Jan. 4, 1908.] 
FOREST AND STREAM 
The proof of the Cartridge is in the shooting* The United States Army, 
by careful tests, have proven the \/. S. Cartridges to be the most 
accurate and reliable . 
MANUFACTURED BY 
UNITED STATES CARTRIDGE CO., 
LOWELL, MASS.. U. S. A. 
Agencies: 497-503 Pearl SI., 35-43 Park St, New York. U4-1K Market St, San Francisco 
In Time of Peace. 
Palo Alto, Cal .—Editor Forest and Stream: I am 
greatly pleased to see the public schools in various parts 
of the country taking up target work. This is a whole¬ 
some, patriotic move and should be cordially promoted 
both by parents and those in authority. Nine out of 
ten lads will become enthusiastic marksmen if properly 
taught and offered encouragement. 
The State should furnish free to every public school 
rifle club not only rifles, but also ammunition, markers, 
etc. By this means in a few years we could expect to 
have a body of riflemen in our country somewhat 
analogous to that of the pioneers of 100 years ago. 
It is true there are many large sections of our 
country where no rifle clubs are specially needed as in 
those parts there is game enough to induce every lad 
to secure and acquire skill in the use of this king of 
weapons. But the population of these regions is but 
small compared to that of the rest of the country. 
We may never need the skill of our marksmen in act¬ 
ual war, but if war should come is not this a priceless 
asset? Did not Jackson at New Orleans find it so? 
Did not the South African Boers prove it? Has not 
England wisely profited by her bitter experience in the 
latter war and established free rifle ranges throughout 
her borders? We have but to look at the proceedings 
of the last Hague conference to learn the present spirit 
of the world. It is war, stripped it may be of some 
few of its incidental horrors; but, nevertheless, war. 
While victory in battle depends upon several factors, 
certainly shooting straight is not the least of them. 
Then let us teach our youth how to shoot, and if in 
manhood they are called on to defend our country they 
will possess the chief requisite of the soldier—ability to 
shoot straight. 
Apropos of this, I am reminded of an incident that 
occurred during the Civil War. In the late summer of 
1863, the Federals in the vicinity of my home held the 
“sphere of influence” on the north side of the Ten¬ 
nessee River, and the Confederates on the south side. 
One Sunday morning I prevailed on a neighbor, who 
had a canoe concealed in a nearby canebrake, to carry 
me over to the south side to visit a favorite cousin, a 
lad about my own age. In the afternoon late we saw 
a small troop of Confederate cavalry approaching the 
farmhouse, and my chum and I rushed out to see them. 
When they reached the yard gate I found their leader 
was Joe P., a former school mate, though several years 
older than myself. “Hello! Joe, what are you after?” I 
said. “Yanks; any around here?” “Yes,” said I, "there 
is a picket guard of about a dozen men just across the 
river.” With that Joe dismounted his men, and 
ordered both whites and blacks to keep in the house. 
Between the house and the river lay a large cornfield, 
the stalks standing higher than a man’s head. Joe led 
his men noiselessly through the field, and when near 
the river’s edge ordered them to lie down. Discovering 
my chum and myself among them, he whispered some 
vigorous unmilitary expressions into our ears; but we 
had no mind to miss the fun. However, we com¬ 
promised by moving under cover a short distance up 
stream. Joe thereupon passed his arms to one of his 
men, and walked out into the open on the bank, and 
gave a halloo to the Federal guard. The latter bunched 
up for a minute or two, evidently in consultation, they 
then separated, and one of them walked to the edge of 
the bank and shouted, “What do you want?” Joe 
answered, throwing up his arms and rushing impatiently 
around, “I am an escaped prisoner. Hurry up with a 
canoe. The Rebs are right at my heels.” Thereupon 
the Yank yelled, “To - with you,” and drew up 
his Springfield and took a pot shot at Joe, who, see¬ 
ing his game wouldn’t work, ordered his men to arise 
and “give it to ’em.” Every man on both sides im¬ 
mediately got busy; and as long as ammunition lasted 
there was a small Fourth of July racket on both banks 
of the stream. Joe presently withdrew his men, and 
all mounted and rode away. At this time, though I 
was only about 12 years of age, I had had a fair ex¬ 
perience in rifle shooting, and the feature in this skirmish 
that absorbed my attention was watching where the 
bullets struck. The river at this point was between 
200 and 300 yards wide, and the combatants were 
firing straight across. I estimated that about half of 
the bullets fired struck the water and many of them 
not far from the middle of the stream. The shooters 
were all from 10 to 12 feet above the surface of the 
river. So I reasoned that if soldiers couldn’t shoot 
better than these were doing then there wouldn’t be 
much danger in facing their guns. 
The youth, and even the militia of the country, will 
not get sufficient practice to make effective marksmen 
if they have to foot the bills incident thereto. _ The 
patriotic citizen rightly raises no protest when nine or 
ten millions are voted to build one huge battleship. 
But what a clamor would arise if a similar sum were 
asked to be devoted annually to the development of 
rifle marksmanship among the citizens in general. We 
read, without censure, of practice with the great guns 
at $500 a shot. Let us consider that the cost of one 
such shot will furnish a whole regiment with ammunition 
for a day’s practice. 
We believe in building up the navy; but deplore the 
neglect of means to qualify our citizens to defend our 
country should war unfortunately occur. Granted that 
it is not probable soon, still there is even now a small 
cloud on our far western horizon. It is true it is no 
larger than a man’s hand; still favoring conditions may 
amplify it to storm proportions any time in the future. 
In case of conflict, we would have to look to our 
clerks, mechanics, laborers and farmer boys to defend 
the country. They can be taught a number of soldierly 
qualifications in a hurry; but not that of marksmanship. 
FI ere is where the inestimable advantage of school-boy 
training in the practical use of the rifle comes in play. 
At a plastic period of life they have been taught how 
to hold the weapon, how to judge distance, how to 
adjust sights for windage, how to roughly estimate 
trajectory, and these things cannot be learned in a 
few days or a few months, especially in the hurly-burly 
and rush of preparing for sudden war. 
The world is very slowly, indeed, evolving a system 
whereby an international tribunal will obviate the 
necessity, and even the possibility, of a sanguinary war. 
But this happy check on the nations is not for this 
generation, nor probably for the next. In the mean¬ 
while the time-honored injunction, “In time of peace 
prepare for war,” is the highest wisdom for the children 
of Uncle Sam. Roeel. 
Wappiitger’s Falls Rifle Club. 
New Hamburg. N. 
Y., 
Dec. 
22. 
.—At 
the 
regular 
weekly shoot of the 
following scores were 
Standard American ta 
Wappingers 
Falls Rifle Club the 
made 
rget: 
at 
200yds. offhand 
on the 
H Crasher . 
5 
10 
8 
8 7 
6 
7 
9 
9—76 
s 
10 
10 
10 10 9 
8 
10 
7 
7—89 
S Colter . 
.10 
6 
7 
9 
6 7 
9 
9 
8 
10—81 
8 
9 
7 
9 
S 10 
10 
7 
5 
8—81 
E Mulligan, Jr. 
.6 
7 
7 
7 
8 5 
6 
7 
9 
7—70 
10 
9 
7 
6 
9 7 
S 
9 
7 
8 —SO 
M Van Dusen . 
4 
7 
4 
6 7 
7 
9 
8 
5—63 
6 
10 
9 
7 
6 10 
7 
9 
7 
10—81 
E Mulligan, Sr. 
.8 
4 
5 
7 
6 10 
6 
9 
6 
5—66 
6 
V 
7 
7 
8 G 
9 
7 
b 
8—70 
H Rosell . 
. 4 
9 
5 
7 
8 5 
5 
9 
4 
8—64 
S 
7 
6 
9 
fi 6 
10 
6 
6 
4-68 
A Brower . 
6 
10 
6 
9 7 
7 
G 
7 
4-67 
5 
G 
10 
G 
7 0 
9 
7 
S 
9-67 
A Speedling . 
. 6 
7 
4 
4 
7 9 
4 
5 
9 
6—61 
4 
9 
10 
5 
7 3 
9 
7 
5 
S—67 
J Bergen . 
. 4 
G 
5 
7 
7 3 
3 
8 
5 
9—57 
6 
5 
8 4 7 6 9 8 
A. W. Brown, 
9 5-67 
Sec’v. 
Massachusetts Rifle Association. 
Walnut Hill, Dec. 21.—The weekly competition of 
the Massachusetts Rifle Association was held at its 
range to-day under conditions which one of the ex¬ 
perienced riflemen declared were the worst he had 
seen in a long time. 
Correct estimation of windage was well-nigh impos¬ 
sible, so rapid were the changes, and the scores at all 
ranges suffered accordingly. T. Carlson was high among 
the offhand men with 81. 
W. Charles and R. L. Dale were the only long range 
shooters to reach the 40 mark, their respective scores of 
43 and 42 being made with Krag military rifles in the 
prone position. 
