82 
FOREST AND S T R E A :\I 
February, 1919 
Decoy! 
I always leave a tube 
of Mennen’s sticking 
out of my bag in a Pull- 
man dressing room. 
“Use Mennen’s Shav- 
ing Cream, eh?’’ some 
man always asks, “Is it 
any good?’’ 
“Try it!'* I say. “Builds 
up a lather in three minutes 
with the brush only — don’t 
rub it in with your fingers 
— cold water is as good 
as hot.” 
About the only time I 
ever saw a man on a Pull- 
man smile before breakfast 
was just after he had shaved 
with Mennen’s for the first 
time. 
Trade Msrk 
i^^RHflRD 
tMennen Salesman) 
THE TYRO’S PRIMER 
CERTAIN TERMS, PHRASES AND IDIOMATIC EXPRESSIONS 
USED BY MILITARY RIFLEMEN ARE DEFINED AND EXPLAINED 
By CAPTAIN ROY S. TINNEY, Associate Editor of FOREST AND STREAM 
(CONTINUED FROM LAST MONTH) 
A Bolshevik — To get the flag, to be 
flagged out, to signal a shot via insulting 
wig-wag. When the marksman misses 
the entire target the miss is signaled by 
waving a red danger flag, usually called 
the “powder flag,” across the face of the 
target from side to side. Sometimes this 
signal is executed with the red disk. 
Creepin’-in — To creep into the bull’s- 
eye by a succession of conservative sight 
adjustments. An old timer will first get 
a “2,” then a “3” followed by a “4” and 
finally a bull. This is the best way to 
sight in as the first off shot may be due 
to an error in holding. 
Ricochet. — A bullet which rebounds 
after striking the ground, or any ottier 
obstacle or surface, and continues its 
flight. Ricochet shots that strike the 
target count exactly the same as direct 
hits. If any amateur range officer tries 
to tell you otherwise, just assure him 
his education has been neglected and 
refuse to accept such a ruling. 
Sighting Shots. — Abbreviated “S. S.” 
— The trial shots which precede the 
scores fired in a competition, qualifica- 
tion or test course to enable the rifle- 
man to determine the proper sight ad- 
justment and point of aim. 
Bobbing or Disappearing Target. — A 
target which is temporarily exposed to 
view for a stipulated number of sec- 
onds, the time of appearance and dis- 
appearance being regulated in the pit. 
Such targets are used for Rapid Fire, 
Skirmish Runs, Surprise Fire and Com- 
bat Practice. 
Key Hole. — A hole in the target made 
by the bullet passing through it side- 
wise. Such a performance is conclusive 
evidence that something is radically 
wrong with either your gun or ammuni- 
tion; it is usually caused by a defective 
cartridge. 
Tipper. — A bullet that shows a ten- 
dency to “key hole” but does not strike 
flat, nor does it make a perfect print. 
Bullets that strike that way are never 
accurate, so locate the difficulty as soon 
as possible. 
Score. — A group of five, ten or twenty 
consecutive shots, exclusive of sighting 
shots, fired in individual practice, com- 
petition or a qualification course. The 
term score is also used to express the 
total number of points made in any se- 
ries of shots, as the result of a skir- 
mish run. The term string is frequently 
used as a synonym for score. 
Score Cards. — Blank forms, usually on 
cardboard, issued to the riflemen for the 
purpose of keeping a record of their 
hits. Bugs keep their scores in a book 
specially gotten up for that purpose and 
embellish each score with miniature tar- 
get and no end of technical information, 
called “dope,” relative to the arm, etc. 
Blow Up. — To lose your tailboard, to 
become nervous toward the end of a 
good string and ruin the score in the 
last few shots, a species of “buck fever” 
— i. e., a touch of nerves that frequently 
attacks the best of us during a compe- 
tition or when after game, the rifleman’s 
equivalent for “stage fright.” 
Butt. — The hill or embankment used 
to stop the bullets after they have passed 
through the targets. The plural Butts 
is used to designate collectively the 
shooter, and ?. shot directly over the 
bull’s-eye is termed a “4” (“3” or “2” 
as the case may be) at 12 o’clock. A 
parapet erected to protect the markers, 
the pit where the markers work, the tar- 
gets, the frames upon which they work, 
known as the Carriers, and the Butt, 
or backstop, used to catch the bullets. 
Gallery. — A room or enclosure where 
the firing is done over short ranges upon 
reduced targets, usually with small-bore 
rifles such as the .22. 
Clock. — A term employed to indicate, 
by means of the divisions on the dial 
of a clock, the location of a hit on the 
target or the direction from which the 
wind is blowing. For example: In call- 
ing out the position of a hit, the dial 
or face of the clock is vizualized to oc- 
cupy the front of the target facing the 
shooter, and a shot directly over the 
bull’s-eye is termed a “4” (“3” or “2” 
as the case may be) at 12 o’clock. A 
low shot is at 6 o’clock, a shot to the 
right at 3, or to the left at 9 o’clock, 
and so on around the dial, thus giving 
the rifleman a convenient and simple 
means of designating the exact direction 
of the error made. 
When speaking of the direction of the 
wind, the dial of the imaginary clock is 
supposed to be lying flat on the ground 
with the target placed at 12 o’clock and 
marksman firing at it from 6 o’clock. 
A 12 o’clock wind is one that blows from 
the target toward the rifleman, a wind 
from the right is a 3 o’clock wind, etc. 
One of the first things the Tyro must 
do is make himself absolutely familiar 
with this system of “calling” the hits 
and the wind as it is universally used 
on all ranges and everyone is presumed 
to know it. 
(to be continued next month) 
