110 
G.B. Trotter 
model. This arm deserves a mention as it is 
engraved on the butt plate tang "V' over the stamped 
number "96". It is possible that this plain "V" code 
is an arms identification code from an eastern 
colony, but it may also be a simplified W.A. 
volunteer code, possibly even the mark of the 200 
Enfields shipped on the Bride in 1862. If this mark 
is indeed on one of the Bride arms, then it does not 
conform strictly to the regulations of 1862 as 
referred to by Col. Harvest when he discussed the 
marking of arms in his letter of October 1864. If 
from W.A., the mark has not appeared with any 
clarity in the archival record and therefore must 
await verification, but it cannot be dismissed out of 
hand. 
CONCLUSION 
Following Wieck and Grant, all corps and their 
issue long arms with their markings have been 
investigated and the results presented. As stated, 
the lack of surviving arms specimens is the greatest 
single obstacle preventing a more comprehensive 
detailing of these subjects. It is felt however that all 
major groups of arms have been examined and 
described. Some small shipments of "arms" or 
"pistols" were noted but as they were not 
identified specifically they could have been 
intended equally for the Police or Convict 
Establishment rather than the Volunteers, 
consequently they were not included. Side arms 
for the upper ranks of the corps, with the exception 
of two Webley revolvers ordered for the 
Permanent Force in 1893, are invariably referred to 
as "revolvers". Officers generally purchased their 
own pistols, leaving no record of type. These arms 
therefore have of necessity been excluded from this 
paper. It is felt however that numbers of these 
small lots found in the records described simply as 
"arms" could actually have been procured to "top 
up" the arms stands of the various corps as 
needed, when enrolments rose. The important 
groups of arms and their quantities however are 
given with confidence. There were c.500 Volunteer 
and Enrolled Pensioner Force Pattern 1853 Enfields 
and c.470 Volunteer Sniders and E.P.F. Snider- 
Enfields. There were at least 574 Martini-Henrys, 
900 Martini-Metfords, 1150 Martini-Enfields, and 
at least c.251 - 284 Unofficial Conversions of W.A. 
Martini-Henry rifles into Martini-Enfields. Also 
there were 1000 Magazine Lee-Speeds, W.A.'s first 
modern repeating military rifle, together with the 
1500 early post Federation Francotte Martini cadet 
rifles. 
It must be said that despite statements to the 
contrary by previous writers, no evidence of the 
issue of carbines to the artillery corps was found. 
Instead, where their arms were mentioned, they 
were described as being conventional long arms. 
Naval short rifles, or Sniders on loan, only th e 
Permanent Force of 1893 being documented as 
having Martini-Henry carbines. The early mounted 
corps were also found to have revolvers or 
revolver-carbines only, with conventional l on g 
arms being on issue for target practice. The l a t er 
mounted infantry were armed with infantry l 0n g 
arms, such as Sniders, and later the various .303 
inch Martini arms. 
The "recycling" of arms between various corps 
illustrates a certain practical frugality in 
government defence expenditure, and certainly 
illustrates the problems arising from these constant 
exchanges for the quartermasters and armourers 
who had to keep track of arms issues by means of 
stand registers. 
It can be seen that arms were marked from the 
earliest days. The E.P.F. arms were possibly 
engraved with their marks prior to shipment to 
W.A. Between 1862 - 1878, all volunteer arms 
marking seems to have been performed by convicts 
while for a time after that date it appears to have 
been contracted out, not always with entirely 
satisfactory results, as a letter from Lt. Col. Harvest 
to the Colonial Secretary in 1878 shows. In 
discussing the quality of free, compared with 
convict labour workmanship, he states: 
"I find that Tradesmen in Prison work their best with 
the view of obtaining a reduction of Imprisonment - 
Last year I had an Engraver from the Prison at 
Fremantle lodged in the Perth Gaol, marched to Perth 
Barracks daily to engrave Volunteer Rifles under my 
supervision. He worked very well and in consequence 
was let off the remainder of his sentence, nearly 
expired - Some months afterwards more Rifles 
required engraving and I was forced to employ the 
same man out of prison - his charge was high and the 
work not so satisfactorily performed". 307 
Harvest was referring to Convict Davis and the 
118 long and short Snider rifles of early 1877. The 
second lot requiring engraving were the 33 Snider? 
of mid 1877. Between 1878 and 1893 little is known 
regarding the marking of arms. From the Martini- 
Henry specimens it appears that at least on two 
occasions a corps marked its own arms, and 
judging from the individual corps names etched on 
surviving sword blades of this period, it may be 
more widespread a practise than presently 
thought. Also during this time many quartermaster 
duties were apparently done within the volunteer? 
with some duties devolving upon a Corporal Rush, 
who cleaned, repaired and generally seems to have 
issued and shipped arms to the new corps and 
outlying stations. 208 From 1893 until Federation, 
William Needham, the "Armourer to the Forces 
took charge of the care of arms. It may have been 
Needham who introduced the "W A D F" stamp 
into the service. Due to the variations encountered 
in the styles and locations of the butt marks and 
