellets. 



Average 33 pellets. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



About penetration: It does not profit the shooter much 

 to know that his gun drives three shot through fifteen 

 thicknesses of cardboard, if the rest of the load is weak. 

 We will suppose ten pellets hit the first sheet of card- 

 board and seven of ihem travel through only ten sheets. 

 Now, the extra penetration of the strongest three shot 

 does not help the seven weak ones a bit. The shooter 

 does not know which pellets strike the artificial or live 

 target shot at. They may be pellets on the left or the 

 right side of the 5in. square penetration pad. Would not 

 it be better to follow in, say three-quarters of the pellets 

 that hit the first pad. Suppose the gun puts twelve pel- 

 lets on the first pad. We look through the sheets of 

 cardboard and find that three-quarters of the hit, nine 

 pellet*, have gone through but ten cards. That looks to 

 me like the practical penetration of the gun, or more 

 properly, of the shot, for if the shot were all perfect and 

 equally hard they would, probably, all penetrate alike. A 

 chain is worthless if some of its links are weak, so is a 

 gun unreliable if one-half or three-quarters of its messen- 

 gers are deficient in strength. Hew. 

 Newark, N. J. 



SQUIRREL SHOOTING. 



THE season for this sport comes in the fall of the year, 

 when the woods are glorious in their autumn tints 

 and the calm of the Indian summer is upon the land. 



Squirrel hunting is not a favorite pastime with every 

 spoitsman, and I think there are few who thoroughly 

 appreciate it. To become an expert requires as much 

 skill as to be a successful shot with the prairie chicken or 

 quail. I can appreciate a week with the birds, and can 

 follow my dog — staunch and true — from sunrise to sun 

 set, and never grow weary; and with a fair Gount of suc- 

 cess as well if the birds are not too wild. But the pleas- 

 ures of this sport canot aLure me aw r ay altogether from 

 the pursuit of the squirrel. 



Perhaps it is the memory of the boyhood days on the 

 old farm, that are so dear to the recollection of us all, 

 that keeps one from getting weary of this sport. The 

 days when we were the proud owner of a gun for the 

 first time. Who can express the joy on this occasion in 

 fitting words ? It was not much of a gun; but since then 

 I have owned some that w r ere considered fine, even in 

 this age of improvement, and I think none of them have 

 ever affoi-ded me the the pleasure that this single-barreled 

 smoothbore shotgun did, when I was a boy. 



Last fall, in September, I obtained leave of absence for 

 a few weeks to regain a little of the strength expended in 

 ten monbs' close confinement to business. After supply- 

 ing myself with ammunition and sundry other things 

 that are agreeable, if not necessary, for the use and con- 

 venience of one expecting to remain four or five weeks 

 in the country, I purchased a ticket to a certain town 

 away up among the hills of We^t Virginia, and after a 

 seventeen hours' ride found myself within fifteen miles 

 of my destination, at the railway station, the remainder 

 of my way to be made by stage. During the drive I 

 received plenty of information from the driver concern- 

 ing the country, people, etc., and arived at my destina- 

 tion in time for supper. 



The next day was spent in loading shells and getting 

 my gun in order, and that night I retired to bed early, in- 

 tending to make an early start the following morning. 

 At 4:30 sharp my host, Uncle Isaac, had me up, and after 

 a hearty breakfast and storing a lunch in my game bag, 

 I shouldered my gun and started for the woods. After 

 walking about' a mile, I entered my intended hunting 

 ground long before the sun had made his appearance 

 above the adjoining hill. It was too early to begin the 

 hunt, and I contented myself with admiring the scene 

 before me. Below me lay a valley, in the center of which 

 a creek found its way through broad meadows toward the 

 distant river; and the hillsides were covered with dense 

 and heavy timber. Over the lowlands the mists had 

 thrown a dense wdiite pall, lving far below me like a sil- 

 ver cloud, motionless and still The wood, that is usually 

 filled with so many inhabitants full of life, is quiet; and 

 you can scarcely distinguish the sturdy trunks of the 

 trees as you look through the uncertain shadows. There 

 is an occasional note from a bird, as now and then he 

 takes wing from the sheltering tree ana flies out through 

 the clear, pure air to seek his morning meal. Across the 

 valley comes the startling cry of the sparrow hawk, as he 

 moves swiftly through the uncertain light in quest of 

 prey. 



Suddenly there is a change. In the east, near the brow 

 of the grand old hill, tbe mist grows lighter, and a faint 

 reddish tinge lights up the timber at its crest. A minute 

 later, and with this slight warning a great ball of fire ap- 

 pears over the hill, throwing graceful rays of sunshine 

 down upon the banks of mist in the valley, and awaken- 

 ing to life the inhabitants of the wood and field. Sud- 

 denly I hear a harsh cry from the opposite hillside, and 

 sailing high up in the ah', coming straight toward me in 

 all the strength and beauty of his freedom, flies a hawk 

 of the larger species, cleaving the air with his broad, 

 strong wings, and seeming to disdain all that is beneath 

 him, I view him as he nears me more closely, half dis- 

 posed to allow him to go unmolested. Higher and higher 

 he mounts as he nears the top of the hill, far above the 

 highest tree in the forest, with the bright sunshine fall- 

 ing upon his plumage; and I raise my gun. It is my 

 first shot of the season, and my hand trembles. Sud- 

 denly, as the light flashes along the barrels, he sees me, 

 and strives to avoid me; but too late. There is a loud 

 report, and he wavers, falls, slowly at first, but faster 

 and faster till he lies bruised at my feet. It was a grand 

 shot, that thrilled me through and through, but when I 

 beheld him lying there I half regretted that I had robbed 

 him of his life. When 1 examined him more closely I 

 found the white feathers in the tips of his wings bearing 

 a crimson stain, which I at once surmised came from the 

 fruit of the pjkeberry bush, through which I afterward 

 observed more of his smaller brothers ptu-suing some of 

 the small birds. 



I left him where he had fallen and turned to the wood. 

 The sun was just here and there throwing his rays down 

 through the branches of the giant trees. Taking the 

 face of the ridge I walk along silently, skirting a bunch 

 of hickories that stand in the little hollow belQW me. I 

 hear no sound of the desired game. I sit down on a log 

 and wait. Half an hour passes and all is silent. Sud- 

 denly a jay bird hops out on the limb of an oak just in 

 front of me, uttering nis loud cry, and regarding me very 

 earnestly, turning his tufted head from side to side. 

 Suddenly off to one side I hear a branch shake, accom- 

 panied by a shower of water, the dew that has gathered 

 upon the leaves during the night. I am all attention. I 

 cock my gun and wait. Watching the hickory intently, 

 I hear a nut fall and all is silence. Soon I hear a loud 

 cutting accompanied by the sound of the fragments of 

 the hulls falling down through the leaves as his squirrel- 

 ship cuts the nut for his morning breakfast. I approach 

 cautiously and slow, and once or twice, when my foot 

 breaks a small twig, the cutting and pattering suddenly 

 cease, as the squirrel listens, susp ciously, but the sound 

 soon begins agaiu, and I go closer and take up my post. 

 Suddenly, on the ground almost before me I hear a rustl- 

 ing sound, and cautiously peering out from behind my 

 tree I see a gray squirrel on the ground almost in front of 

 me, and only a few paces off. I do not attempt to watch 

 him. In a few moments he has whirled himself up the 

 tree and is busily engaged in cutting down the nuts. The 

 tree is a very high one, and after several very stealthy 

 observations I discover four or five squirrels. Selecting 

 the fairest shot, I stand out in the open and fire, and 

 straight down, a distance of fully a hundred feet, came 

 the squirrel. At the report of the gun there is a general 

 movement in the tree, and slipping m another earti id ge, 

 I wait patiently. Soon there is a slight trembling of a 

 little branch high up on the hickory leading out to an oak 

 near by. I can just distinguish the gray brush; and I 

 fire and the squirrel falls. Ttien there is a general rush 

 to vacate the hickory, and I get in two shots, but both 

 are clean misses. I put my game in my bag and walk 

 l. 



To give a full history of the day, of all the pictures of 

 quiet woodland life I saw. on that day, would till a small 

 volume to properly describe. I met with moderate suc- 

 cess during the day, and when I returned to my starting 

 place of the morning, seven squirrels and a brace of wood- 

 cock graced my bag by their presence. 



My noontide meal was taken beneath the shade of the 

 forest trees, and water from a crystal stream at my feet 

 quenched my thirst, and I returned at night just as the 

 sun was sinking to rest in the west, feeling improved in 

 both body and mind; and after a hearty supper sought 

 the solace of a read, and then to bed, to prepare for the 

 morning, in a sweet, unbroken slumber. 



Then there were other days, later on in October, when 

 we pursued the birds across the stubble fields with our 

 faithful dog until the sun had set, and we would return 

 in "the gloaming" happy and contented. 



I met many brother sportsmen during this fall's hunt- 

 ing, all entire strangers to me previously, and I find them 

 to be what I have always found them to be heretofore — 

 meet them where you will, at home, among their families, 

 in social life, or with gun in hand — brave, cme and gener- 

 ous gentlemen, ever ready to right a wrong and lend a 

 kindly ear to a tale of sorrow or distress, and satisfied 

 with themselves, the world, and things in general. Long 

 may they live and prosper. Dan. 



Cincinnati. 



Names and Portraits of Birds, by Gurdon Trumbull. A 

 book particularly interesting to gunners, for by its use they can 

 'dentvfy without question all tbe American game birds which, 

 tney may kill. Cloth, 220 pages, price $2.50. For sale by Forest 

 and Stream. 



