ioi 4 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[June 29, 1907. 
The Shotguns of Our Fathers. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
On Oct. 11, 1902, a letter appeared in your 
paper, which I had written about the shotguns 
in general use at the latter end of the seventeenth 
century. I have since then collected from sec¬ 
ond hand book sellers a number of,old sport¬ 
ing works which give a fair idea of the changes 
that were made in guns, up to the time when 
breechloaders were so far perfected as to gen¬ 
erally supersede muzzleloaders. A condensed 
account of the information thus obtained will, 
I believe, be interesting to many of your read¬ 
ers. 
It is a strange • fact that, judging from the. 
almost unanimous statements of the various 
authors, birds were habitually killed in the days 
of our grandfathers, at as long ranges as they 
are with the best modern chokebores. If we 
accept their evidence, which there seems no just 
reason to doubt, I can only account for the kill¬ 
ing powers of the old guns by the large charges 
of shot used in them, giving closer patterns than 
we now obtain from cylinder bores, while re¬ 
taining sufficient penetration. 
In my first letter I stated that the “Essay on 
Shooting,” dated 1791, described the guns then 
'in use as generally ranging between 22 and 32 
gauge, and that the length of barrels recom¬ 
mended was from 32 to 38 inches. The charges 
of powder were from 1 [4 to \Y 2 drams, and of 
shot from 1 to 1% ounces, an extra Y\ ounce 
being added when very, large shot was used. 
Many of the improvements in the construction 
of guns, usually thought to be modern, are really 
old. As early as the middle of the eighteenth 
century attention was paid by good makers to 
the nice balance of fowling pieces, to the proper 
bend of the stock, and to the amount of “cast¬ 
off” required to fit the sportsman. 
The fifth edition of a book called “The Shoot¬ 
er’s Guide,” by B- Thomas, was published in 
1816. It shows that the old views about the 
necessity of long barrels for obtaining long range 
had been considerably modified. The custom of 
making double guns with the barrels under.and 
over had been discontinued and they were always 
placed side, by side. Thomas considered stub 
twist to be the best material and had also a 
high opinion of “French ribbon barrels.” He 
recommended' them to be from 26 to 28 inches 
long and writes: “I have two guns, the barrel 
of one 32 and of the other 27 inches, both equally 
good in appearance. After repeated trials I have 
been unable to discover which is best.” * 
Barrels were bored, some with bell muzzles, 
and others gradually contracted from breech to 
muzzle, with the object of making the shot fly 
closely, but the author believed that those which 
were perfectly cylindrical and smooth were the 
best. Manton had already invented (1) the 
patent breech, which was stated to give equal 
velocity with less powder than the old flat 
breech; (2) the elevated breech to prevent sports¬ 
men firing too low; and (3) “gravitating stops,” 
which were automatic and removed the danger 
of accidental explosion, if the lock of one barrel 
happened to be on the full cock, while the other 
was being loaded. (It is sad to think that so 
talented a man died in poverty. Although he 
had a large business and used to receive sixty or 
seventy guineas for each double gun, he paid so 
much away in law suits, brought to prevent his 
inventions from being pirated, that his property 
after death is stated to have realized less than 
one hundred pounds.) Thomas writes that flint¬ 
locks were so perfect that hardly any improve¬ 
ment could be desired. The touch holes were 
lined with gold or platinum to prevent enlarge¬ 
ment bv rust. 
In 1807 Forsyth had invented his percussion 
lock, which was considered an advantage, with 
one drawback. The primers, consisting of “in¬ 
flammable powder confined between two pieces 
of hard steel” were kept in a magazine contain¬ 
ing twenty-five, and “there seemed a possibility 
of the whole number being ignited accidentally 
at once.” 
(The magazine was soon disused and the per¬ 
cussion principle was applied in various ways, 
four of which were, with ease, almost entirely 
free from the risk of missfire. (1) The touch 
hole of the flint-lock was retained and an anvil 
fixed outside it in place of the pan. The fulmi¬ 
nating powder was inclosed in a tube of thin 
copper, about an inch long, one end of which 
was pushed into the touch hole while the other 
rested in a groove upon the anvil. The fall of 
the hammer ignited the powder, which exploded 
through the tube into the barrel. (2) The gun 
was fitted with a nipple, the top of which was 
countersunk deeply enough to hold a pill of the 
percussion compound. A little lard or talloy 
was smeared over this in order to prevent it 
dropping out, and also- to exclude damp. The 
head of the hammer fitted the cavity and of 
course exploded the pill when it fell. (3) The 
top of the nipple was hollowed deeply so as to 
hold a cylindrical steel primer which the ham¬ 
mer struck. This was invented by Westley 
Richards. (4) The fulminate was contained in 
a cap of iron, brass, and lastly copper, which 
fitted over the top of the nipple. This continued 
in general use until the adoption of breechload¬ 
ing.) ' _ • 
Thomas does not mention the ordinary calibers 
of guns or the actual loads, but says that the 
latter must be ascertained by repeated trials of 
each separate gun. Some idea may be formed 
of the patterns and penetration by his assertion 
that, with No. 5 shot (218 pellets in an ounce), 
a hare could be killed at 40 or even 60 yards, 
and a partridge at 70. Also “a hare at from 25 
to 35 or 40 yards, and a partridge at 30 to 50 
yards with No. 7 shot” (289 pellets in an ounce). 
He recommends aiming three inches in front of 
a partridge flying past at 30 to 35 yards, and at 
least six inches at 50 to 60 yards. 
The next book in my collection is entitled 
'“The Complete Sportsman,” by F. H. Needham, 
and was published in 1817. It contains a few 
small and finely executed engravings. The 
author mentions that Damascus barrels were 
then made in Birmingham, but agrees with 
Thomas in preferring those of stub twist. The 
most common gauge was 19 and the bar¬ 
rels are recommended to be from 28 to 30 inches 
in length. No. 5 shot was considered the best 
for general purposes, but no details are given 
of the proper quantities of powder or lead. 
That the patterns were effective may be inferred 
from the author saying that at distances from 
25 to 40 yards game ought to fall instantly and 
require no exertion on the part of the dog to 
secure it; also that hares could be killed at 60 
yards. 
Mention is made of Manton having invented a 
flint-lock gun with “inverted breeches” to keep 
the priming from rain. Double guns with a 
single trigger are alluded to, but the writer 
states that the mechanism was more liable to 
get out of repair than that of double triggers. 
(This invention is usually thought to be very 
modern, but in a book on “Modern Sporting 
Gunnery,” by Henry Sharp, published last year, 
a patent is said to have been taken out for a 
single trigger in 1789.) 
In 1823 appeared a second edition of “The 
Shooter's Companion,” by T. B. Johnson. It 
contains three very fine engravings (I think 
copper plates) by T. Landseer, from sketches 
by his brother Edwin. The author considered 
that the best barrels were of “wire twist,” the 
wire being made from old horseshoe nails, called 
stubs. Stub twist barrels were also good, but 
genuine Damascus barrels' were seldom obtain¬ 
able, and those usually passing under that name 
were of inferior quality. He recommended bar¬ 
rels never exceeding 30 inches in length, those 
of 22 inches shooting with quite as much force, 
but being less easy to aim with than longer ones. 
He had discovered that barrels with a slightly 
enlarged bore for several inches from the breech 
carried with the greatest force and regularity, 
the enlargement being just enough to allow of 
the wad going down rather easily. Nineteen 
bore was most commonly in use, but the writer 
considered that 17 bore, with barrels weighing 
4 to 4 t /2 pounds, was the best for all round pur¬ 
poses; larger bores being too heavy for most 
men. 
The loads were not mentioned. They appear 
to have been heavy, judging by the weight 
thought necessary to counteract the recoil. No. 
5 shot was. alleged to be the best for general 
purposes, and the patterns obtained with it seem 
to have been close, for the author’s gun averaged 
eight pellets at 32 yards and four at 41 yards; 
in cards 4 inches wide by 3 inches deep. Per¬ 
cussion guns were asserted to give the same 
velocity as those with flint-locks, while using- 
little more than half the charge of powder; and 
copper caps, then recently invented, were better 
than the other methods of applying the percus¬ 
sion principle. The book contains a long ac¬ 
count of the history and manufacture of gun 
powder. J. J. Meyrick. 
[to be continued.] 
Jacksnipe in Missouri. 
Doniphan, Mo., June 20 .— Editor Forest and 
Stream: Reading of eastern shore bird shoot¬ 
ing reminds me always of my snipe snooting at 
home, and recently when I heard of snipe shoot¬ 
ing from a blind over decoys it made me wonder 
whether the snipe were the same 4s those that 
visit our sections in such great numbers' every 
spring, namely, the Wilson snipe, commonly 
Called jacksnipe throughout this and other "west¬ 
ern sections. 
Twenty miles east of Doniphan is the town 
of Neeleyville, in Butler county. It squats, as 
the natives say, right in the heart of the swamp 
lands. The. country is subjected to frequent in¬ 
undations on the west .side from Black River, 
and qn-the east from Cane Creek, and also from 
the backwater of a stream further east called 
Big Black River. The surrounding country pre¬ 
sents the usual features of southeast Missouri 
swapm lands : huge timber, dense cypress brakes 
and flats that are only- drained by evaporation. 
The unusual richness of the soil has tempted 
the farmers, and when seasons are a trifle short 
of rainfall, crops justify the faith the agricul¬ 
turist put in the soil. The unusually large har¬ 
vests brought about a redemption of these lands 
to be a benefit to man, and what was formerly 
covered with such a gigantic growth of timber 
rests peacefully under the lighter cover of the 
usual farm crops of the south. For many miles 
this change is seen, especially so where the land 
has the slightest elevation, enough to- peacefully 
defy the highest stage of water at flood times. 
And nearby all of these farms there are de¬ 
pressions covering quite a number of acres; 
what has caused them none seem to know. They 
have the appearance of having been scooped out 
by some gigantic hand. Conditions surround¬ 
ing these depressions are not favorable to drain¬ 
age. To make some use of them, in extremely 
dry seasons, they are sown to red-top hay, and 
the harvest is* always an abundant one, but dur¬ 
ing spring and fall they invariably are covered 
with an inch or two of water. The land itself 
is black sand, or a dark rich gumbo, a fertile 
ground for breeding earth worms. Many lands 
of this character are reserved merely for graz¬ 
ing, and no attempt at cultivation is made other 
than to remove the timber to encourage a luxur¬ 
iant growth of the native grasses. 
Fifteen years ago a jacksnipe was a rara avis 
in this section, but the opening of the country 
produced for him an ideal feeding ground, and 
with the exception of a few places he is seldom 
molested. So much is this fact appreciated that 
each spring or fall their numbers seem to in¬ 
crease with each visit instead of diminishing. 
If weather conditions are favorable they begin 
to arrive about Feb. 15, invariably seeking those 
places where the herbage has been burned over 
to insure an early growth of pasture grass. 
Here the earth worms seem to appear first. On 
severe changes of the weather the birds can¬ 
not be found on the open meadows or pastures, 
invariably, seeking the shelter of the elbow brush 
sloughs, where dense tussocks of plume and 
sedge grass abound. 
On a cold day last spring a friend and I 
failed to find them in the open, but located them 
in an elbow brush slough running through some 
heavy oak timber whose area was not over 
fifteen acres. We enjoyed a whole morning’s 
shooting here, for we could not drive the ’birds 
to the open; they would return in spite of our 
bombardment. 
On their first arrival in spring they are very 
