66 FOREST AUt^ StHEAM. 
the old stand. It is our business to supply their needs in 
every line, food of all kinds, material for fuel and 
clothing, medicines of more or less valite, minerals of 
all known kinds, and the raw material for many other 
things, therefore we think that our advice, which is 
based upon an experience greater than that of any living 
man, should be considered seriouslj'. 
We would like our customers to go on with their 
breeding of domestic animals, which, under individual 
ownership, are treated on business principles, and are not 
slaughtered in the breeding season. Of course this cannot 
be done in the case of the shad and some other fishes 
which only come within man's reach when they go to the 
rivers to breed, but, as all intelligent communities forbid 
the killing of deer, grouse, quail, woodcock and othtr 
wild life during the breeding season, which includes the 
time of pairing, our firm does not understand why this 
principle is not applied to wild fowl and other birds. 
Once we had on our bargain counters buffalo meat and 
tongues, wild pigeon and beaver tails. We cannot offer 
them to-day, because they have not been allowed to live 
and multiply. The intelligent farmer preserves enough 
breeding stock to supply his wants. The intelligent Com- 
monwealth should do the same thing. If this could be 
done all over the land, we could promise more liberal 
terms, per cartridge, in the fall than it is possible to do 
now. If we may be permitted to advise our customers 
concerning fashions to come, we will say : In a few years 
the sportsman will take up his gun in the woodcock 
season, say August and September, and in the latter 
month will look for grouse, quail, wildfowl, shore birds, 
rabbits, deer and other game until the new year. Then 
hi will clean up and oil his gun and lay it away until the 
next woodcock season, unless he desires to shoot clay 
pigeons, which we do not furnish. Then he will sit in 
the chimney corner o' nights and read what has been pub- 
lished on his favorite sport until the sun comes so far 
north that it shines on the rod case on top of his books. 
Then he looks over the Avhippings on his rod, tests his 
leaders, examines his fly-books for moths or abraded 
gut at the heads of the flies and awaits the opening day 
for trout, After this comes other fishing. Speaking as a 
business firm, we will say that our very best customers are 
those "all-round sportsmen" who love both the rod and 
the gun, and who are happy if they can fish in spring and 
summer and shoot in the fall. Some men do not care to 
fish at any time, and it is this class that demand that we 
should have wildfowl on our counters in spring, but we 
are glad to say that the demand for wildfowl in the spring 
months is decreasing, because intelligent giinners realize 
the fact that they cannot kill a pair of ducks in the spring 
and expect them to bring down a brood in the fall. 
We have spoken plainly on this subject to our custo- 
mers, because their interests are ours, and, having had 
centuries of experience in purveying animal life for man, 
and having seen him waste and even annihilate some 
species of it, we venture to make the above suggestions. 
Very respectfully, 
Dame Nature & Co. 
N, B. — No goods sent on approval. Our customers 
must come and get for themselves what they want. 
Some African Hunting Experiences. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
Towards the latter end of 1898 a book was published by 
Mr. Greener, the gunmaker, entitled "Fifty Years m 
South Africa." The author is an Englishman named 
Nicholson, who states that "Varied by an occasional visit 
to England and other parts of the world, the greater por- 
tion of half a century has been passed by me under can- 
vas on African soil. * * * My wanderings of more 
than thirty years ago had made me acquainted with im- 
mense tracts of the countries bounded to the north by the 
Lambesi, to the west by the 'Great Thirst Land,' and 10 
the east by the Indian Ocean." 
Although the author hunted for a livelihood, his narra- 
tive shows that he was a thorough sportsman in the 
best sense of the term ; never killing game except for food 
or to obtain ivory and valuable skins. The ideas of a 
man of such wide experience as to the best weapons for 
wild sports will, I feel sure, be interesting to many of the 
readers of Forest and Stream, and may also be useful 
to Americans contemplating a shooting trip into the in- 
terior of Africa. 
The author began large game hunting about 1845, be- 
ing then armed with a double flint and steel smooth bore 
by Purdy. The gauge is not mentioned but it was pro- 
bably No. 12 or 14, the latter being the favorite size m 
England at that period. With this weapon he killed ele- 
phants, zebras, various kinds of antelope, and lions. 
Twenty-seven of the last named were bagged in seven 
days during one hunting journey in the present Orange 
Free State. On this subject he says: "So numerous 
were the lions, that, on one occasion near the Kaffir 
River, I counted over forty of all sizes in a single troup. 
* * * My impression is that the safest and most effeL- 
tual method of lion hunting is alone, with a gun bearer 
carrying a spare weapon or with one trusty fellow-hunter, 
and I have never had occasion to complain of the be- 
haviour of a native attendant, if isolated from companions 
of his own race. And here I may remark that although 
I have been in many tight corners when hunting lions, I 
have never been mauled, nor has any casualty befallen 
any of my 'boys' on these occasions." 
In 1850, when hunting for guinea fowl with a No. TO 
smooth bore muzzle loader, by Beckwith of London, he 
saw a lioness with two cubs, rammed down a bullet On 
the shot, and crawling over a rock on which she was ly- 
ing ready to rush at him, fired between the shoulder 
blades. The bullet and shot charge "smashed the bacic- 
bone and made a terrible mess of the contents of the 
chest." The cubs were caught, put into a strong cage 
made in the bush, and some months afterwards were sold 
for fifty guineas to an American shipper at Port Eliza- 
beth. , • , 1 
During his wanderings Nicholson became acquainted 
with Dr. Livingstone, and also the celebrated hunters 
Gordon Cuinming and Oswell. Livingstone is described 
as "a little, dark, tough-looking man with a countenance 
' every lineament of which denoted the possession of 
courage, pertinacity, and intellect," Gumming was, he 
says, a mighty hunter, but handicapped for such game as 
elephants and rhinoceros "by his weight in the saddle and 
his habit of using a rifle, that weapon in those days be- 
ing very inferior to a smooth bore, as it could not be used 
wath a sufficient charge of powder to ensure the necessary 
amount of penetration." (He evidently means that the 
grooves of the British sporting rifles of that period had 
too quick a twist to allow of a heavy charge of powder 
without causing the round ball to strip. Those which I 
have examined have had one turn in between 30 and .^8 
inches for ball of loz. weight, which were very liable to 
strip if more than 2 to 2j/^ drams of No. 6 grain powder 
were used.) Many people in this country, and probably 
in America, thought that some of the adventui-es 
described by Gordon Gumming were too improbable 
to be believed, but this author says "I don't think such 
was the case; none of his performances in the hunting 
field amounting to much more than usually fell to the lot 
of most sporting wanderers in the same localities." In 
justice to Cumming it should also be mentioned that Dr. 
Livingstone, who knew many of the_ natives employed 
by him, vouches for the accuracy of his descriptions. 
Of the hunter Oswell, Nicholson states, "he was a very 
light weight, a splendid horseman, always well mounted, 
and invariably shot with a smoth No. lo-bore, which, in 
his hands, made short work of all kinds of big game. * * 
A grand specimen of a thorough, cultured, English gen- 
tleman, brave to the verge of temerity, but brimming 
over with kindheartedness, courtesy and geniality." 
Among other weapons used by the author was a single 
muzzle loading duck gun (bore not stated), altered from 
flint to percussion lock, and weighing I4lbs. Of this he 
writes: "I shot an immense quantity of game with it, 
ranging from elephant to the small steinbuck antelope, 
and lost very few animals wounded by its large spheri- 
cal bullet, which it shot accurately at quite outside dis- 
tances." 
In the advice to those in search of foreign sport Nich- 
olson says: "I have observed that men intending to ob- 
tain it usually encumber themselves with batteries as ex- 
pensive as they are superfluous. In all wild countries it 
may be taken for granted that transport is more or less 
difficult, imperfect, and expensive; and the obligation to 
be constantly on the alert to watch over the safety of a 
costly battery soon becomes intolerable, and a Avaste cf 
energy in a profitless direction. * * * Having used 
nearly every kind of weapon of portable dimensions from 
the flint and steel days up to 1894, perhaps I may lay 
claim to some practical knowledge of the subject. * 
Of weapons for the native hunters he states: "Upon the 
whole I have found it better to arm any of the 'boys' who 
may have the wish or ability to shoot, with plain single 
barrel smooth bore guns; with rifles they get into the 
habit of blazing away at all kinds of distances, and waste 
ammunition; besides, by giving them a shot cartridge or 
two, they often bring in a toothsome bird for the 
larder when one is saturated with dry antelope meat. 
Such guns can be bought for about £5, and should be 
sighted for ball shooting up to one hundred yards." 
Too much of your valuable space would be required 
for all the remarks about weapons made in various parts 
of the book, but the most important ones are as follows, 
the authors own words being sometimes quoted: 
1. Owing to the great improvements in modern rifles, 
a sportsman need no longer be encumbered with very 
large bores and their correspondingly heavy ammunition. 
A ball and shot gun of the Colindian or Paradox type is 
very satisfactorv if of 12-bore, and heavy enough to carry 
4^-^ drams of powder easily. A double rifle of gVzlhs. 
weight and one of these guns of 81bs. is an excellent arma- 
ment for any part of the world and for any kind of game. 
2. "Barrels of sporting rifles need never exceed 26m. 
in length, both on account of handincss and because short 
guns can be held much mo're steadily than long ones 
when aiming, especially in high winds" Aim can be more 
quickly taken, in running shots, if the stocks have a good 
bend. For a man of Sft. loin. a 3in. bend is not too much. 
3. A first rate double barrel is the best and most reli- 
able rifle yet invented, but, if economy be an object, the 
Winchester repeaters are efficient weapons. 
4. Althoiigh all soft-skinned animals may be killed 
with the ordinary short express bullet with its large hol- 
low, its want of penetration makes it fail for general pur- 
poses. It is often necessary to fire raking shots at the 
sterns of good sized antelopes, when a large superficial 
wound is the result "with which the poor animal usually 
escapes." With solid bullets at such game express rifles 
are excellent. 
5. Elephants, rhinos, and similar thick-skinned game 
fall readily to the bullets of a 45-bore, but it is not good 
for animals below a certain size, say three hundred 
weight, because they do not offer sufficient resistance to 
cause the expansion of the bullet and a large external 
wound. There is little or no blood spoor to enable the 
hunter to follow a wounded beast, and almost all African 
game, except the eland, has such extraordinary vitality 
that it is liable to escape although mortally wounded. 
6. After a sufficient trial of small bores the author 
reverted to .577 gauge rifles and also to 12-bores, both 
rifles and specially made smooth bores, "for all kinds of 
game with satisfactory results. A rifle of .577 gauge and 
lolbs. weight is a very efficient weapon." 
7. A .577 rifle does not require more than 45^ drams of 
powder 'nor a 45 more than 85 grains. For all except 
elephant or rhino shooting "smaller charges are prefer- 
able, giving quite sufficient penetration, being less liable 
to cause a premature breaking up of the bullet and mini- 
mising recoil." , 1, j r 
7. It is very important to have rifles chambered lor 
straight tapered shell as they can be reloaded a great 
number of times without resizing. Bottle-necked shells 
very much increase recoil and have to be resized after 
every shot. The necessarv swedging tools for this are 
very liable to be mislaid or lost. Unless reloaded, a cum- 
bersome quantity of the shells must be carried. 
8. A white-tipped foresight is the best of all, and en- 
amel is preferable because ivory is liable to shrink and 
drop off in hot, dry climates. The rear sight should be 
as black and dull as possible, as a platina mark in_ the 
center is apt to spoil the aim by dazzling the eyes in a 
glaring sun, 
• g. The very best South African game shots 1 have 
known, have restricted themselves to a single standard 
sight for all sporting distances. "Only the looyds. sight 
(April 8, 1899. 
is necessary, for game should not, as a rule> be fired at 
beyond 200yds., and very little indeed is killed beyond 150 
by even first rate shots, no matter what rifle is used. 
Firing at longer distances than 250yds. entails much 
unnecessary cruelty." 
10. With regard to the new rifles of about .300 gauge 
with smokeless cartridges and metal patched bullets, their 
accuracy, flat trajectory and penetration are admitted, and 
they are considered good for the defensive purposes of 
an exploring expedition when the weight of ammunition 
has to be economized. The objections to them are that a 
few months' hard work causes the grooving to wear 
away to such a degree as to make their accuracy unre- 
liable; and that they are A^ery difficult to clean, their ex- 
tremely rapid twist and small bore "retaining and pack- 
ing the fouling to an inordinate degree." _ Their long 
range is of no importance for game shooting. "After 
the exertion entailed by a gallop or stalk, no man is fit to 
shoot with tolerable accuracy at mor.e than point-blank 
distances. 
11. As to the various ways of boring, Mr. Nicholson re- 
marks: "I have shot with all kinds of rifles, and have a 
decided preference for the smooth, oval-bored weapons 
on Mr. C. Lancaster's principle ; which are quite as ac- 
curate at sporting distances as grooved rifles, retain their 
shooting qualities indefinitely, foul and recoil very little, 
•and are especially easy to clean, besides being available 
with shot when expedient." "They stand rough wear 
and neglect much better than any grooved ones * * * 
and what fouling there is. is evenly distributed over the 
inside instead of packing in patches, as is the case with 
all grooved barrels more or less.'' It appears to me that 
if some of the manufacturers of repeating rifles would try 
the oval bore system, they might produce weapons exact- 
ly adapted for the woods' loafer, or for hunters who are 
obliged to subject their rifles to neglect and rough work. 
Some years ago the editor of the London Field reported 
a trial he had attended of an oval bore .500 express. He 
said the wind was so strong that Mr. Lancaster had much 
difficulty in holding the rifle steady, but, allowing for 
that, the accuracy was very good. 
I lately measured the bullet holes in a target shown 
me as having been made by a double Lancaster oval bore, 
chambered for the .303 army cartridge. The four shots 
of the right barrel were in a square 2in. wide by i i-ioin. 
deep, and the four of the left in 3 3-8in. by_i 9-i6in. The 
whole eight were in 3 3-8in. wide by i 7-ioin. deep. That 
is certainly good for open hunting sights even from a 
rest. 
Last summer a friend who owns a double oval-bore, of 
16 shot gun gauge, brought it for me to examine. There 
was no safe range available beyond Soyds., but at that 
distance its bullets were quite accurate. Being doubtful 
about the truth of the claim as to its being really useful 
with small shot, I loaded some i6-bore shells with 2^2 
drams of powder and 102. of No. 6 and tried them 
at forty measured yards. I was surprised to find the pat- 
terns not only as close but as regular as those of a good 
average cylinder bore shotgun. 
Mr. Nicholson's remarks about smooth bores will be 
new to many of your readers, as they were to me. He 
considers that there is not much practical difference be- 
tween the killing powers of guns from 20 to 12 bore 
unless the latter be heavy enough to carry 4 drara.s 
of powder and ij^oz. of shot. He seems especially 
fond of 16-bores, and says: "With a 28-bore I have 
killed satisfactorily, small antelope, geese and wildfowl, 
besides several large bustards, with shot of suitable size, 
No. I for choice; but, as it was an extra stout little 
weapon, I used 2 drams of powder, Curtis & Harvey's 
No. 4, and the same measure of shot. 
"The cylinder barrel of any well-bored double gun: 
with a suitable quantity of metal, if fitted with a folding 
leaf sight on the rib, and loaded with a thick, soft \vad! 
below a hardened spherical ball, will, if the bullet is ai 
close but not tight fit. shoot accurately enough to hit any- 
thing of. or about, .the size of a rabbit at lOOyds."' 
He states that some years ago, with a strong double muz- 
zleloading smooth i6-bore, fitted with a rear sight ami 
front ivory sight, he bagged forty-three bufiPaloes in a 
few days, very few wounded escaping, and sevmt being 
killed by raking shots from behind. A la-bore of gibs, 
weight, with 4H drams of fine powder and hard bullets^ 
gave ample petretrfition for large bull elephants. 
By "cylinder barrels" I think he mtxst mean true cylin- 
ders, not those which were made to throw small shot 
well by "opening" at the muzzle, or, as in breechloaders, 
by compressing it slightly. I have tried numbers of such 
guns loaded with ball in various ways, and the best of 
them would not carry accurately enough to be certain of 
hitting a deer in the thick part of the lungs beyond 60yds. 
About ten years ago a letter, apparently by the same 
author, was pubhshed in the Field, describing a ball shoot- 
ing smooth laore in similar terms to those above quoted; 
It was a 12 gauge 81bs, weight with very rigid barrels, on^ 
of which was "a perfect cylinder, specially bored with the 
greatest accuracy to throw ball." It also had a fixe<l 
rear sight like a rifle. I can quite believe that stsch a 
barrel might throw ball with the accuracy described. 
About twenty-four years ago I had a double muzzld'oader 
carrying forty-three round balls to the poundv with a 
thin patch. It weighed Sj^lbs., and had vepy thick bar- 
rels up to the muzzle-bored true cylinders. Finding it 
very accurate with ball, I fitted a rear sight on the rib, 
and then found that it would put a succession of shot.s; 
into one page of the smallest size notepaper at lOoyds;. 
carrying point-plank to that -pange with 48 grains of 
No. 2 Curtis & Harvey's powder. Of course, it scattered 
badly with small shot, so I reserved the left barrel for 
ball, and, with some emery powder, opened the muzzle of 
the right until it made a close pattern up to 30yds. 
with ^oz. of No. 9 and 35 grains of No. 2 pow- 
der. I kept this little gun two or three years, during 
which it never made a wild shot with ball. A half-caste 
manager of a tea plantation in the Himalayas fell so 
much in love with it on account of the small quantity of 
ammunition required, that i sold it at a moderate pric<^., 
less than it cost. 
1 will conclude with a few quotations well worth the 
consideration of those now commencing their sporting 
careers : ^ ^ 
"The almost universal use of small bore rifles (inclusive 
of ,450 bores) has played the mischief with the game alt 
over the country, without. I think, increasing the nuni- 
« 
