March 7, 1908 ] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
395 
National Board for Promotion of Rifle Practice. 
Washington, D. C.—Efforts to interest the school 
boys in rifle practice are meeting with considerable suc¬ 
cess throughout the country, although the work will not 
be fairly inaugurated until provision is made for its 
support through the War Department. Gen. Robert 
Shaw Oliver, Assistant Secretary of War and President 
of the National Hoard for Promotion of Rifle 1 ractice, 
has recommended that a provision for $100,000 be em¬ 
bodied in the army appropriation bill for the promotion 
of rifle practice in public schools, colleges, universities 
and civilian clubs, including the cost of arms, ammuni¬ 
tion, prizes and other incidentals. Under this appropria¬ 
tion’ indoor and outdoor competitions would be pro¬ 
vided. This appropriation has been recommended by 
both the National Board for Promotion of Rifle Practice 
and the Hoard of Directors of the National Rifle As¬ 
sociation, and has received indorsement of the National 
Guard Association of the United States. Gen. Jas. A. 
Drain and Gen. Geo. W. Wingate will probably present 
the matter to the committee, Gen. Drain being 1 resi¬ 
dent of the National Rifle Association, a member of the 
National Board, and chairman of the Committee on 
Legislation of the National Guard Association, and C.en ; 
Wingate being known as the “father of rifle practice. 
At its annual meeting in Boston recently, the National 
Guard Association adopted a resolution indorsing and 
commending the work of the National Rifle Association, 
and saying, “We encourage the work of teaching the 
rifle practice to the schoolboys of the country, believing 
that it will be a great source for recruits for the National 
Guard. _ _ , . , . , , 
In Baltimore, Maj. S. J. Fort, brigade inspector of 
small arms practice, has arranged for a series of after¬ 
noon talks upon military subjects, to be held under the 
auspices of the Baltimore High School Rifle Association, 
for the purpose of interesting the boys in rifle practice 
and national guard work. These lectures are being held 
weekly at the different armories, and will extend through 
March. Some of the topics are: “The National Guard”; 
“The Naval Reserve”; “West Point”; “Ihe Naval 
Academy”; “The Militia in the Wars of the United 
States”; “The National Rifle Association and the Na¬ 
tional Board for the Promotion of Rifle Practice”, and 
“The Development of the American Rifle.” All the lec¬ 
tures will be given by retired army or naval officers or 
others who are authorities on the subjects treated. This 
course is attracting a great deal of favorable attention. 
The well-known Capt. K. K. V. Casey, international 
expert, delivers the last of the lectures, his topic being 
“Scientific Rifle Shooting.” . . 
West Virginia has organized a State rifle association to 
affiliate with the National Rifle Association, with Col. 
Carleton C. Pierce, President; Capt. G. S. Wallace, First 
Vice-President; Col. C. A. Osborn, Executive Officer; 
Capt. H. J. Simmons, Secretary, and Capt. J. H. Char- 
nock, Treasurer. 
Should West Point send a rifle team to Camp Perry 
this year to compete against Annapolis in the national 
matches a strong effort will be made to secure teams 
from other colleges and universities for the intercollegiate 
cup. This handsome trophy was donated with the idea 
that it would be competed for annually by teams repre¬ 
senting the military and naval schools and other univer¬ 
sities such as Princeton, Cornell, \ ale and Harvard. 
Although the naval academy has regularly sent teams 
which have won high honors, a cadet capturing both 
the national individual rifle and the national revolver 
matches last year, West Point has not yet been repre¬ 
sented. It is quite probable the academy will send a 
team this year. 
Cleveland has appropriated $500 for the construction of 
a range for its police. It will be devoted to revolver 
practice. Councilman Wertman, himself an expert shot, 
backed up the recommendations of Chief Kohler, of the 
police force. Washington has many fine shots on the 
police force who not only practice on the official range, 
but find opportunities to practice in their own time by 
belonging to the National Capital Rifle and Revolver 
Club, the civilian organization in Washington. This 
club is completing a series of matches with the Balti¬ 
more Revolver Club, in which a handsome trophy goes 
to the club winning three out of five matches. 'The 
Baltimore Club won the first and third, and the Wash¬ 
ington Club the second. 
An excellent arrangement is made by Co. E, of Fond 
du Lac, Wis., for feeding its men on the range. The 
day before the practice the cook makes his purchases 
and they are hauled to the range on a dray, together 
with the ammunition and other supplies. Early in the 
morning he begins preparing dinner, which jhe shoote-rs 
have piping hot in the middle of the day. No one is 
compelled to eat or pay for the dinner unless he wishes, 
tjut all present partake, the charge being 25 cents. As a. 
result "the men spend the day on the range and are com¬ 
fortably fed. Co. E is one of the best shooting com¬ 
panies in the State. 
It is proposed to expend between $40,000 and $o0,000 
on the rifle range and encampment grounds of the 
Iowa National Guard, near Des Moines this summer. 
About 287 acres of land will be utilized. A water works 
system will be installed and other improvements made. 
Concrete bases will be put in for the targets, which will 
be at distances of from 500 to 1,500yds. The range is 
across the river, the natural elevation of about 193ft. 
forming a backstop, which eliminates danger from bullets 
missing the targets. This backstop is enclosed with 
wire fencing to keep animals and persons opt of danger, 
and guards will be stationed along the- river to warn 
hunting, boating and fishing parties. Iowa promises 
to be a strong bidder for the national matches for 1909 
or 1910. 
In his report to the War Department, Maj.-Gen. V . 
J. Mickle, of Indiana, team captain for his State at 
Camp Perry, O., last year, recommends the prohibition 
on the range of all meteorological instruments, also 
verniers and other sight adjusters not permanently at¬ 
tached to the rifle. He thinks there should be some 
limitation of the size and power of telescopes to such 
as could be easily carried by an enlisted man in the field 
in addition to other equipment, or that' they should be 
confined to field glasses. Gen. Mickle thinks the use of 
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