Jan. 9 . ipop-] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
45 
TEACHING A BOY TO SHOOT. 
(Concluded from page 42.) 
the old-fasliioned plan of a course of aligning 
the sights of a rifle balanced on a bag of sand, 
meal, or something of that sort. The bull 
should be large and the range short—a 3-inch 
bull at twenty yards will do very well—so that 
optical difficulties are not introduced. The 
teacher must put the rifle in position—and let 
him be certain that the aim is absolutely true— 
and then explain the thing thoroughly. Then 
move the rifle and let the boy try his hand. 
The mechanical difficulty of the rifle moving 
back to its bed when left alone will cause 
trouble in his young hands, and the rifle will 
be handed over for examination in all sorts of 
weird positions, which can only be accounted 
for by the fact that the young mind has not yet 
grasped the necessity for a mathematically cor¬ 
rect alignment. A little patience will overcome 
this, and once the rifle is correctly aimed, the 
youngster seems to understand perfectly, and 
will do it properly as often as you like to insist. 
Nothing second rate should be passed. I think 
this is a point of the greatest importance. 
If a good pull off has not already been taught, 
this will be the next point to master, by means 
of a course of snapping during which the lad 
should be encouraged to aim carefully as well 
as pull properly; in fact, the necessity for ex¬ 
treme care over every point should be impressed 
on the boy from the first. The theory of aiming 
mastered, if the youngster seems to be taking 
pains a shot may be tried. Let the range be so 
short and the bull of such generous proportions 
that a miss is almost an impossibility. The 
bullseye is the bullseye to him, and size is of 
no account. Nothing encourages a youngster 
so much as the possession of a target with a 
few shots in the black, which will probably be 
fully explained several times over to every 
member of the houshold. A hint to the teacher 
may not be out of place here—that a rifle needs 
to be very much oversighted to throw up into 
the center of a big bull at short range, that is, 
if the six o’clock aim is used. 
The rifle should be light, correctly sighted, 
and at least accurate enough to prove the 
soundness of your teaching. I am strongly op¬ 
posed to the idea that any old rifle is good 
enough for a boy. An older beginner can look 
tolerantly on inaccuracy in his weapons, a boy 
cannot; and in my opinion nothing will undo all 
you have taught him more quickly than a rifle 
which does not repay him for his careful hold¬ 
ing. The cartridge should also be light, to 
minimize the risk of gun-shyness. Any nervous¬ 
ness is best dealt with in the time-honored way 
of the musketry instructor, by handing the boy 
the rifle without letting him know whether it is 
loaded or not. After a few pops he will steady 
down, and the rifle may be handed to him 
loaded. In all probability he will score a bull, 
and confidence will be restored. 
I do not think any youngster is able to close 
one eye. Do not try to make him do so. I 
certainly think that two-eyed shooting should be 
encouraged, and that a man who habitually 
shoots with both eyes open has a decided pull 
over the one-eyed shooter. In a bad light it is 
no small advantage to have double the amount 
of light admitted to the optic nerve, and the 
shooter can also see a good deal of what is 
going on “round the corner,” which is lost to 
the man who closes the left eye—surely an 
advantage in warfare especially well worth 
keeping! 
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