Therefore omitting breech-loaders altogether from
the present edition, I will confine myself to repeating what I have said
before upon muzzle-loaders, with additions and alterations.
Size of Gun.--American bushrangers advocate a long heavy pea-rifle, on
the plea of its accurate shooting, and the enormous saving in weight of
ammunition when bullets of a small size are used. The objections to
small-bored rifles are, insufficiency against large game (even with
conical bullets), and a tendency to become foul after a few shots. A
short light rifle, whether with a large or a small bore, is, I believe,
utterly worthless. In the hands of a man trembling with running and with
exhaustion, it shakes like a wand: the shorter the rifle, the more
quickly does it oscillate, and of course, in the same proportion, is it
difficult to catch the exact moment when the sights cover the object.
For the larger kinds of game, such as elephants and buffaloes,
experienced sportsmen mostly prefer guns of immense Bore, carrying round
bullets that weigh a quarter of a pound. The recoil is tremendous, and
would injure the shoulder if the sportsman did not use a pad against
which he rests the gun. The guns must be strong, because very large
charges of powder are invariably used where great power of penetration is
required. African sportsmen found this out experimentally long before the
idea occurred to artillerists.
Pages:
311
312
313
314
315
316
317
318
319
320
321
322
323
324
325
326
327
328
329
330
331
332
333
334
335