574 
FOREST AND STREAM 
BALLISTITE 
and you have a powder which 
ALWAYS 
“MAKES GOOD” 
has the velocity, uniform 
pattern and hard-hitting 
quality to make it a game- 
getter. 
It is 
Absolutely Waterproof 
Keeps in any climate. It is a 
pleasant powder to shoot be¬ 
cause of its light recoil. 
Make every shot count on this hunt¬ 
ing trip. Look at your top shot wad 
and be sure it reads “BALLISTITE” 
For Sporting Powder Booklets Giving 
Game Loads and Instructions About 
Hand Loading, Write to Sporting 
Powder Division. 
Du Pont Powder Co. 
ESTABLISHED 1802 
Pioneer Powder Makers of America 
WILMINGTON, DELAWARE 
I he best of shots occasionally develop bad form in 
shooting, and 'the novice is even more likely to deterio¬ 
rate temporarily; but that is no reason either should 
constitute himself a damper on the rest. We agree that 
it is very disappointing to shoot badly where one had a 
particular wish to perform brilliantly; but matters are 
not improved by giving way to depression. Neither is 
it necessary to bore the other guns with long accounts 
with reference to your usual excellent form, and the 
reason you are doing so poorly on this occasion. They 
will be sorry enough for you, having had similar ex¬ 
periences, and there is no need for you to request their 
sympathy. Be cheerful, and peg away as if every shot 
brought down its bird. 
Neither should a novice display undue elation if he is 
shooting especially well, for there may be someone pres¬ 
ent out of form who will seriously resent your jubila¬ 
tion, although he may say nothing. Because you hap¬ 
pen to be shooting your best you need not feel called 
upon to explain why someone else is a failure. Prob¬ 
ably he is well aware what is wrong, and it may be 
something beyond what you imagine. Also, remember 
that your best may not excel his worst. Keep cool and 
collected and do not forget that ability to shoot well is 
not the only desirable qualification in a guest at a shoot¬ 
ing party. There is no event in social life at which 
one may more easily give offence; hence the necessity 
of being careful to avoid that sort of thing. 
We were once at a shooting party at which a thought¬ 
less young fellow made his host feel very uncomfort¬ 
able. A few weeks before he had had the good fortune 
to take part in an event on a well-known big estate, 
and his whole conversation consisted of references con¬ 
cerning “what we did there.” Probably no harm was 
intended, but he gave everyone an impression that he 
was really engaged in drawing comparisons, and under 
no other circumstances could they be as odious. He 
continually expatiated on the quantity of game seen, 
the size of the bag, the height of the birds, the ex¬ 
cellence of the catering, and signified that to be in¬ 
vited to shoot at such a place was proof of one’s skill 
as a shot. Although his comments were received in 
silence, he went gaily on, till he really deserved the 
broad hint he finally received from an exasperated fel¬ 
low guest. 
It is not good form to seek the keepers’ company con¬ 
tinually at a shoot, and particularly to address to them 
inquisitive inquiries regarding what should be private 
between employer and keeper. Possibly all you say 
will finally be related by the latter to the former. If 
you are desirous of information on any point, and it 
cannot be addressed to your host, it should certainly 
not be to his keeper. Your own good sense should 
not lead you astray there. 
GUN TALKS. 
By Henry Sharp, in Shooting Times. 
Since replying to “Novice” last week, it has struck 
me that there may be some readers of this journal who 
would not care to lay out so much as twenty guineas in 
a gun that has to face all states and conditions of 
climate and weather. The keen wildfowler is seldom 
deterred by weather conditions, and in innumerable in¬ 
stances it is to be recorded in this sport that the 
rougher the weather the better the bag. Some of the 
best shooting I have had was obtained on soaking 
wet days when the rain ran down one’s stockings and 
filled one’s boots to overflowing. But what matter if 
each footfall then had its musical accompaniment of 
“squelch,” “squelch,” or if the water ran off either 
arm in turn, and thence down along the gun barrels 
like a miniature water spout, the sport had been first 
class, and the homeward journey was clouded by no 
shadow of regret or of murmuring. One such wetting 
was accentuated by a silght error of judgment, for I 
was then wearing a Burberry rainproof jacket along 
with nether garments that made no claim to be water¬ 
proof. The jacket—a most comfortably warm one that 
is admirable for sitting out in while duck-fighting on 
cold evenings—fulfilled its purpose only too well, for 
it shot off the water with such thoroughness that while 
the body was dry, legs and feet were wet as though 
actually immersed in water. This incident served more 
fully to impress the fact on my mind the folly of wear¬ 
ing a waterproof coat along with ineffective leg cov¬ 
erings. But this is a digression, so now to guns once 
more. 
As I remarked some time during last winter, the fact 
that a thoroughly sound, serviceable, heavy 12-bore may 
be procured for £15 deserves to be known. During the 
past shooting season I shot a good deal with one such 
gun made by Messrs. Fred T. Baker. It is probable 
that in the same length of time few guns have had so 
thorough a testing, for with it I killed grouse and 
pheasants and partridges, hares and rabbits and snipe, 
wild geese, mallard, and widgeon, besides a considerable 
collection of those nondescripts which figure as “various” 
in the regulation game book. This gun was plain to 
the point of severity, but it may with truth be said that 
its shooting could not be beaten by guns costing three 
or four times the money. I had stipulated for a very 
close shooting gun, and certainly that desire was 
gratified, for this proved to be one of the closest and 
hardest shooting guns that I ever shot with. I think, 
perhaps, I may have given some information respecting 
this gun’s shooting some time ago in these columns, 
but in any case the following particulars from my note¬ 
book may prove of some interest, or possibly even of 
service to a keen gunner, here or there. This gun was 
of sufficient weight to be chambered for 2jd-inch cases, 
but as I desired at first 'to test it with high velocity 
loads in all-round sport, taking both game and wildfowl 
shooting in their turn, the chambers were of the usual 
game-gun length. Naturally, the first target 'test was in 
the direction of ascertaining what this gun might be 
load generally used by the gunmaker for target work, 
capable of doing in the way of pattern-making with the 
With this loading the gun made the following patterns: 
Distance 40 yards. 
Charge 33grs. Smokeless 
Left Barrel. 
228 
240 
224 
237 
231 
1160 
Target 30-inoh circle. 
Diamond, 1% oz.. No. 6 shot 
Right Barrel. 
220 
230 
214 
234 
226 
1124 
Averages 232=76% 224=73% of the total 
shot charge. 
Purely by way of demonstrating what might be ac¬ 
complished with an increased powder charge, the fol¬ 
lowing load was next tried: 
Distance and Target as previously. 
Charge 36grs. S.D., 
and ijds oz., No. 6. 
Left Barrel. 
221 
228 
190 
204 
228 
1071 
Averages 214=70% 
Charge 38grs. S.D., 
and ij 4 oz.. No. 6. 
Left Barrel. 
202 
205 
182 
205 
191 
985 
197=64% 
To this trial was appended a footnote to the effect 
that, however suitable this load might prove to be 
whenever this gun came to be chambered for 2jkj-inch 
cases, it was not a load that could be recommended 
for use in the shorter case then used, seeing that the 
latter length was insufficient for a due provision of 
wadding. 
With this same gun and a larger size of shot the 
following results were forthcoming: 
Distance and Target as before. 
Charge 36grs. S.D., 
oz., No. 5 shot. 
Left Barrel. 
Charge 38grs. S.D., 
i l A oz.. No. 5 shot. 
Left Barrel. 
196 
162 
209 
196 
182 
197 
186 
187 
193 
170 
966 
912 
193=78% 
182=74% 
These remarkably high patterns would point to the 
fact that the heavier No. 5 pellets are hotter able than 
those of the No. 6 to withstand the scattering effect of 
so heavy a powder charge. 
The next trial comprised loads 'that might with some 
truth be termed “express” or “high velocity.” 
Distance and Target as previously. 
Charge 36grs. S.D., Charge jSgrs. S.D., 
1 oz., No. 6 shot. 1 oz., No. 6 shot. 
Left Barrel. Left Barrel. 
185 
160 
200 
176 
194 
180 
93x100 from 19 yards 
By P. H. O’BRIEN 
Winning 
The Pacific 
Coast Handicap 
AT PORTLAND, OREGON 
Shoot a 
PARKER GUN and Win 
Send for Catalogue 
Parker Bros. 
MERIDEN, CONN. 
New York Sales Rooms: 
32 Warren Street 
THE PARKER GUN 
