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Title: The Modern Pistol and How to Shoot It
Author: Winans, Walter
Language: English
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By WALTER WINANS
The Art of Revolver Shooting.
Royal 8vo. New Edition, Revised and Enlarged.
Fully Illustrated _net_, $5.00
The Sporting Rifle.
Royal 8vo. Fully Illustrated _net_, $5.00
Automatic Pistol Shooting.
16mo. Illustrated _net_, $1.00
Practical Rifle Shooting.
16mo. Illustrated _net_, 50 cents
Shooting for Ladies.
12mo. 50 cents
Animal Sculpture.
Crown 8vo. Illustrated _net_, $1.75
G. P. PUTNAM’S SONS
NEW YORK LONDON
[Illustration: THE AUTHOR
Photo by London Stereoscopic Co.]
The Modern Pistol
And How to Shoot It
By Walter Winans
Commander of the Royal Spanish Order of Isabel la Catolica; Commander
of the Royal Roumanian Order of the Crown; Officer of the Royal
Roumanian Order of the Star; Chevalier of the Russian Order of St.
Stanislaus; The Royal Swedish Medal of the Olympic Games; World’s
Championship Gold Medallist, Olympic Games, London, 1908, for Double
Rifle Shooting; Vice-President of the National Rifle Association of
Great Britain; Life Member, National Rifle Association of the United
States of America; Life Member of the United States Revolver
Association; Member of the Association of American International
Riflemen; Revolver Champion for five years of the National Rifle
Association of Great Britain; Ten years Revolver Champion of the North
London Rifle Club; Seven years Revolver Champion of the South London
Rifle Club; Member of Le Pistolet Club, Paris, etc., etc.
_With Forty-six Illustrations_
G. P. Putnam’s Sons
New York and London
The Knickerbocker Press
1919
COPYRIGHT, 1919
BY
WALTER WINANS
The Knickerbocker Press, New York
PREFACE
My first book on pistol shooting (_The Art of Revolver Shooting_) was
published in 1900. Up to that date there existed no book which contained
instruction on pistol shooting, though several books had appeared
describing the different makes of pistols.
Since that date several books have appeared--some very good ones, by
various revolver experts. Unfortunately (as always happens when something
original appears), others who were not revolver shots took to writing
books on the same subject, largely made up of unacknowledged extracts from
my books. Not understanding their subject, they distorted my teaching, and
so any one trying to learn pistol shooting from them gets hopelessly
confused.
I therefore give this warning; do not follow the advice of any but an
acknowledged expert in pistol shooting, as books by hack writers, made up
of extracts from other writers, and illustrations from gunmakers’
catalogues, are not to be taken seriously.
Moreover, the revolver is now obsolete, and there is no use learning to
shoot it.
My object in writing this book is to give instruction in the modern
substitute for the revolver. That is to say, the automatic pistol, and
incidentally, to instruct in the single shot or duelling pistol.
For those who wish to study revolver shooting, I would refer them to my
book _The Art of Revolver Shooting_.
The present work might be called volume ii. of _The Art of Revolver
Shooting_, as it instructs in the form of pistol shooting which has now
taken the place of revolver shooting.
Though the revolver is now obsolete, my _Art of Revolver Shooting_ is of
interest, as giving details of out-of-date firearms, and the
best-on-record scores made with them.
These records will be of the greatest importance for future generations.
There are now no records extant of scores made with the long bow, the
cross-bow, and the various stone-hurling slings and balistæ. All
concerning them is legendary.
If we depended only on newspaper articles for what was possible in
revolver shooting, we should get legends similar to those of obsolete
arms.
I was credited with making a World’s Record with a revolver at five
hundred yards by a reporter when it should have been fifty yards. He
merely added a nought to the figures.
As all records are important for historical purposes, and for comparison
with future scores, I give as an appendix in this book those revolver
records which cannot now be beaten, the revolvers and cartridges being now
no longer made.
It is curious how, even up to the outbreak of the Great War, people did
not understand that shooting was more important than playing games, or
that shooting had to be learned.
I recently read a “trench anecdote” which relates that a man who had never
fired a shot before he was conscripted was shot in the back, and whilst
dying, “seized his rifle and dropped an enemy who was running past 200
yards off.”
To do this would require a first-class trained rifle shot who specialized
in shooting at moving objects, and even he, with his back broken, could
not swing, which is the essence of successful shooting at moving objects.
Another writer, a lieutenant, wrote during the war to one of the daily
papers, advising the purchase of a revolver to be deferred till actually
starting for the Front!
I have had several men on leave bring me revolvers and automatic pistols,
asking me to test them, as they could not hit anything with them at the
Front.
With one of these pistols I made the highest possible score at thirty
yards; with another I made ten out of twelve bulls at twenty yards. None
of the pistols was wrong. It was the men’s lack of skill.
Just before the war, several rifle ranges in England were closed, because
they interfered with golf players.
It is to be hoped that after this war, men will spend their spare time in
learning rifle and pistol shooting instead of wasting it in games, and
will not close rifle ranges because they interfere with their golf links.
The fallacy that games are the best training for military service is
exposed by a very interesting article in the _Field_ newspaper.
I maintain that no man who has not the instinct to shoot ingrained in him,
will shoot when under intense excitement and danger. If he is a player of
games he will not shoot, but throw things at his adversary, or use his
rifle as a pike or club.
Mr. John Lloyd Balderston, writing to the _Field_ newspaper of September
29, 1917, says:
“An officer showed me his charges going through a mimic
attack--_firing rifle volleys instead of hurling bombs or going in
with the bayonet_; in these attacks reliance was placed too much on
the bayonet and bomb--now we have realized that when the enemy runs
away and you run after him he is likely to get away. Accordingly we
teach the men not to rush wildly along with the sole idea of
bayoneting, but to stop and pump some bullets after him.”
WALTER WINANS.
January 1, 1919,
17 AVENUE DE TERONEREN,
BRUXELLES, BELGIQUE.
CONTENTS
PAGE
PREFACE iii
CHAPTER
I.--INTRODUCTION 1
II.--SPORT VERSUS SPORTS 6
III.--WHY PISTOL SHOOTING IS UNPOPULAR 13
IV.--THE WRONG WAY TO LEARN 16
V.--PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 20
VI.--HOW TO PREVENT ACCIDENTS 26
VII.--HOW TO PREVENT ACCIDENTS (_Continued_) 33
VIII.--TRIGGER-PULL 38
IX.--AMMUNITION 44
X.--FIRST LESSONS 46
XI.--LEARNING TO SHOOT 53
XII.--SIGHTS 62
XIII.--TARGETS 71
XIV.--PRACTICAL TARGETS 77
XV.--HOW TO HOLD THE PISTOL 80
XVI.--RUNNING SHOTS 86
XVII.--RUNNING SHOTS (_Continued_) 92
XVIII.--SHOOTING AN AUTOMATIC PISTOL 97
XIX.--TIMING APPARATUS 102
XX.--SNAP SHOOTING 104
XXI.--LONG RANGE SHOOTING 108
XXII.--THE AUTOMATIC PISTOL 113
XXIII.--THE MECHANISM OF THE AUTOMATIC PISTOL 118
XXIV.--PECULIARITIES AND FAULTS OF AUTOMATIC PISTOLS 125
XXV.--FINAL PRACTICE 132
XXVI.--EXHIBITION SHOOTING 135
XXVII.--CONTROL OF TEMPER 139
XXVIII.--THE EFFECT OF ALCOHOL AND NICOTINE ON SHOOTING 145
XXIX.--CLEANING AND CARE OF THE PISTOL 152
XXX.--PRACTICAL PISTOL SHOOTING 154
XXXI.--DANGER OF LEAVING PISTOLS ABOUT 160
XXXII.--USING ONE’S BRAINS IN SHOOTING 163
XXXIII.--THE PERFECT TARGET 166
XXXIV.--IS DUELLING WRONG? 171
XXXV.--REMARKS ON DUELLING 176
XXXVI.--REMARKS ON DUELLING (_Continued_) 180
XXXVII.--DETAILS AS TO DUELLING 185
XXXVIII.--OUGHT DUELLING TO BE ABOLISHED? 189
XXXIX.--HOW TO PREPARE A NOVICE IN HALF AN HOUR FOR A DUEL 194
XL.--PISTOLS FOR SELF-DEFENCE 200
XLI.--DRESS 207
XLII.--SELF-DEFENCE 212
XLIII.--PROTECTING THE EYES AND EARS 215
XLIV.--EYESIGHT 222
XLV.--THE WEATHER AND SHOOTING 226
XLVI.--MILITARY AUTOMATIC PISTOLS 231
XLVII.--RECOIL 239
XLVIII.--JUDGING DISTANCE 243
XLIX.--GAME SHOOTING 249
L.--SHOOTING FROM HORSEBACK 253
LI.--GALLERY AUTOMATIC PISTOLS 260
LII.--SHOOTING GALLERY 266
LIII.--THE GASTINNE-RENETTE GALLERY 270
LIV.--OPEN AIR RANGES 276
LV.--SHOOTING IN LITERATURE 280
LVI.--GRIP 285
LVII.--TRICK SHOOTING 291
LVIII.--THE DEVILLIERS BULLET 300
LIX.--KILLING INJURED ANIMALS 305
LX.--COMPETITIONS 313
LXI.--POLICE PISTOLS 317
LXII.--INVENTORS 320
LXIII.--SIMPLIFICATION 326
APPENDIX A 333
APPENDIX B. THE LAW RELATING TO REVOLVERS AND REVOLVER SHOOTING
IN GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND 351
APPENDIX C. THE LAW OF CARRYING WEAPONS IN THE UNITED STATES 360
ILLUSTRATIONS
PAGE
THE AUTHOR _Frontispiece_
BREECH-LOADING PISTOLS 47
AUTHOR’S WINNING SCORE FOR GASTINNE-RENETTE COMPETITION,
APRIL 7, 1910 49
COLT AUTOMATIC PISTOL, POCKET MODEL, CALIBRE .32 52
COLT AUTOMATIC PISTOL .22 TARGET MODEL 54
COLT AUTOMATIC PISTOL, MILITARY MODEL, CALIBRE .38 70
COLT AUTOMATIC PISTOL, MILITARY MODEL, CALIBRE .45 70
HOW TO HOLD THE DUELLING PISTOL (1) 82
HOW TO HOLD THE DUELLING PISTOL WITH SPUR (2) 83
COLT NEW SAFETY DISCONNECTOR AUTOMATIC PISTOL, .25 129
THE GASTINNE-RENETTE 16 METRES TARGET 168
ORNAMENTAL DUELLING PISTOLS BY GASTINNE-RENETTE 181
PISTOLS BY GASTINNE-RENETTE 183
COLT DERRINGER 203
COLT AUTOMATIC PISTOL .25 205
UNITED STATES ARMY REGULATION .45 COLT AUTOMATIC PISTOL 233
UNITED STATES ARMY REGULATION .45 COLT AUTOMATIC PISTOL.
SECTIONAL VIEW 237
GASTINNE-RENETTE GALLERY 271
GASTINNE-RENETTE GALLERY--FIRING POINTS 273
SHIELD ON DUELLING PISTOL WITH GUARD FOR DEVILLIERS BULLET 301
THE GREENER KILLER 310
WINANS’ REVOLVER FRONT SIGHTS 324
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 334
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 335
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 336
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 337
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 338
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 339
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE. TWENTY YARDS DISAPPEARING TARGET 340
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE. TWENTY YARDS DISAPPEARING TARGET 341
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE. TWENTY YARDS DISAPPEARING TARGET 342
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE. SIX SHOTS IN 12 SECONDS 343
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE. FOR MILITARY REVOLVER AND SIGHTS 344
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE. TWENTY YARDS RAPID-FIRING TARGET 345
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE. FOR 3-INCH BULL’S-EYE TRAVERSING
TARGET, 20 YARDS 346
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE. FOR 2-INCH BULL’S-EYE TRAVERSING
TARGET, 20 YARDS 347
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE ADVANCING TARGET 348
AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE FIFTY YARDS TARGET 349
TWELVE HIGHEST POSSIBLE SCORES MADE BY THE AUTHOR IN REVOLVER
COMPETITIONS AT 20 YARDS IN 1895 350
The Modern Pistol and How to Shoot it
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
There is now no use learning revolver shooting. That form of pistol is
obsolete except in the few instances where it survives for target
shooting, or is carried for self-defence; just as flintlock muskets even
now survive in out-of-the-way parts of the world.
If a man tries to defend himself with a revolver against another armed
with an automatic pistol he is at a great disadvantage.
The automatic is more accurate than a revolver, as the “blow-back” does
not vary as much as does the escape of gas past the cylinder in a
revolver.
The bullet in the revolver has to jump into the cylinder, whereas in the
automatic it is already fitted up against the rifling, before being
fired.
The single-shot pistol is the most accurate of any, there being no escape
of gas.
The automatic has not only a much longer range than the revolver (although
the popular idea that it can be shot accurately at a thousand yards or
more is nonsense) but it cocks itself instead of having to be cocked by
the thumb, or trigger finger.
Cocking by trigger-pull is such a strain on, not only the trigger finger,
but the whole hand, that, after a few shots, good shooting cannot be made.
I won all my rapid-firing revolver competitions using the single action
and cocking with the thumb, as this rested my trigger finger.
With the automatic, cocking is unnecessary and, with its lighter recoil,
good scores in rapid-firing are very much easier to make.
The penetration of the nickel-coated automatic bullet propelled by its big
charge of nitro powder is very great.
A man brought me a “pistol-proof” cuirass to test; I put a bullet at
twelve yards clean through it and then through two “bullet proof” ones,
placed one behind the other. (I used a regulation U. S. .45 Automatic
pistol.)
This was before the war. The inventor was disappointed. He had
experimented only with revolvers shooting soft leaden bullets and these
his cuirass had stopped.
Unfortunately, in its present comparatively imperfect development, the
automatic is the most dangerous firearm of all pistols for a novice to
handle.
The long barrel of a rifle can be struck aside if a beginner swings it
round and points it at the instructor or a nearby spectator, but the short
barrel of a pistol is easily pointed at and with difficulty brushed aside
by the unfortunate person standing near a “brandishing” and “flourishing”
man who is learning to shoot.
In spite of all warnings even those who ought to know better do this
swinging about. In fact, it is the recognized way of handling a pistol;
according to reporters, they always say So and So “was brandishing a
pistol” if he happens to be armed.
You can test the truth of the above remark by asking any one to show how
he would shoot a pistol.
He will raise his hand above his head and then jerk it down. It is very
difficult to get any one to understand the danger and the futility of
doing this.
Euclid tells us the shortest way from one point to another is a straight
line. Why then, in order to get the muzzle of your pistol on an object,
move it towards the stars first?
_Never let the muzzle of any firearm, either loaded or unloaded, point in
the direction where it would do harm unintentionally if discharged._
I, once only, in all my experience, found a beginner who did _not_ do
this, and the beginner was a lady!
After a few shots with a duelling pistol the wind blew the target down,
the pistol was loaded and at full-cock in her hands. I had seen enough of
how she handled a pistol, to know she had grasped the necessity of never
pointing where there is danger.
The target blew down as she was beginning to aim at it; she raised the
muzzle vertically and put the pistol at half-cock, I at the same moment
going forward to put the target back in place.
With any other beginner I would have taken the pistol with me when I went
up to the target.
Smoking is one of the greatest enemies to good shooting, even more so than
alcohol.
A drinking man may, for a time, shoot well, till his nerves are destroyed,
but smoking, long before it kills, makes a man unable to shoot well. He
has too much twitch in his muscles.
It is curious how heavy smokers deceive themselves, and think it does them
no harm.
At a dinner, a man told me that smoking could not possibly interfere with
a man’s shooting.
He said: “I can lift a tumbler full of water without spilling a drop.”
There were plenty of tumblers and a decanter before him, but he took very
good care not to demonstrate his contention.
I looked for his hands; he had one carefully out of sight, behind him; the
other, with the eternal cigarette between the fingers, he was pressing
tightly to his waistcoat, but not tightly enough to prevent my seeing
that his hand was trembling as if with the palsy.
Then, he added, to clinch his argument:
It is all nonsense to pretend that smokers cannot stop smoking if they
want to; I stopped for a whole week and the only thing was that I did
not sleep and had no appetite; it was not worth it, so I began smoking
again.
This is an extreme case, but all smoking, from the first whiff, is
cumulative poison, deteriorating the nerves.
If a man gives up smoking and takes to pistol shooting in the open air, he
will find his nerves enormously strengthened and, as long as he guards his
ears from the concussion (which I will deal with later), his health much
improved.
For elderly men also there is not the strain on the heart as in golf or
tennis.
CHAPTER II
SPORT VERSUS SPORTS
When I wrote my book on revolver shooting, in 1900, I caused indignation
amongst many, by saying that the time wasted over games would be better
employed in learning to shoot.
I was told that, although pistol shooting might be amusing, it was “such a
waste of time and of no practical use,” and this by men who waste most of
their time over golf!
Later, the Kipling poem on _Flanneled Fools and Muddied Oafs_ came out,
and there was an outcry as if one of the dogmas of the church had been
assailed.
If games are so good for the health, why does one see so many young men
with round backs and contracted chests, and heads poking forward, in
England?
Until the war is forgotten, shooting men will be considered as making
better use of their time than players of games, and the latter will not
consider themselves superior to all others, and, figuratively speaking,
carve footballs on the tombs of their heroes (as the feet were crossed on
the tombs of crusaders) to indicate the greatest deed of the deceased.
A great deal of this worship of “Sports” is the confusion, owing to the
similarity of the sound and spelling, between “_sport_” and “_sports_.”
“_Sport_” is the backbone of all manhood. It is the hunting instinct
inherent in all healthy, normal males; it means the cultivation of skill
in shooting and horsemanship, and men proficient in it are ready to rise
in the defence of their country.
This is what “_sport_” means. Now, however, the term “_sportsman_” is
employed to mean a man who has never fired a shot or swung his leg over a
horse, but one who is merely a kicker or hitter of balls, or worse, one
who sits sucking at a cigarette watching others playing games. The things
he indulges in are called “_sports_,” and it is “_sports_” which, before
the war, were considered to overshadow all else, and were taught at
schools and colleges.
A feeble old man, past active participation in “_sport_” can be, of
course, excused if he keeps himself in health by playing golf, but a
healthy young man should shoot or ride.
The general public, not knowing the training necessary before a man can
either shoot or ride, imagines that there is no necessity to learn either.
They think that the moment a man puts on a military uniform he can ride in
a cavalry charge, break wild horses, or hit a man a thousand yards off
with either pistol or rifle.
Besides the absence of skill in shooting, there is not in such men the
_instinct_ to shoot.
A shooting man has in him the instinct of shooting, so innate that he aims
and presses the trigger as instinctively as he lifts his foot when
stepping off the road on to the curb.
He does not have to think at all.
If he is crossing a field in which there is a savage bull, when carrying a
gun, rifle, or pistol, his only anxiety is not to be compelled to shoot.
It might get him into trouble with the farmer. Any danger to himself from
the bull he knows does not exist.
A man who knows nothing about shooting, even if given a loaded pistol,
gun, or rifle, before crossing the field, would be more afraid of the
firearm going off than of the bull, and, if attacked, would club the gun
or rifle to hit the bull with, or would throw the pistol at it.
Painters of battle pictures depict soldiers using their rifles as clubs or
pikes, not as shooting with them.
As an artist myself, I know one excuse for this.
You need a model who is a shooting man, to pose correctly for a soldier
shooting. Such a model is expensive, but you can get any one to pose as a
man clubbing with the butt end of his rifle.
When I say that every able-bodied man should know how to shoot, and that
it is a disgrace if a man cannot both shoot and ride, I am answered:
“Shooting is a gift, I could not learn to shoot if I tried all my life.”
This is nonsense. A man may be more apt for it, which generally means
that he has a liking for it; and this enables him to learn to shoot sooner
and to become a better shot. But any normal man, and with even moderately
good sight, can learn to shoot well enough to make of himself a very
dangerous opponent.
It is the way shooting competitions are conducted (as I will explain
later), which makes shooting so uninteresting to the average man.
It is to him like having to take a black draught of medicine.
I confess the usual shooting gallery has the same effect on me; I always
pass by on the other side when I see the notice “SHOOTING GALLERY.”
The constant paragraphs in the papers announcing a “did not know it was
loaded” accident bear testimony to how ignorant the public are of even the
elementary knowledge (I will not say common sense), not to point a firearm
at another in play.
The public think that a bullet goes only where the shooter wants it to go,
“You pull the trigger and the bullet does the rest” sort of idea.
They believe the bullet goes direct of itself to that object and stops
there, when the trigger is pulled. They have no idea that the bullet may
miss that object and hit someone beyond.
People will stand in the direct line of fire to watch a wounded buck in a
park being shot, and are indignant if asked to move to one side.
They think it is absolutely safe to fire into the air, even in a crowded
city. They do not think that the falling bullet may do any injury.
As there is only slight danger from falling shot, this fosters the idea.
They do not know the difference between a shotgun or rifle. Both are
“sporting rifles” to them and a military rifle is a “gun.”
A man does not put a razor to the throat of another in play, but he thinks
it “humour” to take up a firearm, point it at another and pull the
trigger.
The extraordinary thing is that if the “did not know it was loaded” man
were taken to a range and asked to hit a target, he would miss it every
shot, but he never misses his victim when he is playing at the game of “I
did not know it was loaded.” He kills his victim every time.
The reason is that the fool takes very good care to go up to within a few
inches of his victim before killing him with his “I did not know it was
loaded” joke.
Some people have no sense of humour.
They handle horses in the same way, but, fortunately, animals make
allowance for ignorance in human beings but a firearm makes no such
allowance. Therefore there are fewer accidents to human beings from horses
than from firearms, in proportion to the silly things the humans do.
A dog will allow a small child to poke its fingers in its eyes. If a grown
person attempted it he would get bitten, but a pistol makes no such
distinction.
I was being shown round a remount depot where the horses were picketed out
with a hind leg tethered to a peg, when a sour-looking, underbred
artillery horse, began kicking at his neighbour.
The horse kicked himself free and trotted off to the corner of the field,
where he stood, sulkily, with his ears laid back, a piece of rope wedged
between his near hind shoe and the foot.
A man was ordered to bring the horse back. He was wearing a pince-nez of
very near sighted type.
Now what he ought to have done was to first catch the horse, taking care
not to get kicked whilst doing so, then to hold up a fore leg (so that the
horse could not kick), whilst someone else removed the bit of rope from
the hind shoe, standing to one side.
Instead, he walked up straight behind the horse. When he got within a few
yards of him, to my intense horror, he went down on his hands and knees
and began crawling towards the horse’s hind legs.
The horse had been laying back his ears and showing the whites of his eyes
and measuring the distance for a kick at the man.
This manœuvre on the man’s part, however, so surprised the horse that he
stood quite still, looking at the man enquiringly.
The man crawled up close to the horse’s heels, took out his pocket knife
and, putting his nose within a few inches of the horse’s near hind foot,
quietly sawed away at the piece of rope with his blunt pocket knife and
jerked the ends out from between the shoe and hoof. The horse stood like
an angel all the time.
The man to this day has not the least idea he ran any risk or performed an
act worthy of the V. C.
The horse evidently thought such a fool was not worth kicking. There is no
fun kicking a man who is not frightened.
CHAPTER III
WHY PISTOL SHOOTING IS UNPOPULAR
Games, or “_sports_” as they are called, would not be popular if they were
conducted on the same lines that pistol shooting usually is.
Pistol shooting is made as dull and uninteresting as possible, and then
surprise is expressed that hardly any one takes a pistol in his hand,
except when compelled to do so, and that shooting galleries do not pay.
Small white squares of cardboard, a minute black spot in the middle of
each, are put up at various distances. You are told to aim at this spot.
If you hit it it counts so much, if you miss it, the further from it you
perforate the paper, the less points you score.
When you have fired a certain number of shots, the total is added up and
you go on again.
Occasionally, you have the mild excitement of being allowed to do this in
competition, and a “spoon” is given you if you make top score, paid for
out of your own money less a percentage which the gallery keeps.
Your skill does not avail you long, as the next time you shoot, by
however many points you have won, by that number of points you are
handicapped, so it is possible that if you get _very_ proficient, you can
have the pleasure, when making all bull’s-eyes, of being beaten by a man
who has not made a single bull’s-eye, and beats you by handicap, and the
list of spoon winners appears in the papers with his name on top and yours
at the bottom, and people say, “How badly X shoots.”
This is not very encouraging to X or conducive to a desire to gain
proficiency.
However bad a shot you are, you have an equal chance of winning this
spoon.
Even the possibility of gaining a spoon applies to only a few shooting
clubs. The shooting galleries in black cellars, do not give prizes. You
are supposed to be fully compensated, after being deafened by a man with a
full charge revolver or automatic pistol blazing away into the darkness
beside you, by paying for your targets, ammunition, and hire of a greasy
revolver with a trigger-pull hard enough to break your finger and a report
like a cannon, whilst you strain your eyes to see a black front sight in
the darkness.
There is no sport, or comfort, in all this. Under such circumstances
nobody can be blamed if he gives up pistol shooting in disgust.
I shall describe later, how a gallery should be built (see Plates 15 and
16), or an open range planned and conducted, but I here merely indicate
why pistol shooting in England is deservedly unpopular as at present
conducted.
There should be no handicapping. Being able to shoot well should be an
incentive, not a handicap.
Next, there should be the excitement and amusement of a game.
Who would go to look at a game conducted under the following conditions?
Sit in a room with all the lights out, with a faint glimmer at the far
end.
Hear incessant, deafening noises.
Nothing else but noise for an hour or two, except occasionally a pause
whilst the black spot in the distance disappears and then reappears.
Finally a man reading from a piece of paper announces:
X 40 points, First.
Y 39 points, Second.
Z 38 points, Third.
Then you go home.
Some drudgery in learning has to be gone through with, but it should be in
a good light out-of-doors, and this drudgery is only while learning. It
should not be continued all through a man’s shooting career, and be
considered “pistol shooting.”
As I will show, shooting can be made intensely interesting to both
spectators and participants.
The present style of shooting competitions leads many sportsmen to say: “I
love shooting, but I hate target shooting.”
CHAPTER IV
THE WRONG WAY TO LEARN
Pistol practice varies in different countries.
As duelling is still general on the Continent, practice with the pistol is
conducted differently to that customary in the United States or England.
On the Continent most men of the upper classes have at least a rudimentary
acquaintance with the foil and duelling pistol, but in the
English-speaking nations a man has rarely ever handled or even seen a
duelling pistol, or the few who have done pistol shooting have never shot
except at a stationary bull’s-eye target.
At the English National Rifle Association at Bisley, the attempt was made
to induce men to practise at moving, rapid-firing, and disappearing
targets, as well as advancing and retiring ones, but these had reluctantly
one by one to be given up, owing to there being so few men who cared to
shoot in such competitions.
In the days when I used to compete regularly at Bisley, I do not think
there were more than half a dozen of us who competed at the sliding
target, and even fewer at the rapid-firing one.
We, in those days, used revolvers and black powder, which made such
shooting very difficult owing to the smoke obscuring the target.
I give at the end of this book the best targets, full size, made in these
competitions which will now remain permanently the best on record, as the
revolver and ammunition are no longer made. They will rank with the “High
Wheel” trotting records as “Hors Concours.”
Any one who wishes to compete in revolver-shooting competitions in England
must modify my teaching in the preceding chapters, and refer to my _Art of
Revolver Shooting_ for details of competition.
The duelling pistol is not used in England, but there are many revolvers
still in use there; England is the last country to use the revolver in the
army, and is the last refuge of the revolver, just as Yellowstone Park is
the last refuge of the buffalo.
For competition in England, practising will have to be done with a
revolver, not an automatic pistol, and a deliberate aim taken at a black
bull’s-eye on a white target.
In the United States, the automatic pistol is the sole weapon now. Several
Challenge Trophies, which I modelled and presented to various
associations, have had to have their conditions altered to “automatic
pistols” from “revolvers,” and as the automatic inevitably tends to rapid
shooting, the days of stationary target shooting are numbered.
Many people defend shooting at a stationary target, on the plea that one
must learn one’s alphabet before learning to read.
This is correct _as far as it goes_, but they carefully omit to add that
after a boy has learned his alphabet, he goes on to reading, and writing.
He does not merely repeat his alphabet all his life.
Just the same argument is used by those who say that blundering through
Greek and Latin, with the help of a dictionary, teaches modern languages;
that these latter are “so easy after a grounding in Latin and Greek.”
If it is so easy why do they not learn modern languages. They cannot speak
a word of any language but their own, and even the few sentences of Latin
and Greek they can parrot-like repeat, no foreigner can understand, as
they pronounce them with the English vowel sounds. For the same reason
they mispronounce all foreign names.
A Russian who cannot speak French and German as well as his own language
is considered entirely uneducated.
A man may be a crack shot at a stationary target and yet be absolutely
useless with his pistol in case of having to use it in a hurry at anything
in motion.
If you want to learn something, learn it, do not learn another thing, so
as to be prepared to learn something else later on, _if_ you care to.
If you want to eat a peach do not first drink ten plates of soup, and eat
a leg of mutton, or you may not have the time or desire to eat the peach.
If you want to learn practical pistol shooting, learn it, do not waste
time learning unpractical shooting.
You not only waste your _time_, but you spoil your “_timing_,” which is
the great thing in pistol shooting, and also your sense of direction. You
get into the habit of putting up your pistol and then searching for the
bull’s-eye, instead of having it all come by instinct, like putting your
spoon into your mouth.
I can tell a man who is not a practical shot, by the way he first finds
his sights, and then hunts round for the target with them. If it were a
live target, it would have made itself scarce while he was searching for
his sights.
CHAPTER V
PRELIMINARY INFORMATION
In revolver shooting there was the danger of making a bad shot through a
badly fitted or dirty cylinder not turning quite into place, and causing a
shaving of lead to be taken off the bullet as it passed into the barrel.
I was once trying a new pattern revolver, and made a very bad shot,
although I knew I had let-off well. I opened the revolver, and a thin
shred of lead fell out, showing the bullet had been deformed as it entered
the barrel.
A bad shot from such a cause cannot happen to an automatic or a
single-shot pistol.
A near-sighted man is at more disadvantage in pistol shooting than in
rifle shooting.
With a rifle the hind sight can be fixed to the barrel nearer, or further
from the eye until it is at just the right distance to suit the shooter.
The pistol must be held at the full stretch of the arm, or else one will
get a blow on the nose, and will not be able to hold steadily.
A long-sighted man can continue pistol shooting without having to wear
glasses long after he has to use them for reading.
A near-sighted man finds the hind sight too far for him to see it clearly,
and then makes the fatal mistake of shooting with a bent arm.
This not only prevents accurate shooting, but he is very apt to get the
hind sight into his eye from the recoil of a kicking automatic.
The arm should be held straight and extended to full stretch, so as to
point the pistol by sense of direction, just as a well-fitting shotgun
stock enables the shooter to aim without consciously paying any attention
to the sights.
Use the pistol exactly as you would use a shotgun. It is this want of
knowledge of shotgun shooting which makes men shoot a pistol as if it were
a rifle being used at a stationary target.
These men only understand lying down with a rifle, and poking about with
the sights to find the target after they have put the rifle to their
shoulder. Some have a lot of incantations first; they aim at the sky,
bring the rifle down slowly, and then make a bull’s-eye on the wrong
target as they naturally cannot know which is theirs of a string of
targets, if they only fish about looking through a pin hole for it; they
know nothing of the possibilities of a rifle or pistol, unless they are
shotgun shooters as well.
The public consider “I did not know it was loaded” as ample and full
excuse when one man shoots another in a so-called “accident.”
Not to know if the firearm you are handling is loaded is _an unpardonable
crime_. It is so simple to open the firearm and see for yourself. I never
take the owner’s word for it if he tells me a firearm is not loaded.
Before I handle it, I examine it for myself.
The public think that no one but an expert can possibly know if a firearm
is loaded; that the only way to know is to pull the trigger, and if any
one happens to be shot, well, that is unavoidable and nobody is to blame.
It is to try to partly remedy this danger (it is impossible to make any
firearm or instruction in its use “fool-proof”) that I ask any one who
takes up this book to read the two following chapters, even if they take
no interest in shooting. It may save a life.
Everything we do is a compromise, and nothing human can be made perfect in
all particulars.
I give my ideas of what is wanting in automatics, not from a mechanic’s
point of view, but from that of the one who has to shoot them.
Few mechanics are shooting experts. They make beautiful pistols from a
mechanical point of view, but which are clumsy and unpractical from the
shooter’s point of view.
Early inventors of automatics were not practical shots.
The inventor of one of the earliest automatics came to me with his
invention. It was utterly impossible to handle or make any good shooting
with it. It was like trying to eat soup with a fork. He kept telling me
that if I “held it like this” and “did this,” I should be able to shoot
with it, but it was as if he had told me if I sat with my face to the tail
of the horse and held on by his hocks, I should be able to ride better
than the usual way. Besides being of a most unwieldy shape, to grasp which
you had to spread your fingers in all directions, this pioneer of the
automatic pistol had all sorts of levers which must be moved by your
different fingers in order to shoot it, as if you were playing the cornet.
Inventors, instead of evolving a pistol from their imagination, should
consult an expert pistol shot, as to what improvements on existing pistols
are required.
We are told by writers who use the fashionable word “imagination,” that to
do anything, from governing a Nation to destroying submarines, “All that
is needed is a man with ‘Imagination.’”
“Imagination” may do many things in legend or story but it will not teach
a man pistol shooting, or enable him to invent an automatic pistol. I put
experience and technical knowledge before “imagination” and theories.
In rifles there is the same sort of difficulty. It took me years before I
found a gunmaker who would try to make a rifle on the lines I consider
desirable for big-game shooting.
Big game is shot at short range, so flat trajectory is of no importance.
What is important is to have a rifle which is light and well balanced and
yet will knock down an animal with a terrific blow at close range. One
does not want the sort of rifle so largely advertised as an ideal rifle
for big-game shooting--a rifle which weighs as much as an arm-chair,
balances like a poker, kicks like a horse, and is warranted to shoot into
a two-inch bull’s-eye at four hundred yards, but is impossible to align on
a rapidly moving animal at a few yards off, owing to its clumsiness and
weight.
Inventors of firearms expect their customers to adapt themselves to their
weapons instead of making the weapon to fit their customers, and answer to
their requirements.
I stopped a man just in time, taking a Lea-Metford to shoot rooks with!
I was lecturing on the cruelty and uselessness of docking horses,
amputating the bones and nerves of the horse’s tail and searing it with a
hot iron, and what for? A man in the audience stood up and said: “If I did
not dock my horse he would be too long to fit between the shafts of my
cart.”
This is just the inventor’s attitude:
You must shorten your trigger finger by cutting off the first joint. I
cannot alter all the blue prints of my invention just because you find
the trigger too far back for your finger. Your finger is too long; my
invention is perfect.
As a shooting man, not a gunmaker, I may suggest improvements
impracticable to make with present means, but it was not by saying
machines heavier than the air cannot be made to rise that the aeroplane
was evolved.
It will be found that I have modified and even entirely changed some of my
ideas since I published the _Art of Revolver Shooting_ in 1890.
This is of course inevitable: one lives and learns, and I have learned
much on the subject since then. Mechanical improvements have altered and
eliminated difficulties which I had to teach how to avoid twenty-eight
years ago.
On the other hand, new difficulties have arisen which have to be combated.
Those who cribbed from my former writings made a great mistake, and
instruction which was quite right for revolvers is wrong for automatics.
The position of the thumb, for instance, or the filing of the sights
(which, almost without exception, these compilers of books have taken
without acknowledgment from my _Art of Revolver Shooting_), are not
applicable to modern pistols.
The best way to learn pistol shooting is to have an expert stand beside
you, but, lacking this, the only way is to read a book by an expert.
It is very easy to write and to pose as an expert by the use of scissors,
but it is rather hard on those who wish to learn, and also on those whose
ideas are taken and used without acknowledgment.
I do not think any expert could write a book on pistol shooting using
quotations, as each man has his own system.
CHAPTER VI
HOW TO PREVENT ACCIDENTS
It is no use carrying a pistol in your pocket for self-defence, and to
have it go off and kill yourself, or much worse, shoot the person you are
trying to save.
The first, foremost, and last thing is never to point the muzzle towards
anywhere you do not want a bullet to go.
Never mind if the pistol is empty, treat it as if it were loaded. “I did
not think it was loaded” or “he was cleaning the pistol and it exploded”
are the stock excuses when an accident occurs.
Firearms to the non-expert “explode” at odd moments, and nobody is to
blame; he thinks it is the nature of a pistol to “explode” spontaneously.
I cannot myself understand how a man can clean a loaded pistol, as by
cleaning I understand getting the fouling, nickel, etc., out of the bore
of the pistol, and the cartridge must first be extracted to do this. But I
suppose a man not used to a pistol would mean by cleaning, polishing the
outside, raising the hammer, and then putting a rag through the trigger
guard and pulling it backwards and forwards against the trigger with the
butt of the pistol resting on his knee and the barrel against his chest.
He of course does not first open the pistol to see if it is loaded; he
leaves it for the inquest to decide “that he did not know it was loaded.”
I am not writing for such people; they are better shot and out of the way,
else they might hurt others.
The second thing is never to load the pistol except when necessary.
Most people buy an automatic, get the gunmaker to load it for them, and
put it in a drawer or their pocket, and keep it like that for years, or
worse, leave it lying about loaded.
A pistol must be periodically cleaned. If it is kept loaded for years, it
will probably jamb if any one attempts to fire it.
A pistol kept loaded _is a constant source of danger to everyone,
including the owner_.
I knew of a case where a revolver was kept loaded by a bedside for twenty
years and thrown into a trunk each time the owner went on a journey.
After the owner’s death, I was asked to see if the pistol was safe.
It was lying in its case beside the bed, and when I opened the case I
found the barrel was lying so that it pointed at the head of any one
sleeping in the bed.
I found it loaded in all the chambers, the hammer let down on one of the
caps so that its sharp point, by constant friction, had polished and
nearly worn through the cap.
I took it into the garden and fired that cartridge.
The hammer had during all those years rested on this cap and the least tap
on the hammer would have fired it. Each time it was thrown into the trunk
it was a mercy it had not gone off.
If it had remained on the cap much longer, the sharp nose of the hammer
would have reached the fulminate and fired the revolver.
Here was a case of a loaded revolver, like the sword of Damocles,
threatening the life of its owner all night long, every night, though it
was put by the bed as a safeguard.
The hammer should have been put down on an empty chamber.
However, to repeat, never point a pistol under any circumstances at
anything you do not want to shoot.
Never have it loaded except when absolutely necessary.
Now as to when it is necessary to have it loaded. Most people are much
safer if they _never load it_. If you want a pistol to frighten burglars
with or to carry in dark lanes at night, get a _brightly plated nickel_
one. The larger you can carry the better. _Do not buy any cartridges for
it._
If you get the gunmaker to render it impossible to fire it, even if
loaded, so much the better.
You can stop any but the most desperate man by “brandishing” this at him
in approved theatrical style.
I know of a jeweller who stopped a highwayman by pointing the nickel
plated pump of his bicycle at him.
During the war a man took a number of the enemy prisoners by threatening
them with his empty revolver.
For people who know nothing of firearms it is much the safest plan not to
have any cartridges.
Never allow “ornaments” shaped like pistols to lie about.
People get so used to playing with these that they at once point a real
pistol when they can get hold of it.
Even when a pistol has to be fired it only needs to be loaded just before
being used, as a rule.
When target shooting, it need only be loaded the moment before getting
into position for shooting. If all the shots are not immediately fired
from this position it should be at once unloaded.
I saw a most disgraceful neglect of this precaution at a shooting meeting,
which if the Range Officer had also seen, the man would have been expelled
from all meetings. He was an expert revolver shot too!
Several of us had made very good scores with the revolver at a stationary
target.
This man came up carrying a hand bag in which his revolver and cartridges
were kept.
“I have a few minutes to spare before my train goes, and I will have
another try to beat you”; so saying he took out his revolver and
cartridges, handed in his ticket, loaded, and began a score. He made three
bad shots, swore, then without taking out his cartridges, he just opened
his bag, put the revolver in, shut the bag and went off.
Never touch an automatic pistol until you are expert with a single-shot
pistol. I do not mean expert to make good scores, but _absolutely safe_
not to point it at any one, and able to take out the cartridge with safety
or to put the pistol at safe or half-cock.
We will suppose you have the single-shot pistol and cartridges, and the
target in front of you with a sufficiently large background that it does
not matter where your bullet goes if you keep your muzzle always pointed
in that direction.
It is almost impossible to have a range absolutely safe against an
accidental discharge putting the bullet over the butts.
A man who swings his pistol over his head is almost sure some day to let
off a bullet high over the butts if he does not blow his own brains out
first.
If the shooter pays attention all the time to keeping the muzzle of his
pistol pointed towards the butt he will be safe even if his pistol goes
off accidently.
The barrel must be aligned towards the butt. Most beginners think that, if
they see the muzzle of the pistol against the butt, it is aimed at the
butt. That is not so. You can hold a pistol almost vertical like a candle
in its socket, and think the muzzle covers the centre of the target, but
if it is fired in this position the bullet will go straight in the air.
To aim a pistol, the breech (the part nearest the butt of the pistol) must
be aligned with the muzzle on the target.
Keep the pistol lying on a table before you and pointing at the butt, and
when you lift it always keep it thus horizontal or slightly inclining
towards the ground but always pointed at the butt.
All single-shot breech-loading pistols open by pressing a lever, whether
on top, at the side, or underneath the barrel.
Press this and open the pistol, look through the barrel to see that there
is no cartridge in it and that the barrel is clear, and then close it.
Do this constantly for many days, so that you get into the habit the
moment you take the pistol in your hand to look through it to see if it is
unloaded, and no obstruction in it. To fire a pistol which has an
obstruction in the barrel may burst the pistol.
If any one asks to see the pistol, first open it in his presence, of
course pointing away from him or any one else, and look through the barrel
before handing it to him. If an automatic, first take out the magazine and
open the barrel as well.
Unless he is a shooting man do not hand him any cartridges. If he wants to
see what your cartridges are like take the pistol back, open it again and
see that it is still empty, put it away safely, and _then_ hand him a
cartridge to examine.
All this may seem super-caution but it is necessary, especially with an
automatic, and unless you do this by instinct with the safer single-shot
pistol, you may at any moment have a dreadful accident with an automatic
for which you will be sorry all your life.
Now, standing facing the butt, open the pistol, put a cartridge in it (an
empty cartridge case, not a loaded one). Put the pistol, if it has an
outside hammer, to full-cock, being very careful to keep it pointed at the
butt, lower the hammer to half-cock, open the pistol and extract the
cartridge, and close the pistol again; repeat this many times till you can
cock and half-cock without the hammer slipping or falling by accident.
If it had a loaded cartridge in it the pistol would go off should you let
the hammer slip down, which is one of the most frequent causes of
accidents with pistols having external hammers.
Some hammer pistols have a rebound, that is, when the hammer falls it
rebounds to half-cock.
CHAPTER VII
HOW TO PREVENT ACCIDENTS (_Continued_)
Do not forget the hammer has three positions.
Down on the cartridge, “half-cock,” and “full-cock.” The latter is when
the pistol is ready to be fired, when at half-cock it cannot be fired by
pulling the trigger and is supposed to be safe against accidental
discharge, but it can be fired accidently if, in raising the hammer to
full-cock it slips, owing to clumsiness or a greasy hammer or thumb, or
the hammer may get caught in something and be raised accidentally.
For this reason it is best to have the part of the hammer the thumb
presses against in cocking corrugated, roughed like a file.
Take the barrel in the left hand, holding the pistol horizontally pointing
at the target.
Take the grip in your right hand, put your right thumb on the projection
of the cock (not from straight behind it but slightly from the right
side); this enables you to get a firm grip of the hammer and at the same
time of the stock with your other fingers.
Now, do _not_ do what all beginners do.
_Do not put your first finger on the trigger when cocking._ Keep all your
fingers outside the trigger guard to avoid any chance of your touching the
trigger when cocking.
There are two causes of accidental falling of the hammer in cocking and so
causing an accidental discharge of the pistol.
One is the hammer slipping from the thumb, or being released by the thumb
before it is fully at full-cock.
The other is pulling at the trigger at the same time that the pistol is
being cocked (which learners invariably do).
The result of pulling the trigger at the same time is that the hammer does
not catch into the bent which holds it, and falls as soon as the thumb is
removed.
There is a click when the pistol is well at full-cock, which tells you the
pistol is properly cocked, the hammer or cock goes slightly beyond
full-cock and then comes into place by a click. (See quotation from
Byron’s _Don Juan_ on a later page.)
To put to half-cock is the most ticklish of all and is the cause of most
pistol accidents.
The thing to do is to let the hammer fall to just below half-cock and then
bring it back to half-cock. If it falls too low it fires the pistol, if it
does not click it has not properly got to half-cock.
Still holding the barrel of the pistol in the left hand and the grip in
your right (keep the pistol carefully pointed at the butt where an
accidental discharge would do no harm), put your right thumb on the
hammer. When you have a firm touch of it so that it cannot escape you as
it falls, put your first finger on the trigger and press, but _only_ for
an instant.
The hammer will fall but you must keep it from falling fast, by holding
back with your thumb. Lower the hammer down to just below half-cock back
to half-cock and then release your thumb hold.
If the hammer went its full fall it would explode the cartridge. With a
rebounding hammer, the hammer falls and instantly springs back to
half-cock. Therefore in letting a rebounding lock down from full to
half-cock, if you are able to restrain it well during the first part of
its descent, even if it slips from your thumb before it is quite at
half-cock, the rebound overcomes the downward fall and it rebounds to
half-cock without actually exploding the cartridge because it does not
quite reach it.
Half-cock is the safest position for a loaded single-shot pistol but not
safe enough to carry in a pocket or holster loaded. For that, it needs a
safety lock to hold it at half-cock.
As you gain confidence you will find that, with a rebounding lock (such as
all duelling pistols of full-size calibre by the best makers have), it
requires very little holding back at the hammer in letting it down to
half-cock and the hammer remains at half-cock by itself, without any
click.
With an ordinary hammer which remains down when it is fired (like many
single-shot pistols of American make or the .2 bulleted caps of the
“Flobert Pistol”), the hammer must be kept firmly held until it is below
half-cock, and then brought to half-cock where it will click, as it also
does at full-cock.
The great advantage of an automatic pistol is that it does not have this
click and so does not give warning to an adversary and is not apt to go
off by accident when being put at safe.
If the trigger is held back whilst cocking it is as if you were to ask a
man to sit down and pull the chair from under him. He falls just like the
hammer.
Almost all modern pistols with visible hammers have rebounding locks so
that after the hammer falls, on the trigger being pressed, and explodes
the cartridge, then it jumps back to half-cock of itself. This saves time
as otherwise the hammer resting on the exploded cartridge would have to be
raised by the thumb to half-cock before the exploded cartridge could be
extracted and a fresh one put in.
Now, practise till you are perfect, using an empty cartridge.
Open, insert cartridge, close, put to full-cock, lower to half-cock,
extract cartridge, close pistol.
Do not be satisfied till you can do all this without a hitch or hesitation
and without letting the hammer slip.
When you do this perfectly you can go on to the next lesson, but not
before.
When you have the pistol at full-cock, it can be fired by pressing the
trigger, but we have not come to that yet. We are only learning how to
safely handle a pistol.
CHAPTER VIII
TRIGGER-PULL
Very few people pay attention to the strength of the trigger-pull of their
pistols.
They accept whatever trigger-pull it has when they buy it.
They do not know that trigger-pull can vary from a hair trigger up to many
pounds weight.
First-class gunmakers make the “weight,” as it is called, of their trigger
as light and smooth as possible subject to its being safe to handle.
The subject of safe trigger-pull is a variable quantity.
An expert shot can be trusted with a trigger-pull so light that in the
hands of a less skilful or careful shot there would be great danger of the
pistol being discharged accidentally. The automatic pistol is put to
full-cock automatically with violence, by the discharge. Therefore the
trigger-pull has to be made much heavier than the trigger-pull of a
single-shot pistol, where the shooter cocks it gently with his own hand.
A typical example of how men, even after a lifetime of shooting, pay no
attention to the weight of their trigger-pulls occurs to me.
An old gentleman, belonging to one of the learned professions, who had
been an enthusiastic but very bad shot all his life, asked me to try his
shotgun at some clay pigeons.
He was one of those men who always pride themselves on getting things
cheaper than any one else.
He did not understand that a good gun is expensive; and that a second-hand
gun by a first-class maker is much better value (and safer to use) than a
cheap new gun.
Acting on his usual principle, he had bought a gun very cheap, “a splendid
bargain which I have used the last ten years. I am not as strong as I once
was so I bought a featherweight one.”
To buy a light, cheap gun is extremely dangerous. Only a very first-class
maker can reduce the weight of a gun to its limit without risk of a burst,
and the materials must be flawless.
When I saw the gun I was sorry I had offered to shoot it. The barrels
looked fearfully thin at the breech, of inferior metal, and rattled from
bad fitting, when one succeeded in closing the gun.
The weakness of the gun, however, was made up by the strength of the
cartridges, which were for pigeon shooting, and loaded with a full 1¼
ounces of shot and an enormous charge of nitro powder.
The gun had the proof mark for black powder only!
He was delighted with his cartridges and told me he had bought them at a
great bargain from the executors of a celebrated pigeon shot recently
deceased.
I ventured to suggest that it might be dangerous to shoot such a heavy
charge of nitro powder out of a very light gun proofed only for black
powder.
He said: “That’s nothing, I am not as active as I was and I was told these
cartridges would kill much farther than lighter loaded ones, and how cheap
they are!”
I, with many misgivings, had a clay pigeon thrown, but the gun refused to
go off.
I took out the cartridges and tested the trigger-pulls by feel.
They were like lifting a coal scuttle.
I said to him: “Do you know what your trigger-pull is?” He did not
understand what I meant. I used a trigger-tester. They were well over nine
pounds each. A shotgun generally has 2¼ for front trigger and 2½ for back
trigger.
I had another pigeon thrown.
I took a hard tug at the trigger and the gun went off with such a recoil
that the stock nearly jumped off my shoulder. I do not know where the
charge went; the pigeon was almost out of range before I could get the
trigger to act. (I learned the cartridges had been stored near the kitchen
fire!!!)
This was enough for me and fully explained why the old man, whilst
shooting all his life, had never become expert.
First-class gunmakers see to the trigger-pull so as to make a compromise
between a nice, light trigger-pull and one safe to use.
Military rifles are made with a very heavy trigger-pull in order to make
them safe to be handled by men who have rough, hard hands from manual
labour.
This, in my opinion, is a mistake. A very heavy trigger-pull prevents
accurate shooting, because the rifle is always going off later than you
want it to and encourages hanging on to the trigger.
The man gets into the habit of pressing on the trigger when he is not
shooting. He knows the rifle will not go off unless he gives a tug at the
trigger.
With a light trigger, a man knows that he must keep his finger clear of
it, or he will fire his rifle accidentally.
When learning the handling of the single-shot pistol (the automatic must
not be touched till the learner is familiar with the single-shot), blank
ammunition may be used.
The learner is very apt to discharge his pistol unintentionally, and the
fright caused by firing a blank cartridge by accident will impress on him
to be more careful in the future, before he had a loaded cartridge in the
pistol, which might cause a fatal accident if discharged unintentionally.
As the automatic cannot be made with as light a trigger-pull as a
single-shot pistol, it becomes a question as to how light the trigger-pull
of your single-shot pistol should be.
If you want to make the best possible shooting with it and to make your
lessons as pleasant and as easy as possible, have as light a trigger-pull
as your gunmaker (not an ironmonger who sells firearms) recommends.
If, however, it is important that you should learn an automatic pistol
well, and the single-shot pistol is only used for getting familiar with
firearms, then have the trigger-pull adjusted to be as near as possible,
not only of the strength, but of the character of the automatic pistol you
intend to use later.
Two triggers of the same weight may vary greatly in the feel and sweetness
of the pull.
One may drag or grate. The other seems to go off at your mere wish.
No automatic can have the delicate touch of a single-shot pistol. It has
to withstand such rough handling by the mechanical loading of the
explosion.
A thing to be especially remembered is that one who is not expert, trying
to put the pistol to half-cock, ruins the trigger-pull and renders it
unsafe.
The point of the seer can be broken off or distorted by someone fumbling
with the trigger and hammer.
Do not let people touch the hammer or trigger of your pistol, any more
than you would let them jerk your horse’s mouth.
In the course of your first trials in cocking, putting to half-cock, etc.,
you will probably injure your trigger-pull more or less, and should you
feel the least alteration or grate in it, have it examined by a gunmaker
before worse mischief occurs.
With a hammerless (_i. e._, pistol with invisible hammer inside the lock)
there is not this danger. Cocking is accomplished by the act of closing or
opening the pistol which at the same time causes the hammer to be locked
at safety.
What corresponds to cocking and putting to half-cock is accomplished by
sliding the safety bolt to the firing position, or to “safe.”
It is advisable to have the same weight of trigger-pull on all your
pistols. If they vary it makes it difficult to shoot equally well with
all. The heavier trigger-pull of some will hamper you, and the lighter
trigger-pull on others may make you discharge them before you mean to.
As individual fancy in trigger-pull varies, some makers sell their pistols
with intentionally a very heavy trigger-pull, so that their clients can
have it regulated to their requirements. This probably was the reason my
old man had such a heavy trigger-pull on his “greatest bargain I ever saw”
gun.
Before practising for or entering a competition, see that your
trigger-pull complies with the regulations, as nothing is more annoying
than, after making a winning score, to find your trigger-pull is too light
and your score in consequence is disqualified.
It is best to have the trigger-pull well over the minimum so as to allow
for its getting lighter during shooting.
CHAPTER IX
AMMUNITION
Every make of pistol has ammunition which suits it best. In fact, to shoot
what was made for it. In the case of automatic pistols, they will not work
properly unless their own ammunition is used.
It is very dangerous to shoot the wrong ammunition out of a pistol. It may
burst it. I nearly had such an accident with a revolver when winning a
prize given for the best score with a certain make of powder.
I found the pistol working very stiff in the revolution of the cylinder,
toward my last shots, and when I had finished I looked and saw that the
cylinders had become egg shape, caused by the pressure of the explosion,
which was greater than the powder-charge the pistol was made to withstand.
It was only the excellence of the material which caused the cylinder
chambers to expand toward their weakest point (the circumference of the
cylinder), instead of bursting.
It was this expansion that had caused the friction in turning the
cylinder.
As my book is not a gunmaker’s catalogue there is no use in giving
illustrations of ammunition.
Such illustrations are neither artistic nor of any interest. Many makes of
cartridges are long since obsolete and only linger in catalogues because
the old blocks happen to still exist and can be used to fill up a
catalogue and make it “fully illustrated.”
Any one conversant with pistols does not even glance at them. When he buys
the pistol, he also buys the cartridge made for it. He does not buy a
pistol and then try which make of cartridge will fit into the chamber.
A cartridge should fulfil the following conditions:
First of all, it should be safe against accidental explosion, such as
dropping or when feeding through the magazine of an automatic pistol.
Next, the case should not split or swell when fired, so as to make it
difficult to extract.
Next (this is a matter also of the construction of the pistol), it should
not blow back fire into the eyes of the shooter. This has several times
happened to me with cheap makes of rifles and pistols and one is very apt
to have such an accident when shooting at bottles at a fair with cheap
worn rifles.
I asked a woman attending at one of the shooting booths at a fair, if it
was not very dangerous when drunken men came to shoot.
She answered: “Oh no, when a man looks dangerous I load only blank
ammunition for him.”
The chief requisite is accuracy; and without accuracy a cartridge is
useless.
CHAPTER X
FIRST LESSONS
As the automatic pistol is a very dangerous one for a novice to handle, it
is best for the beginner to first thoroughly master a single-shot pistol.
There are several styles of single-shot pistols (see Plates 2, 9, 10, and
17). I will not give a list and description of all makes, like a
gunmaker’s catalogue. I will merely describe a few of the typical ones.
Very many are not only obsolete but of no use, and I do not intend to
describe any pistol or ammunition merely to condemn it.
All that I describe have some merit, and most of them have great merit.
Still if there is any ammunition or pistol left out, you must not at once
jump to the conclusion that I consider it bad or dangerous; it may be that
it was omitted through an oversight.
It is best to have a pistol light in weight and shooting as small a charge
as possible, so that there may be no great weight to hold up and no
flinching from the noise or recoil.
[Illustration: PLATE 2. BREECH-LOADING PISTOLS
(By Gastinne-Renette)]
With a very small charge it is possible to use a very light pistol, and
though this is advisable for a beginner still, weight in a pistol, even if
it shoots only a very small charge, is an advantage for accurate holding.
The trigger-pull must not be lighter than 2½ pounds for safety (especially
for a beginner) and if the pistol weighs less than 2½ pounds, it is very
difficult to press the trigger without disturbing the aim.
Lightness in weight of the pistol is also often obtained by shortness of
barrel, and to shoot a pistol with only a two or three inch barrel is the
supreme test of skill in pistol shooting and a useless handicap to a
learner.
At one time I thought it impossible for good shooting to be had out of a
two inch barrel, but a friend and I tested this at twenty-five metres, and
we both, after a few trials, got strings of shots on the chest of a
life-sized figure of a man target.
But it requires a man who has shot for many years to be able to do this;
even an average shot goes very wide and wild in his shooting with such a
short barrel.
These very short barrels are therefore useless for the general public for
self-protection, except when the pistol actually touches the opponent.
Even the short police pistol requires a lot of learning. Most people
imagine it is merely necessary to buy a little pistol “which I can put in
my waistcoat pocket,” to become burglar proof.
[Illustration: PLATE 3.
Author’s winning score for Gastinne-Renette Competition, April 7, 1910.]
This sort of thing is worse than useless. If you leave a man alone he will
most likely leave you alone, but if you annoy him by banging at him, he
may lose his temper and hurt you.
A reasonably long barrel is therefore necessary for a beginner, and a
reasonably heavy weight.
The cartridges may have light loads. Unfortunately the easiest pistol of
all, to shoot, is now impossible to be had except from a dealer in
second-hand firearms. I mean the “Flobert” duelling pistol, formerly made
in France and Belgium, shooting bulleted caps of about .2 calibre.
The duelling pistol, in all its calibres, is the best balanced and easiest
to shoot of all pistols (see Plates 2 and 5).
The stock is at just the right curve and angle, is large enough for a big
hand, and yet does not feel clumsy in a small hand.
By taking the grip of the hand higher or lower, the same effect is
produced as in having a gunstock straighter or more bent; one can,
therefore, by altering the grip of the hand, find a place to hold which
makes the pistol come with the sights aligned on raising it, just as a
well-fitting gun “comes up.”
Next this pistol balances perfectly. The length of the barrel does not
make it top heavy, as the barrel is fluted, to lighten it forward, and the
stock weighted.
Most pistols, automatics especially, are muzzle heavy. There is really no
pistol except the duelling pistol which balances properly, and the
automatic will have to be altered in this respect before it can become the
ideal weapon for rapid shooting.
The ideal pistol is the Gastinne-Renette duelling pistol, which is of .44
calibre muzzle loader or shoots a centre fire cartridge, with French
“Poudre J” and a round bullet (see Plates 2 and 9).
This is the most accurate pistol in the world and a number of men have
made a score of 12 shots in a bull’s-eye the size of a sixpence, in
succession at 16 metres (17 yards 1 foot).
This pistol has very little recoil. If the beginner cannot get a “bulleted
cap” duelling pistol the ordinary .44 gallery ammunition duelling pistol
will do almost as well.
Now arises the question of expense, as these pistols are expensive.
If economy is necessary, then the only way is to get one of the American
single-shot pistols and add wood to the back of the stock, so that the
grip comes further back and the trigger is thereby further from the hand
and allows the trigger finger to be extended.
Then either cut down the barrel to lighten the pistol forward, or have
flutes made in the barrel to take weight of the metal off, and put lead in
the stock.
I have described the ideal way of learning to shoot a pistol but of course
any single-shot pistol which does not have too heavy a recoil will do to
learn with, so as to become a fair shot.
With the long reach to the trigger of the French duelling pistols the
trigger finger can be held outside and along the trigger guard (as with a
shotgun when walking up birds). With the trigger so far back, as it is in
American single-shot pistols, it is difficult to introduce the finger into
the trigger guard whilst holding the pistol with one hand, and one gets
into the dangerous habit of keeping the finger inside the trigger guard.
I will not describe these various single-shot pistols, as (in my own case)
I find shooting them does not do me any good, but teaches a cramped style.
The pistol which is no longer made, but can perhaps be picked up, is a
regulation French duelling pistol, full size, which shoots, instead of the
.44 duelling charge, a bulleted cap of .2 calibre, with fulminate only,
and a round bullet, and is exploded by a cross bar on the hammer which has
a flat striking surface. This flat bar strikes across the whole face of
the cap, indents itself into the cap, and having an undercut surface
extracts the empty cap after it is fired, as the pistol is cocked.
The pistol has no recoil and hardly more noise than an air gun.
The manufacture would be resumed if there were enough demand for such
pistols, and in my opinion they ought to be made as they are infinitely
preferable to modern .22 calibre pistols.
[Illustration: COLT AUTOMATIC PISTOL, POCKET MODEL, CALIBRE .32]
CHAPTER XI
LEARNING TO SHOOT
Having a pistol and ammunition, the next thing is to find a place to shoot
in with safety and comfort.
The usual procedure is as follows:
A says “I want to learn pistol shooting.”
“I know a place,” says B.
They go off and find a shooting gallery.
When they get there they go down a dark staircase, into a long, dark
cellar with a glimmer of light at the firing point and a glimmer of light
at the far end, illuminating a series of minute white cards with a
microscopic black dot on each. Men lie down on mats, to which they have to
grope their way, shooting miniature rifles at these minute spots.
Why, when a man wants to learn to shoot, has he to go into a coal cellar
and ruin his eyesight seeing, as one shooter complained, “three front
sights and two back ones”?
To shoot one needs all the daylight possible.
One sees fine big public buildings, and is told “They have a Shooting
Range for their employees, is it not nice of them?”
You go to it. There is a big bar, with plenty of daylight, rooms with
plenty of daylight for games, meals, etc., and then the inevitable dark
staircase into a black cellar called the shooting-gallery.
If you cannot shoot in daylight do not shoot at all; you will only ruin
your eyesight and never learn to shoot properly.
[Illustration: PLATE 4. COLT AUTOMATIC PISTOL .22 TARGET MODEL
Capacity of magazine: 10 shots. Length of Barrel: 6½ inches. Length over
all: 10½ inches. Weight: 28 ounces. Finish: full blued; checked English
walnut stocks. Sights: bead front sight, adjustable for elevation; rear
sight with adjusting screw, adjustable for windage. Distance between
sights: 9 inches. Cartridge: .22 long rifle, rim fire (_greased cartridges
only_). We strongly recommend the use of either Lesmok or Semi-Smokeless.]
All these artificial-light rifle galleries, to teach the public to shoot,
are worse than useless. The Gastinne-Renette Gallery in Paris is an ideal
gallery (see Plates 15 and 16).
Learning to shoot is surely more worth while than playing bridge or
golf, and who would play bridge or golf in the dark?
Choose, if possible, a range out of doors, or at least in a well-lighted
room (lighted by daylight, _not_ artificial light), but if there has to be
artificial light, let it be at least as light as in a ball-room.
Next, there must be a safe butt behind the target; a butt which will not
only stop bullets which hit or go near the target, but which will stop a
bullet which goes wide of the target.
It should be so arranged that if the pistol goes off by accident the
bullet can do no harm.
If there is a narrow stall, opening towards the target and high enough at
the sides and narrow enough to prevent the shooter turning with his arm
extended, it would be a great safeguard, as it will make it difficult for
him to turn round and speak to others with his pistol pointing at them.
A thick ceiling will prevent his doing damage if his pistol goes off
accidentally into the air, and soft deal flooring will stop bullets shot
too low. A hard floor may cause dangerous ricochets.
The beginner is very apt to look only at his front sight and instead of
getting it down into the V or U of the back sight, fire with his front
sight alone on the target, so great care must be taken to protect against
high shots off the target.
Out of doors, a butt six feet high is very little protection as the
beginner is almost certain to let off shots over the top.
With the bulleted caps there is, of course, not much danger if a shot
goes over the top of a butt, especially if there is a wood, or shed
without windows, beyond, to catch the bullet.
Another point is to have a table or shelf in front of the shooter, so that
he can lay his pistol and cartridges on it, and if it is of thick wood, it
prevents his shooting into his own feet.
When instructing, it is best to stand at the beginner’s left side and be
ready to clutch his pistol if he turns it dangerously.
The target should be a white bull’s-eye of about five inches diameter on a
black ground, and at six to ten yards’ distance.
The target should be of cardboard, so that the bullets will go through and
into the butt--a hard target may make the bullets rebound.
The duelling pistol has a silver bead front sight, and a big U back sight.
The black front sight on most pistols is quite wrong. It prevents quick
shooting, and I am in this book teaching quick, practical shooting only.
Practice at hitting minute stationary objects with a long aim died out the
same as the revolver did.
Formerly, much of the revolver shooting was done at stationary black
bull’s-eyes on white targets, just like rifle shooting was done. I always
protested against this, claiming that the revolver was meant for quick
shooting at moving or suddenly appearing objects, and that extreme
accuracy at stationary targets was not its metier.
The war has proved I was right, and now these deliberate shooting
exhibitions are used only to show what accuracy a pistol is capable of,
like shooting rifles off a gunmaker’s rest. A pistol shot out of a vise
can show its capabilities better than any man can hold it.
It was this shooting at black bull’s-eyes on a white target which caused
the front sight to be made black so as to show on the white target, when
sighted at “6 o’clock” under the black bull’s-eye. This is all wrong. When
the black front sight is placed on a dark object, as a man’s coat, it
cannot be seen.
The white or silver bead sight on the duelling pistol is instantly seen
and is the only practical sight for a pistol.
All this goes to show how worse than useless the old method of revolver
shooting was, and I do not intend to revert to it in these instructions on
shooting its successor, the automatic pistol.
Load the pistol, put it at full-cock, and take it in your right hand
pointing in the direction of the target.
Put it into the beginner’s hand with both yours, the pistol pointed
horizontally at the target. Make him grip it with three fingers, his thumb
horizontal and slightly crooked downwards along the stock, his forefinger
fully stretched along the outside of the trigger guard, and clear of the
trigger.
Tell him he must not put his finger inside the trigger guard till he has
the pistol pointed enough towards the target to prevent the bullet going
in a dangerous direction in case he fires it accidentally.
Then show him how to see his front sight, in the middle of the U of the
back sight, and to press the trigger.
This preliminary stage ought for safety to be learned with an empty
pistol.
A person who is used to firearms (not necessarily one who is a pistol
shot) should stand beside the pupil till the pupil learns the rudiment of
safety against accidental discharge, and in aiming.
If there is no such person available then the pupil should be quite alone,
two people ignorant of firearms trying to learn at the same time are very
apt to shoot each other.
After the beginner can safely load, aim, and press the trigger, then he
can begin to learn to shoot.
Load the pistol, stand with the arm fully extended, the pistol resting
against the further edge of the table or ledge.
Fix the eyes on the bull’s-eye, slowly raise the pistol, the arm fully
extended (keeping the head quite upright). Raise the pistol till the right
eye looks through the U of the back sight and sees the front sight in the
U at the middle of the bull’s-eye and press the trigger.
Do not stand sideways, stand almost facing, only slightly forward with the
right shoulder, the feet slightly apart, knees straight, arms straight.
Nothing is worse than to shoot with a crooked or flabby right arm. You
will never learn to shoot in this way, and a heavy automatic will hit you
on the nose with the recoil.
Stand rigid and upright, the swing of the arm upwards should continue and
the shot go off as you come horizontally to the target.
The idea is to fire the shot, just as you deal cards, raise and let off
when you are horizontal. Do not poke with your head to see the sights, or
find the sights and then hunt for the bull’s eye with the muzzle of your
pistol (like the rifle target shots do).
Never let your pistol move an inch further than necessary. To lift it
above your head and to lower it is not only dangerous but useless. You
ought to raise to the target; not raise above it merely to come down to it
again.
That sort of “flourish” shooting (which is the hardest thing to stop in a
learner) is as if, when you want to go next door to your neighbour you
went all the way down the street and then turned back to reach him. Open
your door, step to his doorway and go in. The man who swings his pistol
(“brandishes it” as reporters say) is at the mercy of the man who draws
and fires in one movement.
You ought, with practice, to be able after a few shots to shut your eyes
and as the pistol gets level, fire, knowing that your aim is right.
A fencer raises his foil with a straight arm and lunges. He does not need
to aim along the foil. His sense of direction suffices. In the same way if
your grip is right you ought to see your sights in line on the bull’s-eye
without any necessity of correcting your aim as your pistol comes up, and
the whole thing should be done in one movement--raising arm, sighting, and
pressing the trigger.
The action becomes as mechanical as putting your spoon in your mouth when
taking soup.
This is the whole art of pistol shooting. Keep on, practise, practise and
again practise, until it becomes mechanical. Once acquired you will never
lose it.
Only fire a few shots at a time, but several times a day. Do not worry
about cleaning more than once a day if you have not the time. It is worth
while spoiling the pistol if you can just get the knack of chucking your
shots into the bull, instantly, with the minimum of time or movement of
the pistol, like throwing stones into a bowl.
A good fencer is known by the small circle his point makes when fencing.
In the same way a good pistol shot is known by the small circle his muzzle
makes when raising it and firing.
I have seen men shoot revolvers at stationary targets, raise their pistol
till it pointed vertically at the sky, aiming all the time, and then
slowly bring the muzzle down till it was horizontal, and then begin to
fish for the bull’s-eye, straining their eyes for nothing and not learning
anything of the very essence of pistol shooting which is “lightning speed
with accuracy.”
Others “brandish” or “flourish” their pistols and then let off into their
friend’s feet.
I always leave the ground when I see men doing this. There is style in
every pursuit, and style in pistol shooting consists in economy of
movement and time and especially in timing one’s swing, aim, and
trigger-pull so that they go together and _throw_ the bullet on to the
mark.
At twenty-five metres (a shade over twenty-seven yards) shooting at top
speed of 1½ seconds a shot I won the Duelling Pistol Championship at
Gastinne-Renette’s in the year 1910 with two scores, one a full score for
the twelve shots and the other one point short of a full score, at an
invisible bull’s-eye of six by four inches (see Plate 3).
I tell this merely to show what practice will do at this, the Alpha and
Omega of pistol shooting.
Just keep constantly practising at this, and all other pistol shooting,
with whatever pistol or charge, is merely a variation of it.
I know an extremely feeble old man who for many years each morning has
half a dozen shots with a duelling pistol rapid-firing, and although he
comes and goes a tottering, feeble old man, he brings up his pistol and
hits the bull’s-eye instantly, like a young man, when shooting.
CHAPTER XII
SIGHTS
I put this chapter after the preliminary one on learning to shoot as,
although sights are vital for good, quick, accurate shooting, the beginner
is too occupied with other matters to pay much attention to what the
sights are like.
Now that the learner can load, fire, put his pistol to half-cock, etc.,
with safety to himself and others, he can begin to learn a little about
sights.
The sights are to enable him to align the barrel of his pistol accurately.
By constant practice a man can learn to point with enough accuracy to hit
an object of fair size at close quarters without sights, by sense of
direction.
When it gets up to ranges of twenty-five or more yards, or to hitting a
smaller object at closer range, his sense of direction must be aided by
aim.
Almost all makers of pistols make the sights of their pistols wrong; the
only proper sights are those on French duelling pistols (see Plates 2 and
10).
The reason is obvious; for duelling a man has to snap shoot. All other
pistol shooting, with very few exceptions, is very artificial and has
been done in deliberate shooting at small black bull’s-eyes just as rifle
shooting was spoilt.
I used to struggle with these minute sights at moving objects and rapid
fire, and I am sure my record scores would have been much better if I had
in those days known of the French duelling pistol sights and if, which is
very doubtful, these sights had been passed as “military sights” which was
an arbitrary term in England, changing from year to year.
The ordinary pistol sights, as placed even now on the latest patterns of
automatics, are the worst that one can imagine.
What one wants is a front sight which shows up instantly against any
object; large so that it is the most prominent object in aiming, and a
back sight with so big a U in it that you instantly get the front sight
centrally in it.
These conditions are fulfilled only by the French duelling sights. The
front sight is a silver ball without stalk, as large as and similar to the
one on a shotgun.
Shotgun men found this the best sight and shotgun shooting is snap
shooting like pistol shooting is or ought to be. Now compare this with the
sights on other pistols, especially military ones. They have a high knife
blade, black front sight. The target pistols have a microscopic black bead
on a very thin stalk which gets bent out of position at the least rough
usage.
For a hind sight there is a minute indentation in the bar of the hind
sight.
When added to this you are expected to see this microscopic dot, or a
problematic part of the knife edge front sight (this latter worn to an
indistinct grey by friction) into a slight notch which you would need a
magnifying glass to find, and which is much too small to hold the front
sight in, and to do all this in a black cellar so dark that you have to
light a match to look for a cartridge if you drop it you can easily see
that men give up pistol shooting in disgust and want some sport where
there is light and air, and in which they do not have to tire their eyes
out to look for the front sight and a target at the end of a coal cellar.
Whatever pistol you use, have it fitted with a big silver front bead sight
placed close to the barrel, no matter how large it is, if your eyesight
needs it large to see instantly in a bad light.
Have the back sight with a big U in it so that you see daylight all round
it when aiming with fully stretched arm.
This front sight cannot be altered but the back sight can be made higher
or lower to suit your style of aiming. At first you do not know if your
bad shots are due to the sights not being suitable for you, or not being
properly adjusted, or to your wobbly aim. There is no use going further
into the matter now, but later I will show you how you can alter the
sights to your own individual peculiarities.
What I want to impress is, that from the very beginning, you should not
worry yourself with the sights you find on pistols; get your gunmaker to
put on duelling pistol sights before you begin to learn. Tell him you want
them for taking a full sight in daylight at twenty yards. Let him read
this chapter and he will understand what you require.
Always press straight back on your trigger, do not push it off to the
left, or jerk at it.
In rifle shooting the left hand steadies the rifle and prevents this
tendency to push off to one side and also in a measure counteracts the
effects of snatching or jerking at the trigger.
The pistol has no left hand to steady it. The right hand has not only to
aim the pistol, but also to counteract the effect of any jerk, snatch, or
push to one side from defective trigger pressing.
It is as well to put in an empty cartridge case and to practise pressing
the trigger and trying to have the pistol still aligned on the object the
moment the hammer has fallen. Aim and press that trigger at your own eye
reflected in a glass and you can see if you pull off your aim.
By doing this you can detect any jerk to the right or left, or up or down.
With an automatic there is a tendency to jerk down so that it is very
important not to get into this habit in the preliminary practice with a
single-shot pistol.
When you get to grouping your shots well together, you can have your back
sight altered so as to put this group into the centre of the object you
want to hit, if it does not already go there.
The great thing is to make as close a group of shots as you can; if you
group a dozen shots all in a bunch it is good shooting. It does not matter
if they are not on the object you want to hit. That is merely a matter of
having the back sight raised or lowered to cause the group to go higher or
lower accordingly.
Raising the back sight makes the group higher; lowering the back sight
makes the group lower.
Putting the back sight over to the right makes the group go to the right;
putting the back sight over to the left makes the group go to the left.
You should be cautious however about this lateral adjustment. It is better
to correct your tendency to jerk to either side than to make the pistol
conform to your bad trigger pressing.
When giving instructions on learning to shoot in an early chapter, I took
it for granted that the learner is using a pistol he is reliably informed
shoots where the sights are pointed.
A beginner cannot know himself whether the fault is his or the pistol’s
when he makes a bad shot, so he gets into a hopeless tangle when using a
pistol wrongly sighted.
An expert after a shot or two to find how the pistol is sighted can make
allowance for the error in the sights. I saw a man make a marvellous score
with a double barrelled rifle. I said to him how well the barrels shot
together and he answered, “I had to aim two inches higher and to the left
with the left barrel than with the right barrel.” It was the man who was
marvellous not the rifle.
When a man begins to become expert he knows when his “let off” has been
correct and that, if the bullet goes wide in such a case, it is not his
fault, but the fault of the pistol.
The modern single-shot pistol and automatic pistol are almost invariably
very accurate, so if the bullet goes wrong when the pistol is “let off”
correctly, it is the fault of the sights.
Shots wide to the right or left mean in each case that the sights are not
adjusted centrally to the barrel.
The front sight, being a fixture, is very unlikely to be at fault, but the
back sight may have got moved to one side.
The back sight has generally a scratch made from its base onto the barrel,
and if this scratch does not coincide then the sight has shifted and it
must be knocked into place.
When the back sight is central and the bullets do not group to either side
of the mark, but where you aim, then fix the back sight permanently and
immovable.
A _movable_ back sight is a constant annoyance and I never understand why
makers put it so. You shoot badly and after wasting a lot of shots, find
your back sight has shifted unobserved to one side. I lost a stag
recently owing to the back sight of my rifle getting knocked off, being
wedged only in a slot instead of being screwed in.
Have this back sight absolutely central. If you shoot to one side correct
your way of letting off. Do not shift the back sight to avoid the trouble
of learning to let off properly.
If you do, you will be like a man driving who, instead of straightening
his horse’s mouth, puts one rein at the cheek and the other at the bottom
bar and makes the horse go worse and more lopsided every day till the
horse is incurably crooked.
If you keep on shifting the back sight to counteract your bad let off, you
will end by not being able to let off properly.
If you shoot too high all you have to do is to file down the U in the hind
sight, a little at a time, until it is right. If you shoot too low, you
will have to get a higher back sight put in and file that down gradually
till you get it right.
The place to aim at is exactly where you want the ball to hit, seeing the
whole of the ball of the front sight in the U of the back sight. Keep on
working at the back sight till you arrive at this result.
If in target shooting you aim at the bottom edge of the bull’s-eye, you
will require a different adjustment of sights for each size of bull’s-eye.
A two-inch bull’s-eye at twenty yards requires the pistol to shoot one
inch higher than the aim so as to put the bullet in the centre of the
two-inch disc when aimed at its bottom edge, and if the bull’s-eye is
four inches the pistol would have to be sighted to shoot two inches higher
at the same distance to hit the centre.
As natural objects are not at all of the same size, and you cannot carry
twenty pistols shooting to various heights to choose from, it is best to
have the pistol sighted to hit the _exact spot_ you aim at, and then it
does not matter if you are shooting at an elephant or a mouse, you can hit
the spot.
The tendency to “duck” and flinch at the noise and recoil makes beginners
put their shots very low.
The revolver used to make men shoot high, the automatic shoots low as a
rule from muzzle heaviness, the wrong angle the stock is placed at, and
the uneven blow back (which latter I will explain later).
Single-shot pistols are generally of American make and it is very curious
what defects they have in comparison with the French duelling pistol.
To begin with they have a stock too much at right angles to the barrel and
much too small and narrow.
Next, the trigger is in the wrong place. The proper place for the trigger
is so that you can just reach it with the first joint of the outstretched
first finger. Pressing the trigger with the second finger is a ridiculous
habit and, with an automatic pistol, results in making the pistol jamb
burn the first finger with the ejecting cartridges.
The American single-shot pistols have the trigger so close to the hand
that the trigger finger has to curl around the trigger beyond the second
joint.
I never could understand how Chevalier Ira Paine, with his big hand,
managed to shoot American single-shot pistols.
The trigger being too close not only makes pressing it difficult but makes
it so that, instead of straight back, it has to be pressed to the left and
sends the bullet to the left.
[Illustration: COLT AUTOMATIC PISTOL, MILITARY MODEL, CALIBRE .45]
[Illustration: COLT AUTOMATIC PISTOL, MILITARY MODEL, CALIBRE .38]
CHAPTER XIII
TARGETS
I began my instruction with a white bull’s-eye on a black target, but, as
soon as the pupil becomes a little proficient, this bull’s-eye shooting
should be stopped.
The pupil should then learn to hit the middle of a large object, not a
small object of different colour, superimposed on a larger one.
The great difficulty beginners have in deer-stalking is that they aim at
the stag as a whole, instead of trying to hit a definite part of him.
If you aim at even a large object in the former way, you are very apt to
miss it entirely.
In France there are man targets of iron, the natural size of a man in
profile, which can be stood on the ground in front of the butts. These are
the best I know for shooting at with the small duelling charge.
There are divisions incised into this target so that the marker, when he
goes up, can see the value of the shot, but these divisions are invisible
from where the shooter stands. He must judge as to where to aim and hit.
The target is painted over after each series of shots with a mixture of
soot and water.
Be sure not to use any size or varnish, as this fixes the black so that
the bullet does not knock it off, and so shots are difficult to locate on
the figure from the firing point.
With soot and water the shots appear almost white on the target at the
spot the soft lead bullet has flattened and dropped down, taking the soot
with it.
These iron targets are suitable only for soft lead bullets driven at low
velocity.
With a high-power automatic pistol it would be dangerous, as bullets would
rebound or glance off long distances if the edge of the target were
grazed.
For shooting with powerful ammunition, the target must be of wood, or
canvas on a wooden stretcher, with black paper pasted over it. The bullets
go through into the butt, which latter must be exceptionally thick or else
the last of several bullets striking in one place will go through it.
The pattern of target we used at the Olympic Games at Stockholm in 1912, I
do not like. It was much too big and the rings (upright ovals) too
distinct. It was like shooting at an ordinary ring target with visible
bull’s-eye.
It was a good idea, however, having upright ovals instead of circles for a
man target, as a miss right or left is important, whereas a rather high or
low shot would still strike a man.
For animal targets, on the Continent, these ovals are placed horizontally,
because an animal is longer than it is high; also for running shots a miss
in front or behind the bull’s-eye is more excusable than one over or
under.
The proper distance to practise at is the distance you can hit the
invisible bull’s-eye twice in three shots. As soon as you can do better
than this, move the target a few feet further off, or decrease the size of
the bull’s-eye.
The idea is to have a target on which when shooting your very best, you
may just be able to make the highest possible score.
This is the principle on which the targets are made in all the
Gastinne-Renette competitions in Paris.
The highest possible score is not beyond the power of the pistols, if held
by a very good shot.
For the Grande Medal d’Or, the holding has to be nearly as good as if the
pistol were fixed in a vise, but it _is_ possible to make, as several
dozen winning targets made by the crack shots of the world testify.
A target impossible to make a full score on discourages the shooter.
It rather adds to the interest if a hit breaks something; if a clay
pigeon, for instance, is put on a nail for a bull’s-eye on a man target
painted the same colour, it is practically an invisible bull and it is a
great satisfaction to see the pieces instantly fly at a hit, instead of
having to examine the target to see where your shots are.
These clay pigeons, or soup plates, or whatever you use, would not do if
put against an iron target, as the splash of the bullet would break them
even if they were not actually hit.
One can buy an apparatus in Paris which fills rubber balls with water,
which make good targets to shoot at either hung up or thrown in the air.
To hit them with a pistol with a bullet when thrown in the air is
extremely difficult, and can only be safely tried when shooting out to
sea, or against a high cliff.
Single barrel pistols of 28 shotgun bore, 10-inch barrels are made to
shoot shot, and these are very good for such shooting and train timing and
swing in snap shooting.
At eighty live pigeons at twelve yards’ rise I have got more than half I
shot at. One has to be quick, as the pigeon is so soon out of range. No. 7
shot is best for this, but the pistol only shoots half an ounce of shot,
and makes a very small pattern.
I will explain in the next chapter how to shoot so as to compel quick
shooting without the cumbersome machinery for making a target appear and
disappear.
If you count seconds for yourself or have them counted for you, the time
varies and one cannot help dwelling on the counting when a fraction more
time is needed for your aim to be correct.
The utmost care must be taken, if you have an assistant to go to and from
the target, not to point in his direction or to load before he has come
back. Even at otherwise well-managed shooting clubs, there is too much
carelessness in this respect.
Targets which draw up and down on trolleys are a great nuisance, and yet
almost all shooting galleries are equipped with them, and their presence
is considered the acme of good gallery equipment in England.
This may be all right for preventing markers being shot, but I prefer an
iron man target, life size, standing on his feet in a green field with a
suitable background. One can shoot so much better than at a figure painted
on a flat background.
You see a miss by the momentary puff of dust where the bullet hits the
ground, instead of having to look for a bullet hole in the painted
background.
It would be possible to make a target which drops down and rises again
from the impact of the bullet.
I have a target in the form of a stag which when you hit his invisible
heart, he half rears, then bends his hocks and plunges down on his knees,
throwing back his head in the most realistic manner. This stag, stood
amongst long bracken and stalked, gives a most lifelike performance.
He is wound up in various places and the shock of the bullet on a buffer
releases the movements in succession with momentary intervals.
It was made by a very ingenious target mechanic, who also makes monkeys
which run up a tree when hit, parrots who turn a somersault on the
branch they are sitting on when hit, a man who takes off his hat and bows
to you when you hit him properly, a chamois who tumbles over a precipice.
The maker, who has a shooting gallery on the Continent, makes a good
profit out of it, as the bull’s-eyes are very small and difficult to hit,
and people keep on paying to shoot in order to amuse their companions, and
children beg their parents to try to set the automatons in motion.
CHAPTER XIV
PRACTICAL TARGETS
The pistol being, primarily, a man-shooting weapon, the target for
practice should be the shape of a full-sized man.
The man target we used at the Olympic Games at Stockholm in 1912, was a
coloured paper target of a soldier standing at attention, full face. This
was pasted on a wooden board cut to the same shape.
The bull’s-eye was an upright oval on the breast, surrounded by concentric
upright ovals.
The divisions could be seen from the firing point. Competition at it was
permitted with .22 pistols, which was ridiculous as they are not duelling
pistols, or suitable for war or self-defence.
The regulation French Duelling Target is made in several ways, but in all
cases it is the figure of a man painted black, standing in absolute
profile (see Plate 3).
This can be had, either printed on paper, to paste on a board cut out to
its shape, in cast iron with a base so that it stands up of itself, or of
steel with an electrical device for registering the shots. The figure is
in profile, which is not correct.
A proficient duellist stands as full face as a man shooting a gun. This
position is easier to shoot in, but it is also easier to hit.
In the absolute profile target, the places where misses are usually made
are past the small of the waist and under the chin. These would not occur
on a man standing full face, or nearly so.
The target of paper pasted on wood has the bullet holes covered by white
and black paper pasters.
The bullet hole is first pasted over with a white paster, so as to show
its place from the firing point. After the next shot a white paster is put
on this fresh shot and the former shot obliterated by a black paster.
On this target there is no bull’s-eye and all hits, anywhere, have an
equal value.
In competitions, a row of these figures stand in the field and the marker,
after a shot at each has been fired, goes down the line and pastes white
pasters over the bullet holes and black patches over where he finds a
white patch. He need not say anything, when he has finished, it is at once
seen from the firing point which targets have been hit and where, and what
targets have been missed.
The iron target is divided by incised lines into an oblong bull’s-eye with
various subdivisions as shown in the diagram (see Plate 3).
The bull’s-eye counts four, the space on each side three, the space below
two, and the head and the bottom of the frock coat one each. These
divisions are invisible from the firing point.
When these are painted with soot and water, or distemper black and water,
the bullet knocks off the black and leaves a distinct lead-coloured mark.
When shot at in the open this is all that is necessary, but if, instead of
a bank behind the figure there is a wall, this wall is painted white and a
second lot of paint (this time whitewash) is kept for whitening the wall,
if a shot hits that, to obliterate it so as to show where misses go.
An inexperienced marker is apt to put his brush into the wrong pot, so
that the result is a grey colour.
The electric marking target looks exactly like this last and is painted
after shots in the same way, but the various divisions are separate plates
which stand on rods with springs behind.
When a shot strikes any plate it drives it back, and the spring returns it
to place.
The act of driving back makes electric connection, transmitted by wires,
to a small copy of the target, like the indicator inside a hotel lift, and
rings a bell. It shows the value of the shot and approximately the place
it has struck. The actual spot struck is not indicated.
CHAPTER XV
HOW TO HOLD THE PISTOL
As the revolver had a short stock with an acute curve and was muzzle
heavy, the grip I recommend for it is not suitable for the duelling pistol
or automatic.
I take the duelling pistol first as that has the ideal handle or stock;
the automatic, except in the American Colt Regulation .45, being open to
great improvement.
The duelling pistol is a survival of the old horse pistol in balance and
form of stock, and this has never been improved on.
Most things undergo constant improvement, but the pistol stock, on the
contrary, has steadily deteriorated.
The old horse pistol balanced just right, and the long light barrel was
counterpoised by the heavy stock.
The angle was right, and the sights fitted close down to the barrel. In
some cases there was no back sight but aim was taken as with a shotgun.
The perfect balance almost did away with the need of a back sight.
Then the revolver came with its front overbalance, which often needed, on
its short upright stock, a grip with the little finger under the butt to
steady it.
As I explained in my _Art of Revolver Shooting_, it was necessary to get
the line of the arm as nearly possible in line with the barrel,
consequently the thumb also had to be extended in line with the barrel.
This was possible with the old “break down” action revolvers, but when
solid-frame revolvers were made to withstand the stronger pressure of the
nitro powders, the extractor opening lever had to be put in the way of
this thumb extension, so that the thumb was crooked to avoid the nail
being split by the recoil, or the catch opened by the thumb striking it
from the recoil.
The proper way to hold the duelling pistol is not very high up the grip,
because if the hold is taken so high up as to make the barrel in line with
the arm, the back sight is hidden by the hand.
This lower hold is not a disadvantage, as the obtuse slope of the handle
and the perfect balance of the pistol have no tendency to drop the muzzle.
The thumb is curved downwards just enough to get the best grip.
The duelling pistol has a spur at the near end of the trigger guard, which
some shooters put their second finger round (see Plate 6). I find that
this only gives one a clumsy handful and that it is better to have the
second finger with the others together round the stock, and close under
the back of the trigger guard.
[Illustration: PLATE 5. HOW TO HOLD THE DUELLING PISTOL (1)]
I am sorry to find that some still cling to the absurd practice of using
the second finger to press the trigger, holding the first finger along the
pistol.
There is nothing to recommend this and everything to condemn it, and I
have never seen it used by a good shot.
It is only a fashion, like the new one of jerking the elbow out at right
angles to look at the wrist watch, or turning up the collar, and the
bottom of the trousers, on a hot dry day.
[Illustration: PLATE 6. HOW TO HOLD THE DUELLING PISTOL WITH SPUR (2)]
Using the second finger for the trigger deprives the hand of a third of
its grip on the stock. It employs a less sensitive finger for the trigger,
as the first finger is always used for sensitive work, the second being
only a gripper. Moreover, the first finger, if extended along the barrel
when shooting an automatic, not only gets burnt and cut, as it lies along
where the spent cartridge cases and powder gases escape, but it is apt
to get jammed into this opening and stop the action of the pistol.
I shot an automatic pistol alternately with another man, which jammed when
my companion shot it but not with me. I found he kept getting his first
finger into the mechanism, as he was using his second for the trigger.
Now as to holding the stock of an automatic pistol. The United States
Regulation Colt .45 Automatic has the best grip of any, and one can hold
it, as I have advised for the duelling pistol, right up hard against the
projection over which the recoil slide operates.
The smaller Civilian and Police Colt have not quite as good a stock,
rather more upright; the same applies to the Savage and the Smith &
Wesson.
The German Military Regulation Automatic has a nice stock but it is rather
too thick. It is well balanced and at the proper angle.
The “Hammer Head” stock attachment to the barrel of some automatic pistols
I find most awkward to hold, and impossible to get a sense of direction
with. One finds oneself far below the object one wants to hit and the
muzzle has to be canted up with a most wrist-spraining movement. The
recoil comes on the wrist at the same angle as if you put the first joints
of your fingers on a table, and the palm of your hand against a leg of the
table whilst keeping the arm horizontal.
I can neither hold nor shoot in this position; it is all so awkward. If
a man lowers his head, he can look along the sights, but if he keeps his
head up as he should and does in shooting any other pistol, it is very
difficult to align the sights except by bending the arm and raising the
elbow. In any case I cannot shoot with such a stock, so can give no
instruction in its use.
In a later chapter I will give my ideas of what should be altered in
automatic pistols from a shooter’s point of view; the “Hammer Head” or
“right-angle” stocks being one of these.
Not knowing how to hold and shoot a pistol, has given rise to all those
inventions of a portable rifle stock to fit on a pistol, so that the
pistol can be shot like a rifle.
To begin with, such a stock puts the sights too close to the eyes, the
noise is deafening and the accuracy very bad, compared with holding the
same pistol at arm’s length as it should be held. It is merely the attempt
to try and hold it steady by men who cannot shoot a pistol.
A moment’s thought will show that, unless a man is as near-sighted as an
owl in daylight, he cannot shoot with the back sight resting on his nose.
A pistol fitted with a rifle stock must be used with great caution. You
are apt to put the fingers of your left hand over the muzzle, as the end
of the muzzle comes just where one puts one’s hand with the fingers round
the fore end, to steady a rifle or shotgun.
CHAPTER XVI
RUNNING SHOTS
The pistol being meant for use at close range at objects one sees only for
a moment, or which are in rapid motion, I do not advise getting too much
into the habit of taking long, deliberate aim at stationary targets.
When you can handle the pistol with safety to others and yourself, it is
better to begin to learn shooting rapidly and at moving objects.
I think it is well to begin to shoot at moving objects at first, instead
of rapid shooting. You can begin at slowly moving objects, which does not
hurry and flustrate you as shooting against time may do.
Above all do not attempt to shoot as many people tell you to.
The greatest bar to shooting at moving objects with the rifle or pistol is
the way most men shoot at them.
What they do is to aim at a spot and shoot when the object arrives there.
Shotgun men do not make this mistake, but men used only to lying on their
faces like a squashed frog in rifle shooting invariably do.
Wherever you go to a rifle meeting where there is a competition at a
moving target, “Running Deer,” “Running Man” or “Gliding Man,” etc., it is
always the same.
A few men shoot as they ought to, and win all the prizes. The bulk of the
competitors lie on their faces, as they were taught to do at stationary
targets, take a deliberate aim at a spot on the background, and wait till
the target gets opposite their aim.
Then--boom--the dust flies up where the target _was_ a moment before, but
it is now--elsewhere.
It is as if you tried to catch a fly by putting a finger on him when he is
on the table-cloth. You will put it where he _was_, not where he _is_.
The correct principle (the one with which I won the Rifle Running-Deer
World’s Championship at the Olympic Games in 1908) is to treat the rifle
or pistol exactly as if it were a shotgun.
Assuming you are not familiar with shotgun shooting, get a man who is a
good shot with the shotgun to coach you, when practising with the pistol
at moving objects.
If you are a shotgun man you do not need to be told what follows.
At a stationary target, however rapidly you are shooting, you try to hit
_that object_.
In shooting at moving targets you try to make two moving objects (the
target and the bullet) meet.
The target is moving. The bullet also takes time to get where the target
will be. You have to get the bullet to arrive simultaneously with the
target at the same spot.
If you aim at the object, the bullet will arrive at the spot after the
object has gone further on.
To give an illustration:
An illustrated paper showed an engraving of a man on a motor bicycle going
at fifty miles an hour, at six hundred yards’ distance.
There was a cross made on the man’s chest which, it was explained, was the
spot to aim at in order to hit him.
If the rifle were correctly aimed for this cross, a man could shoot
millions of shots and never hit the motor-cyclist.
The bullets would reach the spot where the motorist was a moment before,
but he would be yards further on when the bullet arrived.
Now the way to overcome this missing behind is to “swing” and “time.”
These are shotgun men’s terms, never used or understood by pistol or rifle
shots, and this is the reason so few riflemen can hit moving targets, and
chase them with the bayonets instead.
Suppose you have a shotgun in your hands and a pheasant comes flying
across you. The thing is to hit him in the neck with the centre of the
charge so as to make a clean kill without a flutter in midair--“neck him,”
as we call it.
Most men try to shoot without moving their position and so hamper and
cramp themselves unnecessarily by having to twist the body if the bird
is passing them at an awkward angle.
Turn like a soldier does in “right about face” to either side, so that the
bird gives you the easiest crossing shot. Whilst doing so, follow an
imaginary point in front of his head with your eyes, the distance in front
varying with the bird’s speed and distance from you. Whilst doing so bring
up your gun (_not_ looking at the gun), the gun swinging as your body
swings in the direction the bird is travelling. As the gun comes to your
shoulder press the trigger.
If you look at the bird, you will shoot _at_ the bird, and consequently
shoot behind where he was at the moment the trigger was pulled. If the
bird was forty yards off you will have missed clean behind him.
If nearer, owing to the shot spreading over a thirty-inch circle, you may
have hit him far back in the body, what is called “tailored him,” and he
will go off and die a lingering death.
If you shoot forward enough, you will either kill him clean or miss him
clean (a miss in front).
_That_ is the great thing. If it _must_ be a miss let it be a clean miss,
_in front_. Not shooting far enough forward is the chief cruelty in
shooting--wounded animals going off to die in agony.
Always remember this when shooting at animals and birds. The forward end
is the vital end; hitting it causes sudden, painless death, so _swing far
enough forward_.
To hit bird after bird, animal after animal, too far back, as one sees
some men do, to an accompaniment of screams of hares and rabbits, and
fluttering birds, is disgusting.
If you shoot well forward, none of this happens. You may not have so much
game down, but each one of them drops stone dead without a sound. There is
no calling out, “Bring a dog, I have a ‘runner.’”
I think it would be as well, before trying moving shots with a pistol, to
do a little shotgun shooting at clay pigeons, so as to get into the idea
of swing and timing, if you are not a shotgun shot already.
When you can swing your gun to an imaginary spot, in front of a moving
object and press the trigger at the moment the sights are aligned, without
stopping your swing, you can shoot the pistol with success at moving
objects, provided you treat it exactly as if you were using a shotgun.
Have a moderately large object which the bullet will either break or leave
a visible hole through, arranged to pass you at a slow speed.
It can either be dragged by a long string, run on a trolley (the trolley
shielded behind a bank so that a bullet could not strike it) or some other
slowly moving target.
A swinging object is of no use. It makes a difficult curve to follow, for
the beginner, and its passage lasts too short a time.
A swinging object also makes the shooter try the objectionable method of
waiting and aiming at the spot the object swings to, which I want to
avoid.
If your target travels slowly enough, and is large enough, and at only
some twelve yards’ distance, there will be no necessity to aim in front of
it. Its forward edge is far enough.
Fix your eyes on the front part of the target. As it traverses bring your
pistol up without looking at the pistol, as it comes level with your eye
and the sights get aligned. Keep on swinging your body and pistol and
press the trigger, while still swinging.
CHAPTER XVII
RUNNING SHOTS (_Continued_)
It is best to stand with the feet slightly apart and facing rather where
the object is going to, than from where it comes, as your shot will go off
towards the end of its run.
At first bring up the pistol very slowly, and swing with the object for a
moment after your sights get on it. Do not first aim at it and then move
in front of it.
Gradually come quicker and try to fire the instant your pistol comes up.
Speed in coming up does not help you. Most men come up in such a hurry
that they wobble all over the place. Save time by firing the instant your
sights are aligned, not in bringing up your arm.
Start slowly, increasing your speed as you raise your arm, not in abrupt
jerky movements like the English Military salute.
Do not raise it with a jerk. It spoils your aim. A good engine driver
starts the train so that you do not feel the start. That is the idea for
raising the pistol. The faster the object is moving the faster, as a rule,
the arm has to be raised.
But if the object is coming from a distance, and will be in sight for some
distance as it passes, this rule does not apply.
You can take your time raising your arm, only your following swing must be
fast and of course your “allowance” in front of the object greater than at
slower moving objects.
As you get proficient, increase the distance you stand from your target
and increase its speed.
It is a mistake to have a small target for practising. When you miss you
cannot see if you have missed behind or in front, and you get to dwelling
on your aim.
As to the distance to aim in front, that is a matter of experience and,
other things being equal, the man who has this experience can beat another
shot who can hold closer on a stationary object, but does not know how far
to aim in front of a moving one, or how to swing and time.
The difference between shooting at an upright man moving and an animal is
that, in the former case, the most important thing is to judge the proper
distance to aim in front; in the latter case, to keep one’s elevation so
as not to miss over or under.
When shooting at a running man target, the man being narrow, one is very
apt to miss just behind the back.
At a running deer one cannot, if at all a decent shot, miss him behind his
tail (though one may miss past his chest in trying to shoot forward
enough), but it is easy to miss over his withers, or under his brisket.
Keep on practising at moving objects, varying the distance and speed
constantly, and the direction from right to left and left to right, till
you can judge how far in front you must shoot for each case.
It is best to always use the same pistol and charge. If you use at one
time a .22 pistol and then the .44 duelling pistol, you will get confused,
as the .22 goes up much faster and consequently needs less allowance in
front of the target.
As long as you keep to the same pistol, you need not mind how slowly the
bullet goes up. You know how much to aim in front but, if at one time you
must aim an inch in front and next time four inches for the same speed,
you can never learn to judge where to aim.
The various rifles I have used at the Running Deer at Bisley since the
early days vary in allowance in front from four feet down to merely aiming
at the point of the shoulder.
The faster the bullet goes, the easier it is to judge how far you must aim
in front at moving objects, but here comes in the inevitable “compromise.”
The faster the bullet goes, the more force it needs to propel it, which
means more recoil and shock to the shooter.
You have to make a compromise. If you are strong and have good nerves, and
don’t take alcohol or smoke, you can stand a strong recoil without its
spoiling your shooting. If you are not strong, it is better to have to aim
further in front and save your nerves, by using a lighter load.
I am not speaking from theory but from experience. I have specialized and
made record scores on the “Running Deer” at the National Rifle Association
of England’s Meeting since I was a small boy.
When I first began, an older man shot a very light charge and kept
winning, although he had to aim an enormous distance in front of the
“deer” to make up for the slow speed of his bullet. But, as there was
little noise and no recoil to worry his nerves, he put up wonderfully good
scores.
I, knowing no better, tried to get my bullet up quickly by shooting a
tremendously big charge. The bullet went up quickly but the recoil nearly
knocked me down, and in consequence my shooting was very erratic.
I have since experimented from very small charges up to the heaviest,
having a velocity of over three thousand feet a second.
The year I won the World’s Championship at the Olympic Games, I had
arrived at a “compromise” between speed of bullet and recoil, which
enabled me to win, but since then I have yet a still better compromise,
which enables me to make highest possible scores.
Formerly, in revolvers and pistols, one had to bear the full recoil. Now,
automatic pistols, which utilize part of the recoil to operate opening,
loading, ejection, and reclosing, have less recoil when shooting heavier
charges than revolvers did.
The automatic pistol has a softer recoil than a pistol or especially a
revolver, owing to this absorption of recoil.
It is more of a push, less of a blow.
Therefore, when you have found the heaviest load you can stand in a
single-shot pistol, you will find you can use a heavier cartridge in an
automatic pistol, without any more discomfort.
You will therefore not have to aim so far in front with an automatic
pistol when shooting at moving objects, and not have to take so high an
aim at distance objects to allow for the drop of the bullet--as with a
revolver.
CHAPTER XVIII
SHOOTING AN AUTOMATIC PISTOL
Before everything else, be sure you have the right cartridges for the
pistol you are using. If you have too strong a cartridge you may have a
fatal accident. If too weak a cartridge the mechanism will not operate. A
weaker cartridge than that for which the pistol is made will prevent its
working properly or, in fact, working at all, unless the closing is
assisted by the hand, and then it ceases to be an automatic pistol.
It is best to begin practising single loading. The best way to do this is
through the magazine so as to get familiar with the magazine. Take out the
magazine, put in only one cartridge, put back the magazine, and operate
the slide. The pistol is now a single loader, ready to shoot.
Do your shooting a few times like this, till you get used to the pistol.
You will find the recoil different from that of a single-shot pistol or a
revolver.
Instead of the recoil coming back directly on you it will be softened and,
even with the best of automatics, the pistol will have a tendency to
wriggle and “tap,” not recoil back in one clean kick.
When practising, make a point of putting the safety bolt on and off, using
this safety bolt as you would in putting a single-shot pistol to
half-cock.
There is this difference. Whereas, in English makes of guns and sporting
rifles, the safety bolt puts the weapon automatically at safe each time it
is reloaded, having to be taken off before each shot can be fired.
Military firearms are only at safe when the safety bolt is purposely put
on with the thumb.
The usual automatic pistol is made on the military idea. The safety once
off, it remains off till the user puts it back at safety, no matter how
many shots he has fired in the meantime.
The Colt automatic pistol, like the Smith & Wesson hammerless safety
pocket revolver, remedies this defect by having a _second_ safety which
makes the pistol safe, even if the first safety slide is not at safe. This
consists of a lever at the back of the stock which is at safe till the
hand presses it in firing and which keeps the weapon safe till the stock
is gripped in actual firing.
Any one who is a pistol shot grips the stock instinctively when shooting,
but I have known men unused to firearms, unable to shoot a pistol having
this safety grip, as they pull the trigger without squeezing the stock.
I was asked to give expert opinion as to whether a good revolver-shot had
shot a man accidentally or on purpose.
The pistol he used was a Smith & Wesson hammerless safety pocket pistol.
The contention was that a man trying to drag the pistol from his hand had
caused it to go off accidentally. I said that with an ordinary revolver,
if the man had his finger on the trigger at the time, it was very probable
the pistol would be discharged accidentally, but that the man would not be
likely to do so with a Smith & Wesson safety pocket pistol. To test it we
experimented, and besides not being able to make me fire the pistol (empty
of course), when we reversed matters, my questioner, although he tried his
utmost, could not fire the pistol whilst I pulled at it.
The holder pulls against the _front_ of the stock to avoid its being taken
from his hand, he does not _squeeze the back of it_. The result is that
the pistol cannot be discharged, except by a voluntary effort. He can pull
the trigger as much as he likes, but as long as he does not grip, but
merely uses the front of the stock as a handle to pull against his
adversary, the pistol is safe against accidental discharge.
When you have got accustomed to the automatic pistol as a single loader,
fill the magazine and use it as an automatic.
For continual rapid-firing, that is one loaded magazine after another, do
not shoot off the last cartridge of a magazine before inserting a fresh
one. Otherwise it necessitates dragging back the slide with both hands
after each fresh clip is inserted and wastes time.
Most automatic pistols remain open after the last shot has been fired, a
most necessary thing, as otherwise you never know if your pistol has
another shot available or is empty.
To do continuous firing shoot all but one cartridge of the clip load,
press the stop, and drop the empty clip. The loaded clip, held in the
other hand, is inserted into the butt and shooting can at once be resumed.
The last cartridge left in the barrel, from the first clip, when fired,
brings up the first cartridge of the new clip and so on, indefinitely.
You will find slightly different problems to overcome as compared with the
single-shot pistol or revolver.
Rapid-firing is incomparably easier than with a revolver. There is not
only gain of time and no fatigue of the trigger finger or thumb from
cocking, but also the hold of the stock does not have to be changed. It is
merely a matter of aligning and pressing. The recoil is also deadened and
much less severe.
You will find a tendency for your shots to be strung out vertically, owing
to varying escape of gas at the breech.
You will find lateral variation is much less than with a revolver, the
bullet going from the barrel of the automatic, not jumping into it from a
cylinder, thus tending to accuracy.
The vertical variation is more than from a revolver, and this vertical
deviation is absent from a good single-shot pistol.
When shooting an automatic pistol do not be discouraged if your shots are
not so good vertically but strung out. It is not your fault but that of
the pistol, and you cannot correct this by your shooting.
Later I will give special practice for automatic pistols, but if you are a
good shot with the single-shot pistol or revolver, you will have no
difficulty in shooting the automatic pistol well, as soon as you have got
used to its characteristics.
I used to think the occasional very low shots were due to dropping the
muzzle in pulling, but I find it is not this. It is caused by an
occasional escape of gas greater than normal at the breach of the
automatic pistol, causing the bullet to have a weaker flight and therefore
striking lower.
CHAPTER XIX
TIMING APPARATUS
In order to improve our speed in shooting, it is important to have a
mechanical timing apparatus.
Trying to judge speed by counting or getting someone else to count
half-seconds is very unreliable. Where everything depends upon making your
last shot a good one the counting is bound to become slower, in the
anxiety not to spoil a good score.
With a mechanical timer there is no relenting, it is Fate, and if you
cannot make a good shot in time, your score is spoiled. This trains you
properly; you are not buoyed up by false ideas of your skill which, when
there is real timing, will prove that your ideas of your skill are vain
delusions.
In England a clock is used, marking seconds or half-seconds.
This is very good for the man who works the targets; he sees if he is
working the time right, but it does not assist the shooter as he does not
hear the time being struck.
For the learner, it is important that he should be able to apportion his
time, take so long for lifting his arm, so long for aiming, etc., so as
to learn how to do the best shooting in the time limit allowed, and judge
accordingly.
For this purpose there is nothing better than the metronome.
The metronome is used by music teachers for instructing their pupils in
the right time when playing.
Music for instruction is marked with the metronome beat proper to it: all
that has to be done is to wind up the metronome, set it to that number,
and start it beating.
A metronome consists of a pyramidical box with clockwork, which makes an
upright pendulum beat at whatever speed it is set.
The speed depends on a weight which is moved up and down the rod, to set
marks, which correspond to numbers engraved on the sides.
It is, in fact, a clock pendulum reversed.
The more elaborate ones have a bell attachment which strikes after any
desired number of beats of the pendulum. If you want to practise three
minutes’ exposure of target, you set the metronome at half-second beats
(120 to the minute) and the ball to strike at every sixth beat.
Accuracy of course depends for what purpose you are practising, but to be
able to hit an object a foot in diameter, at ten yards’ distance
instantly, is ample for self-defence.
CHAPTER XX
SNAP SHOOTING
When you have become fairly proficient at hitting moving objects, you will
be able, with a little practice, to soon pick up the knack of snap
shooting.
By snap shooting I do not mean the sort of competition where you are given
three-seconds intervals. That is merely “fast deliberate aim,” in fact is
as slow as allowable for practical shooting, slower is mere target
shooting.
Snap shooting is when the pistol is fired the instant it is levelled
without any dwelling on the aim.
Use a big target, at ten or twelve yards.
Keep your head up, eyes fixed on the target.
As you raise your pistol, begin squeezing and let the pistol off as it
comes horizontal.
With practice you can put all your shots close together. It is the most
mechanical of all pistol shooting.
You get to putting shot after shot in the same place like throwing marbles
into a hat.
You can test how mechanical it becomes for yourself.
After putting a dozen shots close together, try to put a dozen shots a
foot higher on the target.
You will find yourself all at sea, and will have to begin aiming. Then you
get so mechanical you will find it difficult to hit a foot lower, which
you found so easy before.
Your arm has got so used to lifting to a certain position, your trigger
finger to squeeze when the arm is raised to exactly the same position,
that the whole thing becomes as mechanical and subconscious as swinging
your arms and legs as you walk.
Your arms swing to exactly the same spot each time. Try to take longer or
shorter steps, and to swing your arms further or less far, and you will
see how mechanical your ordinary walk is.
If you want to win a prize for snap shooting, you can, by practising
constantly under identical conditions of distance, shape, colour, height
of target, and lighting, get so mechanical that it takes an effort _not_
to hit the same spot continually.
For this reason, to learn snap shooting, not merely forming a habit, it is
best to constantly vary the height of the target you shoot at, or try to
hit various parts alternately.
Get someone (if you are shooting at a man target) to call out “head” at
the first beat of the metronome (beating at 120 to the minute), and try to
hit the head before the next beat of the metronome.
Then he will call “feet” and it is ten to one that you will swing too
high; or if it was “feet” first you will not be able to get as high as the
“head” next time.
You can put in your shots at great speed if it is always to the same spot,
but if you have to vary and do not know where you are to hit, till you get
the word to go, it is impossible to shoot quite so fast accurately.
For this reason it is well not to think one has mastered snap shooting
when one has got into the knack of putting all one’s shots on the same
spot.
Snap shooting and shooting at moving objects, are the two sorts of
shooting of real use.
Shooting long shots (which I will treat of next) may be useful at times,
but deliberate shooting at minute bull’s-eyes is only useful for winning
prizes and getting a reputation for being a “Crack Revolver-Shot.”
My world’s record snap-shooting score was published in the newspapers with
the words under it--“This is the highest at present, but it will, of
course, soon be beaten.”
Naturally, it was not as pretty a group as the target published next to
it, which had been shot with deliberate aim, but this latter score has
been equalled dozens of times. While my rapid-fire score is unbeaten
(Appendix 10 and 11). The value of a score can only be judged if the
conditions it was shot under are known.
If you want to be thought a good shot by the public, leave rapid, snap,
and moving object shooting alone, otherwise your best scores will look so
bad beside those of the man who aims, lowers his pistol, aims again, wipes
his hands, and after half an hour of these antics, scores a bull’s-eye.
CHAPTER XXI
LONG RANGE SHOOTING
The moment the bullet leaves the muzzle of the pistol, it begins to fall,
owing to the force of gravity.
The faster it is going the further it goes before this drop is sufficient
to be noticeable. Gravity acts through time, so if a bullet goes twice as
fast as another, it goes twice as far before it has dropped the same
distance as the slower bullet.
The big bullet of the duelling pistol has more air resistance than the .22
bullet of the American pistols, also it has comparatively a much smaller
charge, so it begins to drop more rapidly and at shorter range.
The duelling pistol is sighted for twenty-five metres as that is the
duelling distance (twenty-seven yards, three inches).
It hits where you aim, therefore, at that distance, it shoots practically
the same at the nearer distances.
Beyond the twenty-five metres, however, it begins to drop very rapidly. I
have watched where the bullet strikes when the man target is missed in an
open field. The bullet strikes the ground less than a hundred yards off,
showing that it has dropped the height of a man’s shoulder (say over four
feet).
The .22 hits the ground nearly two hundred yards off under similar
circumstances.
I had exceptional opportunities to watch this, as my man target stood out
in an open park, where there was no necessity to have a butt behind it.
As it is not usual to shoot a duelling pistol beyond twenty-five yards, or
a .22 pistol beyond fifty yards, there is no necessity to make any
alteration in the sighting at that distance, but if extreme accuracy is
desired at any one distance the hind sight can be filed for that special
distance.
The automatic, however, has a very powerful cartridge which shoots
accurately several hundred yards.
Now the way I use my “big game” rifle is: when at a distance at which the
drop of the bullet would make it fall below the body of the game when I
aim at it, I judge how much I must aim above and shoot accordingly.
The advantage of this is that you are ready at any moment to shoot. If the
animal is close and therefore dangerous, you can aim straight at him. If
he is far you aim above him.
If he suddenly comes close you merely have to aim at him. This is the
principle on which the United States Army Automatic is sighted, one
immovable back sight.
Most rifles and some automatic pistols are sighted differently.
They have leaves or other adjustments to the back sight, so that if you
want to shoot at long range you estimate the distance, look at the hind
sight which is marked in distances, and either raise the leaf marked for
that distance, or else slide or screw up the back sight for that distance.
This is all very pretty theoretically, or for deliberate target shooting,
but in practice it is dangerous.
As an instance, you are out shooting, and see a stag 250 yards off, as you
estimate.
You fix the back sight of your rifle for that distance, and begin taking a
careful aim.
At that moment there is a grunt, you look up and there is an old wild boar
(a solitaire, very savage) charging at you from twenty yards off.
If you fire at him with your 250 yards’ sight up, you miss him and he has
you. But if you are shooting on my principle with a fixed sight for close
range, you would be aiming two feet above the stag when the boar started
charging, and all you would have to do is to shoot at the boar’s chest,
and he would drop and you could then fire at the stag, as he galloped off.
A leaf of the back sight may get put up accidentally, and you do not
notice this when firing at short range.
The chief danger is from an enemy near you. You ought to have your sights
right for him, the distant one is not so important to hit, if you forget
to aim high for him.
How often soldiers are told to put up their sights for a thousand yards’
range, and then have to start shooting at a close enemy and _forget to
alter their sights_.
My advice is to have nothing to do with elevating back sights.
As the duelling pistol has such an extreme drop, it will accustom you, if
you shoot it at various distances, to aim high or low according to the
distance.
When you come to the automatic you will find, except for very
exceptionally long shots, you need not alter your elevation of aim at all;
it shoots practically straight up to the furthest you are likely ever to
have to use it.
Less than forty yards and generally at a few feet off is the range for
pistols in actual combat.
The further the object shot at, the more accurate the aim must be to hit
it.
It is difficult to do snap shooting with a pistol at one hundred yards,
though one can do very accurate snap shooting with a rifle at that
distance.
The reason is that the rifle has a longer barrel, so that a slight fault
in the alignment does not so much matter, but with the short barrel of a
pistol a hundredth of an inch wrong in the sighting, at one hundred yards,
makes over twelve inches error where the bullet strikes.
In other words, an error of a hundredth of an inch in alignment in an
automatic pistol at one hundred yards, would make the pistol miss a target
twelve and a half inches in diameter, whereas a rifle at the same distance
with the same error of alignment would graze the edge of a target two and
a half inches in diameter.
The pistol is more than four times more difficult to shoot than the rifle
at one hundred yards, owing to its short barrel magnifying the error
nearly four to five times more than the long barrel of the rifle.
To compare a pistol with a rifle target at one hundred yards, the rifle
target bull’s-eye would have to be reduced to a fifth of its diameter,
leaving the bullet holes where they are, or vice versa, the pistol target
bull’s-eye would have to be magnified five diameters, leaving the bullet
holes where they are.
This means that in shooting a match at a hundred yards, the rifle would
have to be given a bull’s-eye a fifth the diameter of the pistol target,
the outside rings of the target in proportion, or the pistol must shoot at
twenty yards, against the rifle at one hundred, both having bull’s-eyes
the same size.
This confirms my experience that to hit a foot diameter bull’s-eye with a
pistol at a hundred yards, is about as difficult as to hit a two and a
half inch bull’s-eye at the same distance with a rifle. Of course standing
position is meant. With the prone position for the rifle it is too great a
handicap on the pistol.
CHAPTER XXII
THE AUTOMATIC PISTOL
Now that the pupil has learned how to handle the single-shot pistol with
safety to himself and others, he can be trusted to learn how to shoot the
automatic pistol. (See Plates 7 and 13.)
Before giving such instruction, it is necessary to explain what an
automatic pistol is, and in what it differs from a single-shot pistol.
The first pistol, as the first rifle, was naturally a single-shot one.
The pistol and rifle both proceeded in development along the same lines.
First the match-lock, wheel-lock, flint-lock, percussion lock. Then
through muzzle-loader to rim fire, pin fire, to central fire breechloader,
hammer, hammerless, and ejector.
The double barrel, and multi-barrel, and from smooth-bore to rifled bore,
were evolved at the same time.
Here the pistol and rifle parted company slightly; though the principle
was the same in each case, it was differently applied.
The rifle became a magazine loader, and it will next be an automatic
loader (though at present automatic loading is principally used in machine
guns and low-power rifles).
The pistol, instead of becoming a magazine loader (in the sense of being
loaded by cartridges brought up from a magazine by operating a bolt),
became a revolver--that is, the cartridges were fired out of the magazine
instead of being first inserted into the barrel from a magazine.
When cartridges are inserted into the barrel, there is no escape of gas at
the breech when they are fired, but when fired out of the cylinder of a
revolver, there is an escape of gas at the juncture of the cylinder and
barrel, which varies, and when such escape of gas occurs it causes weak
and low shots.
The cylinder cannot be made gas tight, as that would prevent its
revolving, or coincide absolutely with the calibre of the barrel,
consequently a revolver can never be as accurate as a single-shot pistol.
This defect in the revolver was its weak point in comparison with the
magazine-loading rifle.
Just before the war, I shot two makes of military full-charge automatic
rifles, which were very good, but the war has put an end to their
development for the present. Undoubtedly the rifle of the future will be
an automatic.
The principle of an automatic firearm can be best explained by the analogy
of the automobile.
The revolver, which is a magazine pistol, can be fired only after each
cartridge is placed in position by the action of cocking the hammer with
the thumb, or by double-action trigger pull.
The internal combustion (the automobile engine) operates by the explosion
operating the various parts.
The explosion in the cylinder of the engine drives the piston rod forward,
which turns the crank, which, turning the fly-wheel, drives the piston rod
back ready for the next explosion.
In the automatic pistol, the recoil from the explosion drives the working
part of the pistol back against a strong spring. As soon as the force of
the explosion is spent, this spring forces the working parts back into
place again. These working parts do all the work the shooter does in a
single-shot pistol--that is, it cocks the pistol, opens the breech,
extracts the spent cartridge, inserts a fresh cartridge, and closes the
breech.
The idea is very simple, and has occurred to almost everyone who has
handled a pistol or a rifle, but there are mechanical difficulties which
are only just beginning to be overcome, and the automatic pistol, and
still more the automatic rifle, are yet far from perfect.
The chief difficulty is the force of the explosion. In a motor-car engine,
the force of each explosion can be regulated so as to be just sufficient
for the work required.
In an automatic pistol this cannot be done. The force of the explosion is
that which gives the best shooting, in other words the greatest possible
force, subject to the shooter being able to stand the recoil and the
pistol not to burst, though made light enough to be easily handled.
If a pistol were made a ton weight, it would fire a very much larger
charge without bursting, but the charge of the explosion has to be limited
to what a pistol of some two and a half pounds’ weight can bear without
bursting, or recoiling too severely on the shooter.
The smaller pocket automatic pistols are lighter (the two-and-a-half pound
ones are military pistols).
A pistol weighing under two and a half pounds can shoot only a small
charge with light recoil, and so is easier to make.
The heavy recoil from a military rifle (which gives the bullet a speed of
some thirty thousand feet a second) would shatter the recoil mechanism of
a small pocket pistol, though the latter can quite safely operate under
the slight recoil of its weak cartridge.
With a magazine rifle or revolver, the shooter uses just sufficient manual
force to operate the mechanism, and even then pistols and rifles may get
damaged by a clumsy man using too much force to wrench the weapon open or
slam it shut.
If, instead of the intelligently applied strength of a man, using the
minimum force necessary, you substitute the smashing blow (several tons’
weight to the square inch) given by the force of gunpowder, to operate
delicate mechanism, you can realize the difficulty the inventor has to
contend with.
It is as if you have to invent a firearm which would operate if, after
each shot, you threw it under a passing railway train.
CHAPTER XXIII
THE MECHANISM OF THE AUTOMATIC PISTOL
What the maker of the automatic pistol has to do is to restrain the sudden
smashing blow of the explosion on his mechanism and have it operate
gently. (See Plates 13 and 14.)
The safety of the shooter depends greatly on _the breech of the pistol not
being opened till after the force of the explosion is spent_.
If the breech is opened before the force of the explosion is spent, it
will drive the cartridge out like a bullet, and the pistol will in fact be
shooting from both ends at the same time.
Now will be seen why a very light-charge rifle or pistol is easier to be
made a practical automatic firearm.
With a very light charge, the explosive force is so light that, as long as
it does not instantly blow the breech open (but retards it ever so
slightly), there is no harm done.
Rifles and pistols have long been made to shoot light charges that do not
need the breech securely locked during the discharge, and are perfectly
safe to use.
The original automatic pistol operated as follows:
The discharge drives the mechanism back against a spring at the same time
that it blows open the breech, which the recoil spring then closes,
inserting a fresh cartridge. The spent cartridge is blown with some force
sideways out of a slot at the side of the mechanism, so that it may not
hit the shooter in the face.
In some makes of pistol, the cartridge is not blown out but merely dropped
out.
With a suitable charge the breech-closing mechanism can be made heavy
enough for its inertia to keep the breech closed sufficiently long after
the discharge.
When it comes to such heavy charges that it is necessary to keep the
breech closed till the force of the explosion is spent, the difficulty of
making a safe automatic firearm begins.
With a military full-charge rifle this has hardly yet been arrived at,
hence the delay in its being used for military purposes, but it seems as
if the problem is on the point of being solved.
For the comparatively weak recoil of a pistol, this does not apply. There
are several perfectly safe pistols in use, and there is no danger in using
any of the well-known makes.
Some makes of automatic firearms, instead of using the recoil for
operating the mechanism, have a small tube alongside the barrel, which
communicates by a minute hole with the bore of the barrel near its
muzzle.
The breech does not open till the bullet is just passing out of the
barrel, past the hole into the tube, and therefore the expansion of the
gas of the explosion loses its force.
A small fraction of this gas rushes through the hole into the tube and
operates the mechanism.
This has been the principle I have always worked on in trying to solve the
problem of an automatic firearm.
One system uses the recoil, tempered by a buffer, to modify its force.
The other consists in diverting enough gas from the big explosion to
operate the mechanism gently.
It is conceivable that by this latter system it would be possible to
convert the explosion of a siege cannon into a force just strong enough to
break an egg, and that by two such divisions of the explosion, one would
open the breech and the other close it, without the necessity of any
anti-recoil mechanism at all on the principle of the slide valve of a
locomotive steam engine. (My grandfather, Ross Winans, invented the
locomotive slide valve, not Stevenson.)
I think I am right in saying that this system has not yet been applied to
automatic pistols, and that they all operate on the recoil, driven back by
a compressed spring.
A fault in every automatic pistol I have yet seen, is the difficulty of
first loading it.
The cartridges are carried in a clip, which is inserted in the butt of the
pistol and drops out on pressing a button. Most automatic pistols
indicate when this magazine is empty and the pistol unloaded.
This is very good, but what I complain of is that, after the magazine is
full, you have to bring the first cartridge into the barrel by hand, after
the first shot the cartridges are fed into the barrel and the empty ones
ejected, automatically.
When getting the first cartridge ready to fire in a revolver you
accomplish it in cocking the pistol, and with a magazine rifle by working
a bolt or lever.
But with an automatic pistol, if the hands are wet, cold, greasy, or weak
(as a soldier with blood on his hands and weak from a wound), it is
impossible to get the first cartridge into the barrel, or get the pistol
ready to shoot.
The operation in automatic pistols begins by taking the pistol _in both
hands_. (Compare with cocking the revolver with one hand.)
Then you hold the stock firmly with one hand, and grip the slippery barrel
of the pistol with the other hand, and use considerable force to draw the
barrel back against the strong compression spring.
Your only assistance to get a grip is a slight corrugation on the barrel,
only wide enough for your thumb and forefinger to hold.
Imagine trying to pull hard with only your forefinger and thumb gripping a
smooth and possibly slippery surface, with a cold, wet, or greasy hand.
Let any one grease the automatic pistol and his hand and see if he can
perform this operation. Sandow, no doubt, could do it, but not the average
man.
The magazine rifle is purposely made with a bolt like a door bolt, so that
it can be operated easily under all conditions, but the automatic pistol,
evidently to give it a neat external appearance, has no projection to take
hold of to drive back the slide, which, besides, takes more strength than
is required to operate the bolt of a magazine rifle.
The remedy is simple: have two small projections, one on each side of the
corrugated grip on the barrel, so that the shooter can get two fingers one
over each side of this grip and, holding the stock in one hand, draw back
the slide with his other hand, with a perfect grip under all conditions,
like bending a crossbow.
As to the shape and angle of the stock, inventors and shooters are at
constant war.
The inventor is thinking of his mechanism; he makes his stock at the best
angle, shape, and size to suit what he puts inside it. It is much easier
to construct apparatus to feed cartridges into the barrel at right angles
than at an acute angle.
Therefore, the inventor generally gives the shooter a stock unsuitable to
do good shooting with.
The inventor should work in combination with the shooter. The shape of the
pistol externally should first be decided on by the shooter, so as to be
the best possible for shooting. In my opinion this should be the shape of
the French duelling pistol of the Gastinne-Renette pattern. (Plates 2 and
9.)
The inventor should try to design his pistol to fit, as far as possible,
into this external shape.
Some points, as the distance of the trigger from the finger, and the slope
and form of the butt, cannot be departed from without injury to accurate
shooting and quick handling of the pistol, and yet these are the very
things inventors alter.
Other points the shooter may give way in, if such modifications are of
vital importance from the inventor’s point of view.
The reverse procedure is, however, the rule. An inventor generally has no
knowledge of shooting, or horses, or whatever else his invention applies
to; he is merely a clever mechanic. He has “imagination” and theories.
Generally, such theories are most grotesque and childish.
I will instance an invention relating to horse-shoes.
The inventor showed me a sort of bird-cage of iron and said it was a
horse-shoe.
He informed me that shoeing horses as at present practised is wrong. “It
is brutal to nail shoes onto horses’ feet. How would you like to have an
iron shoe nailed on the sole of your bare foot?”
I tried to explain to him that the outer horn of a horse’s foot has no
feeling, that a horse is hurt only when the farrier is clumsy and drives a
nail into the sensitive inner tissues of the foot, but he was too far
absorbed in his theories to listen to me.
He then went on to show me that his shoe needs no nailing on, that it has
clamps, fastened by thumbscrews which clasp the horse’s foot and grip it
by claws “just below where the hair grows,” to use his expression.
I explained to him that this (the coronet) is the most sensitive part of
the horse’s foot, to press there would give him great pain and cause him
to go lame, and finally his foot would die and drop off.
Also, that these clamps and thumbscrews would strike the horse on the
opposite fetlock and throw it down, and the centrifugal force would cause
the shoes to fly off when the horse was going.
Finally, that these shoes were hideously ugly and no horseman would care
to be the laughing stock of everyone by taking his horse out with such
things on.
The inventor merely said: “All you horsemen are the same. You merely
follow each other without any imagination,” and he went out, to get the
same reply from every horseman he met.
He was firmly convinced that people who have to do with horses all their
lives are fools and never think of what is best for the horse, but it
rests with men like himself who have “imagination” to show us horsemen how
to shoe and handle horses.
CHAPTER XXIV
PECULIARITIES AND FAULTS OF AUTOMATIC PISTOLS
Before purchasing an automatic pistol it would be well to try shooting
several makes. Inventors have not yet arrived at anything like a standard
shape. The grip, angle of stock, distance of trigger, etc., all vary, and
you can decide what suits you best only by actual trial.
Handling the unloaded pistol is not enough. I was once trying an automatic
military rifle and found it balanced and handled very nicely.
In order to test it in rapid fire I tried it against a magazine rifle to
which I was accustomed.
For merely “loosed off” it beat the magazine rifle, but I wished to try it
for accuracy and speed combined.
The test was to shoot at the “Running Deer” Bisley, to empty the magazine
at one run of the deer.
The deer runs at a speed of fifteen miles an hour during five and a half
seconds at a distance of 110 yards from the firing point, across the line
of fire.
With my magazine rifle I got off five shots, making four hits, wasting
much time with the loading.
With the automatic rifle there was not an instant wasted in the loading;
the difficulty was in getting the shots to go anywhere near the deer--in
fact, I could not hit the deer, except with the first shot.
At each shot the rifle tried to jump out of my hands, twisted itself round
to the right and then suddenly twisted the other way. The tighter I
gripped the more it wriggled about.
Instead of the sights coming down back to alignment, after the recoil, I
found they jumped clean off the deer and I had to go hunting about to get
my aim again.
Instead of, as with a well-balanced double rifle, the muzzle flying up at
the first shot and dropping down into place for the second shot, there was
no possibility of alignment without a fresh aim for each shot.
It was just as if you have a strong unruly child in your arms trying to
set him down on a chair.
He wriggles from side to side, stiffens his back, and you cannot seat him
on the chair.
This is just how the rifle acted. It wriggled and struggled and refused to
let itself be aligned on the target.
The inventor also tried shooting it and missed even with his first shot.
The fault lay in the way the recoil was taken up.
To make an automatic rifle which will shoot accurately in rapid shooting,
the recoil must be straight back, not with a twist and wriggle from side
to side.
When choosing an automatic pistol, shoot it and find out if it lets you
align your sights afresh immediately after you have fired. If you find it
cants over or tries to go home into its holster at each shot, and you have
to alter this cant before you can fire again, do not buy it.
Get the gunmaker to instruct you thoroughly in the mechanism of any
automatic you buy and especially what parts need special attention to
prevent its jamming.
Jamming is the constant bugbear to fight against. The automatic pistol
must always be kept in perfect working order and the parts properly
cleaned and oiled.
The barrel in some is difficult to properly clean internally, unless taken
apart, and it is difficult to re-assemble.
Unless all the parts work freely, a weak cartridge is apt to prevent the
pistol closing properly.
When you have learnt the mechanism from the gunmaker you can begin
practising shooting with the pistol.
The principal thing you have to remember is that, whereas a single-shot
pistol, when you have taken out the cartridge, is unloaded and safe, and a
revolver when you have emptied the cylinder is also unloaded and safe,
when you have taken out the magazine with its cartridges from an automatic
pistol, the pistol _may still remain loaded_.
With the automatic pistol, when you have drawn back the slide and thereby
loaded a cartridge into the barrel, that cartridge _remains in still when
you withdraw the clip full of cartridges_.
I give herewith a description of the Colt New Safety which obviates the
danger of leaving a cartridge inadvertently in the automatic pistol.
“Figure 1 shows the pistol in cocked or firing position, magazine
withdrawn and cartridge in barrel chamber.
“Figure 2 indicates position of the magazine when inserted in handle of
the pistol, and position of firing mechanism when safety-disconnector is
forced forward by the inserted magazine.
“When the magazine is _removed_ (see Figure 1), the plunger acted upon by
its spring forces the safety-disconnector to the rear. This movement
forces the rear end of the connector (A) _below_ the nose of the sear (B)
so that should the trigger be pulled, the connection between trigger and
sear being broken, that is, the rear end of the connector (A) being
_below_ the sear nose (B), the trigger cannot operate the sear,
consequently no discharge of the piece can occur.
“When the magazine is _inserted_ into the handle of the pistol (see Figure
2), the curved top of the forward portion of the magazine forces the
safety-disconnector forward and permits the rear end of the connector (A)
to rise in _front_ of the sear nose (B) in the normal position for firing.
A pull on the trigger causes the sear to turn upon its pivot so that the
firing pin is released and strikes the cartridge.”
[Illustration: PLATE 7. COLT NEW SAFETY DISCONNECTOR AUTOMATIC PISTOL, .25
The firing mechanism consists of the trigger with its connector which
releases the sear; the sear which releases the firing pin when the trigger
is pulled; the firing pin (there is no pivoted hammer in this model), and
the safety-disconnector with its plunger and spring. This disconnector is
part of the calibre .25 only.]
_To unload an automatic pistol, withdraw the clip of cartridges and then
draw back the slide and extract the cartridge remaining in the barrel._
Till this latter is done the pistol is still loaded and dangerous.
The automatic pistol is a very delicate instrument and apt to go wrong at
the most critical time.
The revolver used to be grumbled at, but (if it did not fit too tightly)
even when it jammed, it could be cocked and worked by using extra
strength, opened by striking it over the thigh, etc.
But an automatic cannot be forced, it must be operated with knowledge of
exactly just what has gone wrong.
Any one taking up automatic-pistol shooting seriously should go to a
gunmaker and learn all about its mechanism so that he will know what is
wrong when the pistol refuses to operate.
Each make of automatic varies, so I cannot give elaborate instructions as
to handling. Each make may have some point where it is simpler and
superior to others though in other respects it may be inferior.
In the following remarks I mention what I consider best from a shooting,
not a mechanical, point of view. The latter is undergoing constant change,
and the automatic pistol has not yet arrived at a standard type.
There are some points in which even the best automatic is at present
imperfect, and some in which it is dangerous to spectators--for instance,
the very strong ejection of the fired cartridge in some makes, which may
destroy the eyes of persons standing near enough to be hit by the spent
cartridges as they are ejected.
I know of an automatic rifle which ejects its spent cartridges with great
force, and another which merely lifts them out, as if they were spilt
over the edge of the ejector slot, no force being used. This is the way
ejecting should be done.
Such ejection would be very useful on an automatic pistol; now, if near a
man shooting them, they, even the best, hit one quite hard with the spent
cartridges.
This gentle ejection is a patent and is done by a very weak spring in the
extractor which tips the cartridge out at the right moment; the ejection
is not caused by the back blast of the powder, or the drive forward of the
carrier, as in other automatics.
CHAPTER XXV
FINAL PRACTICE
What I am about to describe is very dangerous, even for a good, cool shot,
and should not be attempted by any but an expert.
It is practice for instantaneous shooting when taken unawares.
Put up a full-sized man target at fifteen yards. Buckle on your holster,
with the loaded automatic in it, the safety bolt at “safe.” Button the
holster.
Stand with your back to the target, get your pistol out and put all your
shots into the target in the shortest possible time.
This practice can be made still more difficult if as many man targets as
your magazine holds cartridges are placed at various distances; hit all of
them in the shortest time, taking them, not in rotation, but at random.
At “go” you turn and in so doing unbutton the holster flap, drawing the
pistol, taking off the safety, and firing--all in one movement.
Occasionally, instead of firing all the shots, slip in the safety, and
return the pistol to the holster after one shot.
See how quickly you can draw, shoot, and return to holster “all safe.”
The idea is to make the movement of drawing, taking off the safety,
firing, returning the safety, and putting back in holster, all one
continuous movement, and as nearly instantaneous as possible.
The safety should be off as the pistol gets clear of the holster;
similarly the safety should be on again the instant the shot is fired.
If you are using a pistol having the additional safety squeeze in stock,
there is far less danger in this practice, as this pistol squeeze only
occurs as the trigger is pressed.
This is the only sort of practice I know of where an automatic pistol is
safer than a revolver.
In drawing a revolver, if it is a single-action one, there is danger of
its being fired by accident in cocking, and especially in putting back to
half cock, if only one hand is available to do this.
With an automatic the safety can be put on or off without danger of an
accidental explosion, and the Regulation U. S. .45 Army Colt cannot be
fired till the grip is squeezed as well.
A musician has an advantage in this practice, as he uses his fingers and
thumbs independently of each other.
In practising this exercise with a .45 Colt U. S. Army Automatic, be sure
to draw the pistol without any pressure on the safety at back of stock,
only push the thumb safety and put the pressure on the other release only
as you fire.
You can practise this with an empty pistol with a pad of rubber to take
the blow of the falling hammer so as not to break the mainspring. As you
draw, push the safety off with the thumb, pulling the pistol out with the
fingers against the front of the grip, so as not to touch the back safety
lever, and squeeze that with your palm in firing.
Keep in mind that the pistol is safe so long as you do not press the palm
of your hand against it, even when the slide safety is off.
In all this practice remember speed is the one object, as long as you can
hit the figure that is all that is necessary. To hit the enemy first is
the all important thing, to hit him _after_ he has hit you, on account of
wasting time in taking a good aim, is a fatal mistake.
For extreme speed you can fire the moment the pistol is in the direction
of the target even before you have raised your arm, continuing the raising
of the arm as you fire and getting the next shot in as an aimed one.
Even if the first shot is a miss it disconcerts the opponent and may
prevent his getting in a shot on you before you have time to fire the
second shot.
CHAPTER XXVI
EXHIBITION SHOOTING
In my _Art of Revolver Shooting_ I did an unintentional wrong to a stage
shot.
In the book I gave details of how to do legitimate stage shooting, and
also exposed the devices of those who perform conjuring tricks, which the
public mistake for genuine shooting.
There was a review of my book in one of the daily papers, in which the
reviewer gave extracts of how some of these fake-shooting feats were done.
The next day I received a most indignant letter from a “Lady Champion
Shot” telling me that when she was giving her exhibition at a music hall,
people in the audience, after each feat, shouted to her “I know how that’s
done,” and that she had lost her job in consequence.
I do not know the merits of the case, as I never saw her shoot, but I will
not explain any more stage tricks, as I do not want “Stage Champion Shots”
to lose engagements. Shooting men can see for themselves if any of these
shooting exhibitions are genuine, and if fakes amuse the public, what does
it matter?
For hitting small objects with extreme accuracy at short range for
exhibition purposes, I find the larger the bullet, providing it is
propelled by a small charge which has no recoil, the easier to make hits
with.
The big bullet cuts into say the ace of hearts, where a smaller bullet
would just miss it.
Six well-placed shots with a .44 French duelling pistol shot at five yards
would make one hole, whereas six .22 bullets hitting exactly the same
centres would make six distinct holes, close together, but would not be
the sensational “all the shots in one hole” like the former score, which
audiences talk about afterwards.
Nowadays, with the wax bullets driven by fulminate out of a duelling
pistol, shooting off the heads of assistants can be done with very little
risk except to the eyes, whereas with a leaden bullet a bad shot means the
death of the assistant unless provided with a steel skull cap under a wig.
In spite of the advantage of the big bullet, most stage shooters use the
.22 calibre pistol.
It may be that they have some contract with the makers to use only their
make of pistol, or it is a tradition because Chevalier Ira Paine used it,
but why any one with a free hand uses it in preference to a .44 I do not
understand.
I cannot do as good shooting with a .22 as with the larger calibres, and I
have, I think, specimens of all makes of pistols and have shot them all.
I was a pupil of Chevalier Ira Paine, who was an incomparably better shot
than any of us at stationary targets, and unique in that I never saw him
make a bad shot, and he has won (which no other man has succeeded in
doing) _both_ the Duelling Pistol _and_ the Revolver Grand Medal at
Gastinne-Renette’s Gallery in Paris. Both are better scores than any ever
made before or since. There is also a seven-shot score with all the
bullets into a shamrock-shaped hole at sixteen metres, made by Ira Paine,
framed at Gastinne-Renette’s.
He was shooting for the Grand Medal d’Or when he made this seven-shot
score. They were such a phenomenal group that he was asked not to continue
on that target for fear of spoiling it.
As he shot so extremely well with the duelling pistol, and as I know no
score of his with the .22 to equal his work with the duelling pistol, I do
not understand why he did not use the latter for his stage work.
One of his most sensational feats was for his assistant to hold a playing
card, the three of hearts, horizontally. Paine hit the outside pip first,
then the middle one, and finally the one next the fingers, which were
about a third of an inch from it.
This, in artificial light and reserving the most dangerous shot for the
last, required nerve, and he did this the night before he died, when he
knew his case was hopeless.
As I said, he was the only man I ever saw who did what heroes of novels
do. That is, he never missed or made a bad shot during all the years I saw
him shoot.
CHAPTER XXVII
CONTROL OF TEMPER
Pistol shooting is excellent training for control of the temper. Boiled
down to its essence, pistol shooting is _fighting_ either in earnest or in
competition.
Whilst therefore self-control is essential in all sport, in pistol
shooting it is vital. When a man loses his temper he is at the mercy of
his opponent.
Temperaments differ: a word or act which has not the least effect on one
man’s temper irritates another till he gets beside himself.
How often one hears a man say: “I don’t know what I have done, but X.
seems offended with me.”
Some take offence at very little, while with others nothing can make them
lose their temper.
I know a man who never has even a shade of annoyance pass over his face
whatever happens. He is in constant request for shooting in teams, and he
can be depended on always to shoot up to his form. When his team seems
hopelessly beaten he calmly makes a string of bull’s-eyes.
This is the ideal state of mind, the control of one’s temper all should
have, and nothing trains for this like pistol shooting.
In the prone position with a rifle a man may be agitated but his brain
still enables him to shoot well, but when standing up and having to depend
on the muscles and nerves of his right hand and arm alone, self-control is
all he has to rely on.
Self-control becomes second nature to a pistol-shot. Control of the temper
and nerves is greatly hindered in cases where nicotine, alcohol, or other
drugs are used. These drugs do not give the nerves and brain a fair
chance.
Loss of temper is considered proper and a sign of authority by some, and
loss of temper has even (most profanely) been considered by some as an
attribute of their deities.
Formerly masters of hounds, if the Field did anything wrong, flew into an
ungovernable rage and used disgusting language.
Nothing can be done properly when a man is in this state of mental
unbalance, and many a fox has owed his life to the huntsman having lost
his temper with his Field or his horse.
I am told certain games are very trying to the temper. Golf, for instance,
has even led to the reprimand of a churchwarden by the committee of his
golf club for using profane language.
I have seen very amiable people sit down to play bridge and after they
have played for half an hour they exhibited the most vile tempers.
A pupil and coach after working hard all one morning decided to take a
little relaxation in a game of croquet. The pupil lost his temper and hit
the tutor with his mallet.
A prize fighter was in the habit of--in doubtful taste (to use a mild
euphemism)--taunting his opponent during his fights in order to make him
lose his temper and consequently his judgment.
These unpardonable tactics do not, however, always succeed. A man may feel
angry without losing self-control. In fact “cold anger” braces up a man
and his nerves become as iron and he becomes as implacable as Fate.
Some are extremely nervous and shy. They can shoot very well when by
themselves, but if others are present they cannot do themselves justice,
and they cannot shoot well in a competition. They are too flabby.
Nervous men should always have people present when practising, and vary
their audiences as often as possible, so that they will not get “stage
fright.”
The fault of others is extreme irritability. They shoot well till
something annoying happens, a shot unexpectedly fired near them, a jamb of
the pistol, the wind blowing the target down, or other trivial matters
which do not trouble any one else.
This, however, starts them fuming and swearing (an oath is a sure sign of
want of self-control). Everything that happens, the most trivial thing,
adds to their _énervement_, as the French call it.
Their nerves get all in a jangle and they cannot shoot. Tobacco is often
found to be the cause of the above state of mind. It takes a mere nothing
to get a heavy smoker unbalanced.
The worst form of nerves, and almost impossible to overcome, is that when
a man fancies people are “slighting” or “insulting” him.
He begins by shooting well and is in a good temper. Someone unfortunately
makes a perfectly innocent remark or does something which seems quite
innocuous to others.
But the man at once changes his manner, thinks he has been “purposely
insulted” or “hampered,” but he says nothing. The man who flies out at
others is easier to manage, as you know what he complains of. But this man
nurses his wrong and broods over it without letting any one know his
grievance. He sulks, frowns, does not answer when spoken to, and his
shooting goes to pieces, and he ruins the pleasure of the others. After
all we are shooting for mutual pleasure and sport.
There is the flabby man who can win when he has it all his own way, but
cannot make an effort when tackled. He is what is called a “rogue,” not in
the offensive sense but in racing language.
The man who surprises others is the quiet easy-going good-natured man who
never wishes to hurt or annoy any one, but only wishes to be left in
peace.
This is the Eastern or Russian temperament: “Nichevo” (never mind);
“Sechas” (presently).
Some men get into the bad habit of saying what they imagine are “smart”
things, but which are really impertinent and hurt others’ feelings.
This becomes such a habit with them that they do not notice that they are
getting themselves hated as much as if they went about flicking people
over the shins with a whip.
Some writers of plays which are supposed to be full of wit make their
characters do nothing but say unkind things to each other. This is not wit
but stupid, callous cowardice, which could not occur in countries where
duelling is allowed.
To resume, the good-natured man who is not understood, whose good nature
is mistaken for softness, sometimes surprises people.
His opponent, either because he is one of the sort who say “smart” things,
or because he is losing his temper, says something which _at last_ wakes
up the good-natured man. The latter says nothing, does not change his
expression of good nature. He merely begins to shoot like a machine, his
arm rises like a steel rod, each shot goes into the middle of the
bull’s-eye, there is no hesitation, dwelling on the aim, or doubtful
bull’s-eye.
He has, in becoming angry, pulled himself together, his whole mind is
concentrated on one sole object, making the best score and beating his
insulter, and he shoots the best score of his life. To compete against him
is like competing against Fate.
After such an incident, I saw a beaten competitor go up to the winner, and
congratulate him.
He added, “I thought I had you beaten that time.” The other answered, “So
you had, if you had not insulted me.”
If you make a man “see red” whilst still keeping his temper, that is the
most dangerous man in the world to tackle. Sir Henry Irving portrayed this
when acting in the _Corsican Brothers_. I have never seen another actor
succeed in doing so.
In order not to hamper your adversary in a competition, it is of the
utmost importance to study every one of your words and acts. What does not
worry one man may entirely put another off his shooting. Moving about
whilst he is shooting, leaving the firing point as he is firing, is enough
to put him off his shot, and should be strictly avoided.
It is best to keep well away from him and only go up for your shot and not
address a word to him or speak to any one within his hearing, until he
beats you, then be the first to congratulate him.
CHAPTER XXVIII
THE EFFECT OF ALCOHOL AND NICOTINE ON SHOOTING
In order to obtain the best results in shooting, a perfect co-ordination
between the brain, nerves, and muscles is necessary.
A man who drinks heavily may for a time be able to shoot well, but this
does not last. He can never be depended on not to “crack up” and he
collapses at critical moments.
Very robust health is not necessary as long as the above conditions are
fulfilled, and pistol shooting in the open air may be of benefit to a man
who is in too delicate health to be able to play even a gentle game.
The old, evil days when a sportsman was not considered acting as a man
unless he drank several bottles of port each evening and had to be carried
home in a wheelbarrow are now, happily, gone for ever. Putting drink
before all else used to be a constant annoyance. A drunkard was not
content till he had reduced every man near him to the same disgusting
mental and physical condition.
If others would not drink with him, he had the utmost contempt for them.
Called them “milksops,” “drinkers of slops,” “unsociable,” and “too
proud.”
I always refused to go out shooting with such people. Besides being very
dangerous, they never would do anything but drink. Sport was a mere excuse
for going out “on the drink.” Every occasion was made the excuse for a
drink. With such people drink was the great event of the day, and if a
stag was shot, there was a ceremony to be gone through of everyone
drinking whiskey neat to “more blood.”
At lunch, after an interminable time spent in drinking--they eat
little--the forester who had been fidgeting to get off, would come up at
last and timidly say, “I’m thinking the sooner we go the best, I am seeing
a verra heavy beast in yon corrie, with the glass.”
The “sportsman” would answer, “Is there? open the other bottle of
champagne and help yourself, it won’t hurt you, there is not a headache in
a dozen bottles.”
Drink used to pose as the twin brother and boon companion of sport.
In these days drink is known as the sportsman’s deadliest enemy.
I consider even minute medicinal doses of alcohol are deleterious to
shooting, entirely apart from drunkenness. Admiral Jellicoe, speaking at
Gibraltar in 1911, quoted with approval a statement of Captain Ogilvy, the
noted gunnery instructor, to the effect that carefully compiled
statistics revealed the fact that the shooting efficiency of the men was
thirty per cent. better before than after the issue of the grog ration ...
one eighth of a pint of rum liberally diluted with water.
In Bavaria the Minister of War carried out tests as to the effect of
alcohol on marksmanship during twenty days on twenty marksmen (shortly
before the war), 80,000 shots were fired, and the trial showed according
to the report of Professor D. R. Kraeplin, that the consumption of forty
grammes of alcohol, corresponding to the amount contained in one and three
quarters pints of beer, made an average reduction in marksmanship of three
per cent. The effect was most perceptible twenty-five to thirty minutes
after absorbing the alcohol.
Most of the marksmen shot even worse, some of them from eight to twelve
per cent. worse.
The Professor continues: “An amusing feature of the tests was that _some
of the riflemen insisted not only that they could, but actually were
shooting better after drinking the spirits, whilst in reality their
marksmanship had fallen off as much as ten per cent_.”
The late Sir Victor Horsley permitted me to quote the following from one
of his lectures.
The cerebral activity of taking alcohol lasts only a few minutes, then
marked slowing sets in, and for the rest of the time during which
alcohol acts, varying from two to four hours according to the
individual, the cerebral activity is diminished. It took longer for a
person who had imbibed small quantities of alcohol to think, the
evidence was overwhelming that alcohol in small quantities had a most
deleterious effect on voluntary muscular work.
These facts bear out in every particular my own observations in watching
others.
I find they are not so active in their movements, especially if they have
to turn round suddenly to shoot, but at the same time they had more
confidence in their ability to shoot.
Who has not seen (to go to the extreme case) when a large dose of alcohol
has been swallowed and a man is “under the influence of liquor” that the
“patient” is ready to fight all comers, although he cannot stand on his
legs.
As Professor Kraeplin says, “the subject experimented on cannot judge--he
thinks alcohol makes him shoot better although the actual facts are the
other way about.”
At the Olympic Games which take place each four years, the members of the
United States Rifle and Revolver Teams which compete are water-drinkers
and non-smokers, and they are practically unbeaten to date.
Major Smith W. Brookhart of the Ordnance Department, United States
National Guard, writing in _Arms and the Man_, May 4, 1918, says:
“Civilization has advanced so much in the past decade, that it is now
almost superfluous to write a caution against the use of stimulants.
Every rifleman will admit that alcohol is an enemy. Total abstinence,
_bone dry_, is the only safe rule. Tobacco or any other stimulants should
also be avoided. They may not be so fatal as alcohol, but they all tend in
the wrong direction. The man who wants to climb into the championship
class and stay there must be a normal man. The proper attitude of mind
will give every man more pleasure in conquering a habit than in submitting
to it. To win over the smoking habit is an achievement of which to be
proud and it improves the scores.”
Those who make a moderate use of alcohol and tobacco are gradually reduced
as to the quantity they use some weeks or even months before the actual
Games, until all the members of the teams are non-smokers and
water-drinkers.
There is this to be said of the smoker, as long as you do not try to
prevent his stifling you with his smoke he does not pester you to imitate
his example like a drinker does.
He merely pityingly informs you that “you do not know what you have
missed.”
As the “joy” missed consists of chronic sore throat, palpitating heart,
and shaky nerves, I cannot see that much is missed by the non-smoker.
The invariable answer to the question “what pleasure do you find in
smoking” is “it soothes the nerves.”
Healthy normal nerves need no soothing.
When an automatic function of the body is normal and healthy, it does not
indicate its presence.
A man does not feel his heart when it is healthy, only when it is
diseased.
In the same way a man who has not injured his nerves by nicotine or
alcohol does not know that he has any nerves, but on the other hand,
nerves being destroyed by narcotics fight back, and make their agony
known.
A man would fight against his headache being “soothed” by being clubbed
over the head.
As well might one say a man half insensible from concussion needs
“soothing” by being knocked completely out. If this soothing of the nerves
is persisted in, a man sinks lower mentally than an animal.
A man in the last stage of nicotine poisoning, when told by his doctor,
“you must either give up smoking or you will die” answered “then I prefer
to die.”
What a glorious death! How true the dictum of Sir Oliver Lodge that the
supreme outcome of 500,000 years of effort by the Universe has been, man!
The following appeared in the _Daily Mail_ of September 25, 1917. It shows
how men risk not only their own lives but hundreds of other lives rather
than give up smoking. What a blessing if Dr. Furlong’s suggestion of
nicotine tablets is adopted.
We non-smokers will no longer have to walk the streets, eat our meals,
sit in theatres, and travel in railway trains breathing an atmosphere of
tobacco, and burnt paper smoke.
SHELLWORKERS’ CRAVING TO SMOKE.
_To the Editor of the Daily Mail_:
SIR: As some men in munition factories will run the risk of smoking in
spite of their liability to fines and as others, even if they do not
smoke during working hours, carry matches in their pockets, it is
necessary to consider what is best to be done to prevent explosions.
I believe that if tablets of nicotine were manufactured, each one
representing the drug value of say one cigarette, they would
constitute a real safeguard against such accidents. One or two of
these tablets would remove the craving for a smoke and check the
irritability caused by the want of it.
I do not wish to convey that nicotine tablets would ever take the
place of smoking, but they would have the advantage of safety, and no
disadvantage that I know of except that they are a little slower in
action.
Early in the war I advocated the introduction of these tablets for use
in special circumstances, but unfortunately up to the present the idea
has not been utilized.
WM. VERNER FURLONG, M.D.
16, Pembroke Road, Dublin.
The smoker does not see the selfishness of his behaviour. He looks on the
non-smoker as selfish if he protests against being nauseated.
The nicotine tablets will enable the taker to poison himself without also
poisoning others.
CHAPTER XXIX
CLEANING AND CARE OF THE PISTOL
In the black powder days cleaning was, comparatively, a simple matter.
Now, with the smokeless powders, especially cordite, incessant care has to
be taken to avoid the pistol spoiling by corrosion, pitting, and rust.
Even if you have cleaned the bore most carefully after using--the next
morning you may find it in an awful state.
The only remedy is to go over the pistol at intervals, after use, and even
when it appears perfectly right it should be looked after every few days,
to make sure.
Practice with a single-shot pistol entails less time spent in cleaning; if
you shoot frequently with an automatic pistol it will keep you busy all
your time taking it to pieces and looking after it.
A single-shot pistol is easy to clean. There is only the inside of the
barrel to look to, and it is easily got at without taking it to pieces;
whereas the moving parts of an automatic all need seeing to. The big bore
duelling pistol is much easier kept clean than a .22 bore.
A man practising with an automatic, unless he is very enthusiastic, soon
gets tired of the labour and the time it takes to keep it in working
order.
I shot with an automatic which had been at the front in the war over two
years. It shot extremely well, the owner having taken great care of it
during all its rough experiences, but it constantly failed to completely
close.
It did not actually jam, but what came to the same thing, it occasionally
did not quite close and could not be fired unless it had been closed by
hand.
This shows that in the actual work of war there is a tendency for an
automatic pistol to become weak in the closing spring, and there ought to
be some simple device for increasing the tension of the spring, when
necessary.
There may have been some such device on the pistol in question, which its
owner and I did not discover.
To really know your automatic pistol, it is best to have a few hours with
a gunmaker, taking it to pieces, and learning the use of each part, and
how to correct any failure of the pistol to function properly. Otherwise
you may, when in an out-of-the-way place, be rendered helpless by a simple
fault which could be corrected in a few moments without the use of tools
by someone who understands its mechanism.
I saw a man who actually buried a loaded automatic pistol deep in the
ground, because it had a jam and he was afraid of it.
CHAPTER XXX
PRACTICAL PISTOL SHOOTING
In England, rifle and pistol shooting are conducted on lines different to
Continental usage, owing to the entirely different point of view adopted.
In England big game has been practically exterminated. There are a few
fallow deer left in parks, and a few red deer are wild in Devonshire and
Somersetshire, and Scotland, but these deer are beyond the means of any
but rich men to shoot, and the deer in Devon and Somerset are reserved for
hunting with hounds.
There are a few roe deer in Scotland, but these are treated as vermin and
killed off with shotguns.
Rooks and rabbits are shot with miniature rifles but the rooks are shot
when young and unable to fly, sitting on the branches of the trees near
their nests, and the rabbits also when sitting outside their holes.
In England the general public never shoot rifles in sport, except those
who shoot sitting shots at rooks and rabbits.
The idea has therefore arisen that the rifle and pistol are not weapons
to use in sport but merely implements at the game of bull’s-eye shooting,
and that the shotgun is the sporting firearm.
The idea is that a rifle or pistol can be used only at a stationary
object.
When the above is realized, it is very easy to understand why in England
all rifle and pistol clubs shoot only at stationary bull’s-eye targets at
known distances.
The reason they adopted the black front sight probably arose because it is
easier to make a small black spot in the middle of a white sheet of paper
than to paint the whole sheet black and leave out a white bull’s-eye.
It was merely a matter of convenience in target-making.
Once however a black bull’s-eye on white paper was decided on; the colour
of the front sight _had_ to be black.
To shoot at a minute object, aim must be at the bottom edge of it “at six
o’clock” (so called from the analogy of the face of a watch).
If the aim is taken in the middle of a small bull’s-eye, the front sight
covers most of it and makes seeing the bull’s-eye difficult.
In order to see the front sight best on a white target below a black
bull’s-eye, the front sight must be black; black against white being the
strongest contrast. A white front sight on a white target would be lost.
As a result, all except big game rifles and English pistols are made with
black front sights.
Shooters of big game abroad found a white front sight best, and hunting
rifles are now made in England with silver or ivory front sights, but no
English pistol has any but a black front sight.
Military rifles of every nation have this conventional black front sight.
Professional experts test military rifles but they test them on white
targets with black bull’s-eyes, therefore a black front sight is necessary
for this purpose, and as the experts are merely expert target shots and
not big game shots, this black front sight is retained.
It being customary not to look on a rifle or pistol as of any use except
to hit a stationary target, all English rifle and pistol clubs have been
formed on this supposition.
At the English National Rifle Association Meetings at Wimbledon and later
at Bisley, the “Running Deer” target has been in use from the beginning,
but only a very few of us shoot at it.
The bulk of rifle shots have always fought most desperately against any
but stationary targets. This is natural. A man who has worked hard all his
life to become a “crack shot” at a stationary target is not going to risk
his reputation by being beaten by a school boy at a moving target.
At the revolver ranges, moving, disappearing, and rapid-firing
competitions were instituted but had very little support; a few men shot,
but half a dozen men do not constitute a big enough crowd to warrant the
keeping up of competitions which the bulk of shooters do not want.
On the Continent, shooting under practical conditions has always marked
the shooting at rifle and pistol clubs.
Numerous Continental sportsmen, even in humble circumstances, are able to
shoot bears, wolves, lynx, reindeer, elk, moufflon, chamois, wild boar,
etc., and above all _roe deer_.
It is the roebuck who trains men to be practical rifle shots on the
Continent.
In Scotland the roe is classed as vermin and exterminated with shotguns.
The roebuck is, to the middle class Continental sportsman, his highest
sport in rifle shooting.
Few men in England, even if they have the means, care for deer-stalking as
they know nothing of rifle shooting. They prefer small game shooting with
the shotgun which they are more skilful with.
On the Continent the roe is strictly preserved and no does or fawns are
ever allowed to be killed.
The roebuck must be shot only with a rifle and not during the close
season.
There are societies which have yearly exhibitions of roebuck heads, shot
by their members during the current year, and gold, silver, and bronze
medals given for the best heads.
A good roe-head in a public place draws crowds who discuss its good and
bad points.
I doubt if in England one person in a thousand would know what species of
deer they belonged to, but all would know the difference between a
tennis, cricket, or foot ball.
Rifle clubs are in existence all over the Continent to enable members to
practice for game shooting.
The club members are sportsmen used to game shooting with the rifle, not
men who have never fired a rifle except at a target or ever expect to
shoot otherwise, and who therefore take no interest in rifle shooting
except in seeing who can make the closest group of shots on a stationary
target and to win spoons and cups.
The makers of targets on the Continent employ good animal painters to make
the shooting as like the real thing as possible.
I know of a range where you climb steep rocks amongst bracken, and as you
get near the top, you see a model of a chamois, life-size and colour above
you, half hidden in foliage, which you shoot at.
At another range, there are stags, roe deer, wild boar, even hares,
life-size and colour which rush past unexpectedly like clay pigeons in an
English shotgun shooting school.
“Figure” targets in the United States and England are very badly drawn
(the running deer at Wimbledon was an exception, being drawn by Sir Edwin
Landseer).
The “figure” targets one sees in England and in the United States are
drawn by artists of the cubist, futurist, and vorticist schools. Such
drawings, over which the art critics go into ecstasies, are too difficult
to identify and therefore not suitable for quick rifle shooting practice.
The shooter does not know when it is safe to shoot. What he thinks is
meant for a wild boar, or possibly a lynx, is really meant to be the
“portrait of Miss X., the beautiful Musical Comedy Actress,” put up as a
target owing to the mistake of a workman ignorant of art.
It will be noticed that the bull’s-eye and concentric rings for scoring
bear no relation to the object drawn on it. It is possible to miss what
looks like a bottle stopper and score a bull’s-eye, or to hit the bottle
stopper and score a miss.
I have shown a proof of this last paragraph to a friend who says he
understands cubism, and he tells me the target referred to represents a
soldier and is a very fine example by one of the founders of cubism and it
ought to be purchased for the Chantry Bequest, but I am not sure if my
friend is a reliable art critic.
I confess I do not understand art criticism as I am merely a sculptor who
exhibits at the London Royal Academy and Paris.
CHAPTER XXXI
DANGER OF LEAVING PISTOLS ABOUT
The brainless have one perennial joke. This is to take up a firearm, aim
it at someone, say “I’ll shoot you,” and then pull the trigger.
Even an unloaded pistol should never be left about. Someone is sure to
“snap” it and ruin the lock, lugging at the hammer and pulling at the
trigger at the same time, just as people rip out the teeth of the gear of
an automobile by altering gear without first taking out the clutch.
If the pistol is loaded, someone is sure to get shot by a fool. Both the
owner who left the loaded pistol about and the man who fired it “not
knowing it was loaded” are equally to blame.
Aiming firearms in “fun” at people is not empty-headedness solely but a
form of hysteria.
It is done by the same people who laugh when at a funeral, or commence to
rock a boat in “fun” and cause so many drowning accidents.
The best thing that can happen to such people is for them to “clean a
pistol not knowing it was loaded” and shoot themselves.
There is a story of a man who wished to kill a monkey. When he noticed
the monkey was looking at him, he took an empty gun, pointed it at his own
head, and pulled the trigger. This he repeated many times, propping the
butt of the heel plate against a tree and the muzzle against his forehead.
Then the man loaded the gun, put it to full cock, and laid it on the
ground and went off.
As soon as he was out of sight, the monkey crept up to the gun and
repeated what he had seen the man do.
Result--monkey’s head blown off.
This is the exact mentality of the “did not know it was loaded” fool.
The only difference is that, as soon as such people kill others on the
“did not know it was loaded” principle, there are plenty of others to take
their place.
As they are always acquitted when they say they “did not know it was
loaded,” others imitate, knowing there is no danger of their being hung
for this murder.
But if you shoot another man, even if you think he is going to murder you,
unless you have let him first have a shot at you, you run the risk of
being hung for it; if he turns to run away you must not shoot him in the
back as he runs away or you get hung for it.
Parents encourage children in the criminal folly, aiming at people; they
give them toy pistols and play themselves with the children pretending to
be frightened when the child comes round the corner and fires the popgun
or pistol with paper detonator at them.
When this child grows up, he always thinks that to point a firearm at any
one and pull the trigger is “humour” and takes the first opportunity to
pick up a firearm and point it at people. “Want of the sense of humour” is
the unpardonable sin in the opinion of so-called “Humorous writers,” who
consider any one not laughing at their obvious drivel is wanting in a
sense of humour, and if he abuses mothers-in-law or throws bricks at a
starving cat, he considers himself a humorist.
Surely any one pointing a firearm at others in play should be punished by
two years’ hard labour. This would soon teach people that they must curb
their “sense of humour.”
There are plenty of other “jokes” left such as pulling a chair from under
any one about to sit down, or putting tin tacks in his boots; but of
course they have the disadvantage of not actually killing him, and you may
be prosecuted for damages, but the joke of shooting a man on the “did not
know it was loaded” principle entails no unpleasant consequences on the
shooter. He is always acquitted even as when a defendant said “I only
pulled the trigger to frighten her, having forgotten to unload my rifle
when I left the trenches in France to come back to England.” Imagine a
soldier not unloading and cleaning his rifle when coming out of the
trenches, but leaving it to rust during his leave home in England!!!
CHAPTER XXXII
USING ONE’S BRAINS IN SHOOTING
Pistol shooting is not merely the mechanical art most people think it is,
a man who does not use his brains and think out things will go on making
the same mistakes all his life and never improve or become a good shot.
There is no such thing as luck. A bad shot means a fault somewhere, and
the good shot is he who can diagnose the cause of this fault and correct
it.
I saw a most ridiculous instance of a man not using his brains.
A man was practising next me at Gastinne-Renette’s. He shot some two
hundred shots, beautifully grouped but all to the left.
I asked a friend if he had noticed this. He answered that he had seen this
man shooting constantly, that he was a regular attendant and had been for
years.
He always put his shots to the same side of the target, and had never
discovered that if he only aimed a little to the right, he would hit the
target.
I saw a man counting stamps at an hotel. He was wetting his finger to
turn them over and got the whole lot into one sticky mass.
This latter man was perhaps so used to counting paper money by wetting his
finger that he was doing it mechanically with these stamps whilst thinking
of something else.
The former man looked an intelligent man and was so most probably in his
business, but he cannot ever have used his brains in pistol shooting.
I put a man right once who was shooting at a black “man” figure in
competition.
He shot very badly. I asked him what was the matter. Unlike most men who
tell you to mind your own business, and make you chary of helping any one,
this man asked me if I could assist him.
He said he could not see his front sight on the target and feared
something was wrong with his eyes.
I showed him it was not his eyes but the black front sight of his pistol
on the black target which was at fault.
I put a big blob of Chinese white on his front sight squeezed from a water
colour tube.
He won first prize with a highest possible score.
Like the conventional man with his doctor who has cured him, he never even
thanked me.
Getting into bad habits in shooting has constantly to be guarded against.
A horse is very apt to get carrying his head crooked, tongue lolling,
hitching, etc., unless he is constantly corrected. So must a shooter
watch and correct his own faults.
It is as well to get a good shot to watch you shooting occasionally and to
point out to you undesirable tricks or habits you may be getting into,
without noticing it.
Some men, when shotgun shooting, gradually get into the habit of carrying
the muzzle too low so that they sweep others as they walk. This is the
result of shooting much alone, and so getting out of the habit of noticing
when they are swinging their guns across others.
CHAPTER XXXIII
THE PERFECT TARGET
Most targets are very imperfect, not only from the bull’s-eye being a
wrong size, but the scoring on them is very rudimentary, and does not show
the real value of the hits. For instance, take the usual English five
hundred yards’ target.
If a few hundred men have fired at these, there are a quantity of highest
possible scores made which have to be shot off and much time wasted
thereby.
Seven lucky shots just touching the extreme edge of the bull’s-eye counts
a highest possible. A score consisting of six shots into the very centre
of the bull’s-eye and one shot just grazing the edge of the bull’s-eye
counts one point less than the former, though a much better score.
No target except the one I am about to describe enables one to know if a
bullet has hit the absolute centre of the target. In other targets you
have a bull’s-eye more or less small, and any shot in the absolute centre
counts no better than one on the edge of the bull’s-eye.
A perfect target should fulfil the following conditions:
Bull’s-eye right size for aiming at.
Possibility of judging an absolutely central shot.
Certainty and ease with which the scoring value of a shot can be
ascertained.
Such a target exists and is illustrated herewith (see Plate 8).
It is the target in use at Gastinne-Renette’s Pistol Gallery, Paris, and
is the invention, I believe, of the Founder of the firm, the grandfather
of the present proprietor.
A perfectly placed bullet is one in the absolute centre of the bull’s-eye.
Apart from the impossibility of aiming at it, the mathematical “point”
would be of no use as a bull’s-eye. If the bullet hits it, or hits a pin’s
point (which is the smallest practical substitute for the mathematical
point), the point disappears and there is no means of telling if the
centre of the bullet struck that point or not.
M. Gastinne-Renette’s solution of this problem is extremely simple. It is
to make the bull’s-eye of _exactly the diameter of the bullet fired at
it_.
If a bullet hits a bull’s-eye which is exactly of the same diameter as
itself, and no part of the bull’s-eye remains visible at an edge of the
bullet hole, then that bullet has hit absolutely central in the
bull’s-eye.
The next difficulty was that such a small bull’s-eye is difficult to aim
at with a pistol.
This was overcome by enclosing this absolute bull’s-eye called the
carton, in a larger bull’s-eye, called the aiming bull’s-eye.
The carton is left white and the aiming bull’s-eye printed black.
[Illustration: PLATE 8. THE GASTINNE-RENETTE 16 METRES TARGET
This target has a 1-3/16 black. The ring is to facilitate judging]
This aiming bull’s-eye is of the diameter of three bullet widths.
The target in question was designed for the .44 bullet. The carton is
therefore .44 of an inch diameter, the black bull’s-eye 1.32 in diameter
leaving a ring of black round the carton of exactly a bullet width, _i.
e._, .44.
The reason for having the black bull’s-eye three bullet diameters in width
is because this leaves a space of exactly one bullet width between the
edge of the white carton and the outer edge of the black bull’s-eye.
This gives a black ring, a bullet width, surrounding the bullet diameter
carton.
Therefore when a bullet strikes the black of the bull’s-eye it can do one
of three things.
It can cut partly into the white of the carton, it can cut partly into the
white of the target outside the black bull’s-eye, or cut the black without
touching the white on either side of it.
To decide if the carton is cut into (which would score one point higher
than if the black of the bull’s-eye only was cut) examine first the edge
of the bullet hole nearest the carton.
If this is uncertain, examine the opposite edge of the bullet hole, next
to the white of the rest of the target.
If this is cut, then you know the carton cannot be cut, as the bullet hole
is the exact width of the black.
To make assurance doubly sure, there is a thin line on the target, just
clear of the outer black of the bull’s-eye.
If the bullet hole touches this thin line, then it is an absolute
certainty that it cannot _also_ cut into the carton.
The rest of the target is divided into concentric rings exactly the width
of a bullet hole.
The same bullet hole therefore cannot cut into two rings, and if it is
doubtful that a certain ring is cut into, the opposite side of the bullet
hole is examined, and if it cuts into the ring on that side, then the
first ring cannot have been cut into.
The whole idea is merely having no divisions of the target either further
apart or closer than the exact width of a bullet.
Then, given a target of thin, good cardboard, in which a bullet makes a
clean cut hole, scoring is an absolutely simple and accurate matter.
From the above long, but necessary, explanation it will be seen that the
Gastinne-Renette target fulfils all that a perfect target should.
The highest possible score which can be made on it is absolute perfection,
and as such is not attainable either by man or the pistol (even if it is
shot from a vise) the target never can “get beaten” as is the case in any
other target.
The man who can make a highest possible on the Gastinne-Renette target,
even when shooting at a range of one yard, does not and cannot ever exist.
The target is made on the .44 calibre measurements because the .44 bullet
is the standard for pistol and revolver at the Gastinne-Renette Gallery in
competing for the Grand Medaille d’Or but this system can be applied to
any size bore, for pistol or rifle or even cannon. I do not know if it was
patented, but if so, the patent must have run out years ago.
CHAPTER XXXIV
IS DUELLING WRONG?
Right and wrong are not, as some suppose, clearly defined, as are black
and white. Right and wrong so overlap that it is difficult, except for a
clergyman, to decide which is which. Circumstances may turn the balance,
and what is right under some circumstances is very wrong under others.
A man may pose as being very good, whereas he is merely a coward; he may
refuse to fight, not because he thinks it wrong to kill, but because he is
too cowardly.
Wrong often poses as right.
Right and wrong are chiefly a matter of convention, and vary with
different races of men, and at different periods.
What is wrong to-day may be right to-morrow. The list of right and wrong I
give below, is only made up to date, and is subject to revision at any
time.
Probably by the time this book sees the light, this list may be entirely
out-of-date.
In early times holy men did things which would land them in prison if
they were alive in these days.
In the cruel ages when men knew no better, St. Francis of Assisi preached
(like Buddha) kindness to every living thing, and called the birds “our
little brothers.”
In the present superior age, St. Francis would spend his life in prison
from inability to pay the fines imposed on him for feeding birds.
Kindness to animals was never a popular virtue. It is considered “soppy,”
“sickly sentimentality.”
Men have always liked to bully horses to show what good riders they are,
and what “control” they have over them. They think it draws forth
admiration to be seen knocking a horse about. It shows their mental
superiority over a mere brute.
Small men like to be seen lugging a big good-natured dog along by a chain,
threatening him with a whip. It shows their great brain power over mere
matter.
The feeding of starving birds in a hard winter and kindness to cats has
always been merely tolerated, even before it became a crime to do so.
In the year 1917, in London, a poor old woman went off crying bitterly,
unable to pay the fine imposed on her for giving a few crumbs out of her
own scanty meal to some birds. But even in less enlightened times, in the
days when birds were pitied, such doubtful conduct was not much approved
of except in the case of old maids or little girls. The former were also
allowed to keep cats and parrots. Such kindness was “too mawkish” for men
and boys to stoop to. Boys should only stoop to pick up stones to throw at
birds and cats. “_Boys_ will be boys” and it is a pity to spoil their
spirit.
Such boys are in their element now.
A great wave has arisen against mawkish sentimentality. Formerly societies
were formed to enforce close seasons for birds and animals, to give them a
chance to live in peace during the breeding season, and to prevent the
extinction of fast vanishing species, and the Clergy instructed their
parishioners in kindness to animals and the “mawkish” protection of
defenceless rodents during the breeding season.
But this is changed in the present superior age.
Rabbits and hares can now be killed all the year round. A doe rabbit,
dying in a snare or steel trap with a broken leg held by sharp steel
teeth, lies suckling her young which have come to her, and the young die
of starvation when she has died in torture.
Committees are formed in villages, the Vicar as chairman, which give
prizes to the boys who destroy the most birds’ nests and kill the parent
birds and their young. Little girls are given prizes for killing the most
butterflies.
Those children who are too young yet to be able to kill birds are not
forgotten. They are given prizes, which they take home to their proud
parents, for the greatest number of flies they can kill.
When I was a boy, in the cruel bad times, I was told I would go to a very
unpleasant place when I died if I was so wicked and cruel as to kill flies
or pull their wings and legs off whilst they were alive.
I understand this game of pulling wings and legs off is also now played by
boys with young birds taken out of nests.
How otherwise can two boys fairly divide a nestful of young birds if they
are of an uneven number?
I was at a village fête where such prizes were given and I expressed
surprise that a boy did not get first prize for a very big heap of dead
flies. I was told that he had collected the dead flies found on the window
ledges the previous autumn, and added them to his heap of kills, so he was
not eligible.
It is praiseworthy to kill flies, but wrong to collect those already dead.
I must apologize for this long digression, but it was necessary in order
that my following analysis of what is conventionally right and wrong might
be properly understood.
As right and wrong at present stand, a man in uniform, if he meets a man
in a different uniform (a man, with whom he has no quarrel, and of whose
existence he was ignorant up to that moment), and he is told to fight that
man, and kills him, he becomes a _hero_. The more he kills, the greater
hero he is.
If on the other hand, this man in uniform quarrels with a man in the
_same_ uniform as himself, or who is in civilian dress, or if he is
himself in civilian dress, and if, as the result of this quarrel they
fight (even if a fair fight, with friends of each man present to see that
it is a fair fight) and he kills the man, then he is a _murderer_.
A murderer must be murdered; that is his punishment for murdering a man.
It might be imagined that if the man who murders another has to be
murdered himself by another man, who thus also becomes a murderer, it
would end by everyone being killed except the last man.
This is not so. When a civilian has murdered another in fair fight, the
man appointed to murder this murderer does not become a murderer, he is an
executioner, and is paid for murdering the other man, and the incident
closes.
Whatever wrong a man receives from another, he must not fight him. He must
not even slap his face. That is an assault and wrong.
He must accept a sum of money considered equivalent to the wrong done him.
Some men are not satisfied with this. They consider receiving money from
their opponent a degradation, and even the suggestion of such a course, an
insult.
In countries where duelling is still allowed, they have a solution--the
duel.
CHAPTER XXXV
REMARKS ON DUELLING
The mere word duel raises a smile amongst the empty headed. Hardly any one
thinks for himself; he takes his thoughts ready made, like his tea when he
gets up in the morning.
He opens his paper; in the paper he reads “So-and-so is the wickedest man
on earth,” good; in future, whenever he hears of anything So-and-so’s
done, it is wrong; and if he sees So-and-so “on the pictures,” he hisses
with all his might.
Next, he reads that “such a one is the best and cleverest man on earth,”
this is enough. “Such a one” can do no wrong, and if he sees “Such a one”
on the cinematograph screen, he stamps and shouts with delight.
In prehistoric times someone wrote a joke in arrow-head characters about
duelling; as comic subjects are scarce and have to be used over and over
again, duelling became a standard “joke,” and therefore the sort of people
I have mentioned grin the moment they hear the word, as they roar with
laughter when they see a “comic” actor.
It always amuses me when an actor who is a “comedian” attempts a serious
part.
As he walks in with a despairing air, the audience shriek with laughter
(because he is labelled as “comic” in their brains). The actor says in a
pathetic way “my wife went out starving to beg for bread, and she found
the child had fallen in the fire, and was burnt to death when she returned
at length with food.”
The audience simply roll with laughter, and gasp “is he not killing?”
I merely make this digression to show how difficult it is to make people
think for themselves, especially on the subject of duelling.
Duelling is a “comic subject” to them, and that is the end of it.
Just as war is necessary, so is duelling necessary. Duelling is to the
individual, what war is to the nation.
The man who laughs at the word duel would not laugh if he were standing
before another’s pistol, and knew that within a second of the word “fire,”
he would have a bullet in his breast and be dead.
He does not differentiate between the “advertisement duels” which
sometimes take place on the Continent, where neither combatant intends to
shoot the other, but merely wants to get his name in the papers, and a
real duel by which a wronged man seeks redress.
In a sword duel a man, if young and active, can avoid being fatally
injured. He can keep all but his right wrist and knee out of danger, and
as soon as he gets a scratch on them, give up the fight on the plea of
being “at a disadvantage.”
But with pistols it is different, provided the seconds have not (in order
to prevent a fatal termination) altered the sights or reduced the powder
charge. In fact, if he has an accurate and properly loaded pistol in his
hands, a good shot can make certain of hitting his opponent.
When such a one misses his man or hits him in a non-vital part, it is
because he has done so purposely, not wanting to kill the man.
Sometimes a man who feels he is in the wrong, stands up to be shot at, and
either misses his opponent on purpose, or does not shoot at all.
On a recent occasion, when a duellist had not fired when the word was
given, someone had the bad taste to ask him why he did not shoot. The
answer was “I forgot.”
This was the occasion for a stream of jokes; the writers of these jokes
did not of course appreciate the chivalry of not shooting, and the
delicacy of the reply. They made all sorts of silly remarks about
“absentmindedness,” only exposing their own empty-headedness thereby.
Having now cleared the ground, I will in the next chapter give details of
how a pistol duel is conducted, and how to train for it.
In countries where duelling is allowed, the upper classes know how to
fence, and to shoot the duelling pistol; they need no teaching if called
out. Any one who has learnt to shoot from instructions given in this
book needs no further teaching. He only needs to be told the rules. There
are, however, a few points in which duelling differs from the rapid-fire
practice I have given, one being the position the pistol is raised from,
and when it is permissible to raise it.
CHAPTER XXXVI
REMARKS ON DUELLING (_Continued_)
The person considering himself aggrieved sends two of his friends as his
seconds, to see his adversary. The latter if he accepts the challenge
appoints two of his friends to act as his seconds.
These four seconds meet and agree as to the conditions of the duel. If the
matter is serious, the duel is fought till one of the combatants is either
killed, or is so seriously injured that he cannot continue.
Otherwise the seconds take the first opportunity to declare that their man
is unable to continue, owing to his injury having placed him at a
disadvantage. This means, practically that first blood drawn ends the
combat.
If the provocation is a very grave one, the challenger tells his seconds
they must insist on the combat continuing to the end.
The seconds should be taken into the challenger’s confidence, and he
should tell them exactly what he really wants. He cannot interfere after
they and the adversary’s seconds have arranged the terms, and he may find
himself bound by his seconds to something quite different from what he
had intended.
[Illustration: PLATE 9. ORNAMENTAL DUELLING PISTOLS BY GASTINNE-RENETTE
The property of the Author]
He may be let into a fight to a finish over some trivial nonsense, and
have to kill a man he does not want to kill, in order to save his own
skin. Or, wishing to kill a man who has done him an unforgivable wrong,
the duel may end with a flick of cloth cut out of his sleeve and his enemy
unscathed.
Combatants are not allowed to use their own weapons. The pistols of the
regulation pattern (muzzle-loaders shooting a regulation load of smokeless
powder and round lead bullet, see Plate 9) are provided by a gunmaker, are
loaded by the gunmaker in the presence of the seconds, and sealed up in
their case. The seals are only broken and the pistols apportioned by lot
to the combatants when on the duelling ground, by the director of the duel
chosen by the seconds.
In Paris you are absolutely safe as to your pistols. M. Gastinne-Renette
generally supplies the pistols, but in an out of the way place where you
do not know the gunmaker, and do not trust your opponent or his seconds,
it is advisable to instruct your seconds to be very careful what gunmaker
is chosen, and if they are the least bit dubious to insist on M.
Gastinne-Renette being telegraphed to, asking him to send a representative
with pistols.
A doctor has to be present at the duel.
Lots are drawn by the seconds for position. It is very important to have
at least one good practical shooting man as second or your seconds may
give away advantages to your opponent’s seconds, and place you facing the
sun.
The distance is twenty-five metres (26 yards 1 foot 2 inches). The
opponents stand facing each other and holding the pistol with the butt
_touching their right thighs_.
The director of the duel, after giving the caution _attention_, says
“_feu, un, deux, trois_.” After the word “_feu_” the pistol may be raised
and fired, but not fired later than the word “_trois_.”
[Illustration: PLATE 10. PISTOLS BY GASTINNE-RENETTE
1. Shooting Smith & Wesson, .44 cartridge. 2. Modified Ira Paine to shoot
.44 or .22 ammunition. 3. Saloon pistol, .22 bore, weighing and balancing
like a duelling pistol]
To lift the pistol from touching the thigh _before_ the word “_feu_” or
to fire after the word “_trois_,” is a very grave offence, and if your
opponent is killed, it is murder.
The seconds draw up a “Proces Verbal” or report, of the proceedings, which
they and the doctor sign, and this is at once submitted to the police. If
there is any irregularity reported in it, such as lifting the arm too soon
or shooting too late, it is a very serious matter indeed to the guilty
one.
If a duellist is killed, his adversary must stand by the body till the
police arrive, and deliver himself up to them.
If all is in order, he will probably get off, or at the worst get two
years’ imprisonment.
If he has infringed the regulations----??
CHAPTER XXXVII
DETAILS AS TO DUELLING
The following remarks on duelling apply only to countries where duelling
is permitted.
In duelling the challenged has the right to choose what weapons are to be
used, pistols or swords.
The pistol is the weapon for any one deeply wronged, provided he is
anything of a pistol shot.
In a sword duel the duellist can parry; in a pistol one, he cannot parry,
but he can shoot first. If his adversary is a good shot and intends to
kill him, his best chance is to hit him before he can fire. A man who
knows he is in the wrong and also knows he has a man in front of him,
determined to kill him, is very apt to shoot too hurriedly and wildly.
Suppose A. who is a good pistol shot and an indifferent fencer, wishes to
fight a duel to the death with B., who is a good swordsman but a bad
pistol shot.
It would be very bad policy for A. to send a challenge to B. It would be
equally bad policy for B. even if he does not want to fight, to refuse
A.’s challenge, if he knows A. wants to kill him.
The reason A. makes a mistake in challenging is that B. when challenged,
can choose swords as the weapons, which gives him the advantage.
If B. does not want to fight, having nothing to gain by killing A. and
objecting to have A. try and kill him, refusing to fight avails him
nothing. It puts him in a worse position. A. has merely to take the
opportunity when B. is in a public place to insult B. and compel B. to
challenge him else B. is publicly branded as a coward. A. now being the
challenged can select weapons and chooses pistols, thus signing B.’s
death-warrant.
The most important thing of all in a pistol duel, is _not to lift the
pistol before the word_ “_feu_.”
There is very little danger of shooting too late, each wishing to hit the
other first prevents that, but there is a very serious risk of lifting the
pistol _before the word_ “_feu_.”
The best way to avoid this risk is to be determined, at whatever cost,
_never_ to lift too soon either in practice or competition, so that in
case of having to fight a duel there is no risk of lifting too soon; it
should become so mechanical to wait an appreciable interval before lifting
the pistol after the word “_feu_,” that there can be no shadow of a doubt
that the pistol has not been lifted too soon.
It is an unpardonable fault to get into the habit of lifting the pistol
too soon in competition.
The best way to cure this fault if acquired (the most difficult of all
faults to eradicate, it being one of nerves) is to lift _just before the
word_ “_un_,” not after the word “_feu_,” and get into the habit of
treating the word “_feu_” as you do _attention_, as just an order to get
prepared to lift, not as the order to lift.
In time you will entirely lose all desire to lift at the word “_feu_.” You
may be a shade slower in your shots, but this is counterbalanced by the
absence of the dread of being too soon.
A man who has been several times disqualified in competition for being too
soon, may get very slow in lifting and wild in his shooting, as his whole
attention is fixed on the words of command instead of on doing good
shooting.
Some men adapt a slightly forward lean in shooting, like pigeon shots or a
runner on the mark. I do not think there is any advantage in this as there
is no recoil to stand up against in a duelling pistol as in a pigeon gun.
The objection to this position is that it does not give the appearance of
absolute ease and confidence, so necessary in duelling. It looks like
anxiety.
Now half the battle, as any one who has boxed knows, is to “get a healthy
funk” in his adversary before the fight begins.
If you draw yourself up slowly to your full height, plant your feet firmly
and look your opponent well over, it will have much more effect on his
nerves, than if you stand in an eager excited attitude.
Carpentier has this gift to perfection, better than any other fighter I
have seen. He has such an air of perfect reliance in himself and
confidence and contempt for his adversary, that the latter seemed almost
to quail before him.
When the pistol is handed to you, you are not allowed to test the
trigger-pull, but you can make a shrewd guess of its strength as you cock
it, if you lift the hammer high and let it drop clean back into the bend.
A heavy trigger-pull gives a much louder click in cocking than a light
one. I bought Ira Paine’s hair trigger Smith & Wesson revolver, which he
used for his dangerous feats on the stage, and I hardly hear any sound in
cocking it,--the trigger-pull is so light.
Byron, speaking of duelling, in _Don Juan_, says:
It has a strange quick jar upon the ear,
That cocking of a pistol, when you know
A moment more will bring the sights to bear
Upon your person, twelve yards off or so;
A gentlemanly distance, not too near
If you have got a former friend or foe;
But after being fired at once or twice,
The ear becomes more Irish, and less nice.
Canto IV.: Stanza XLI.
CHAPTER XXXVIII
OUGHT DUELLING TO BE ABOLISHED?
It is a mistake to think that it is to the universal satisfaction that
duelling is no longer allowed in England.
Probably it was abolished, owing to some agitation by a few cranks, like
that against stag-hunting and Sunday amusements, and even at the time of
the abolition, there were many who thought duelling was a necessity and
its abolition a mistake.
Even a judge of the present time doubts if his abolition was not a
mistake.
On May 17, 1911, it is reported that at the dinner of the Union Society of
London, Lord Justice Vaughan Williams said:
In recent years a statement that man is a liar does not bear the
weight it used to do.
There were times when if one man called another a liar, that man was
called to account for it, it might be even in a duel. But long since
duels came to an end.
If a man called an Englishman a liar in a public place, that
Englishman had a habit of knocking that man down; I am afraid that
habit is dying out.
He said he was sorry he had come to that conclusion, that the “world in
general, as it was accepted in England was coming to think that it did not
matter very much if one’s neighbour called one a liar or not.
“One would smile, meet him in society, go out and play golf with him, and
shake hands with him.
“He wished people would resent more this imputation of being liars.”
“Vanoc” in the _Referee_ newspaper said:
For some reasons the abolition of duelling is a mistake. Insolent and
offensive language is now too frequently indulged in with impunity ...
the best rule of all is never to take liberties yourself, and never to
allow liberties to be taken with you, and to remember that
self-defence is still the noble art.
Over the signature of “Les Armes de Combat,” a writer after referring to
“the deplorable” inefficiency of the mass of English officers with the
revolver, says:
The reason Englishmen take no interest (as a nation) in pistol
shooting, whereas pistol shooting is of national interest in countries
where pistol duelling still exists, is because in those countries
every man of the upper classes, soldier or civilian, has at the back
of his mind the possibility that he may be called out.
Amongst this class therefore, fencing and pistol-shooting is a
national sport, with a spice of utility behind it. In Great Britain
this incentive has ceased to exist.
Whilst duelling is allowed in one country and not in another, it puts an
inhabitant of the latter country in a very unenviable position if he is
insulted in the other country.
He cannot shield himself behind the plea that duelling is not customary in
his own country, without laying himself open to be called a coward, and
yet he must not fight.
At the actual time I was writing the above, an English officer was having
to submit to the indignity of being tried for murder under circumstances
in which, in a duelling country, he would have had a perfect right to kill
the man.
As I sat down to resume writing this morning, the morning papers were
brought in. I picked up the nearest, which happened to be the _Daily
Mirror_, and the first words my eyes fell on were:
With the verdict of “not guilty” the great love drama trial came to an
end at the Old Bailey yesterday. Scarcely had the foreman of the jury
uttered the words which set Lieut. X---- free, than frantic cheers
rose in Court, and were taken up by the enormous crowd, which,
seething with excitement, awaited the result in the street outside.
Can any one doubt what answer this crowd would have given, if asked if
duelling should be made legal in England?
How the law at present stands, for citizens of the United States of
America and for British subjects, will be found in the supplement of this
book (reprinted from my _Art of Revolver Shooting_).
The American law does not apply to the case of a duel fought by a citizen
of the United States outside the geographical limits of that country.
According to Mr. R. Newton Crane _no offence is committed_ by the fact
that an American citizen has participated in a duel beyond the
jurisdiction of the United States. The citizenship of the combatant, is in
such circumstances, immaterial.
On the other hand, sending, knowingly bearing, or accepting a challenge in
England or America, renders the sender, bearer, or accepter, liable to
punishment by the laws of England or America, as the case may be, whether
the duel is subsequently fought or not, and whether it is fought in
England or America or abroad, and whether the offending party is an
Englishman, American, or a foreigner. Provoking a man to send a challenge
is also an indictable offence.
The law applicable to the punishment for actually fighting the duel, is,
on the other hand, the law of the place where the duel is fought, and that
law only, applies to the offence.
Provocation, however great, is no excuse, although it might weigh with the
court in fixing the punishment.
Under the English law the punishment for sending, bearing or accepting a
challenge is fine or imprisonment without hard labour, or both.
Each of the States of the United States has penalties for the offence,
which though differing in detail are practically the same in substance as
those provided by the law of England.
It seems, therefore, that a citizen of the United States of America, can
safely fight a duel in a country where duelling is permitted with a man of
any nationality, provided he does not challenge, accept a challenge, or
fight him on American _or_ British soil.
CHAPTER XXXIX
HOW TO PREPARE A NOVICE IN HALF AN HOUR FOR A DUEL
A duel takes place only a few hours after the challenge, generally early
next morning, to prevent interruption.
Suppose a man has never had a pistol in his hand. How should he be trained
in the half-hour at his disposal?
This is easy--if he is experienced with the shotgun at game or clay
pigeons.
Show him the hind sight of the pistol; tell him it is merely to assist him
in aligning the pistol.
Tell him that as there is only one barrel, it would be difficult to align
it without this sight, pointing out to him that his double barrel shotgun
can be aligned without this aid as in that case he looks along the rib.
Tell him to imagine he is using a shotgun, and to use his pistol exactly
as he would use his gun if shooting at a rabbit which sat up on its hind
legs for a moment, to listen.
Tell him he must be careful to keep the butt end of his pistol against his
thigh, till he hears the word “_un_,” and that he must not fire after the
word “_trois_”; in fact, he must not fire a poking shot.
On no account, unless he unfortunately knows it already, let him know the
pistol may be raised after the word “_feu_.”
If he is a good snap shot with a gun, he is sure to shoot quickly enough.
Show him that keeping his arm straight corresponds to keeping the left arm
well out in shotgun shooting.
Tell him that “_attention, feu!_” will first be said by the master of the
duel, just as “Are you ready? pull!” are said in pigeon shooting, but that
it will be a “no bird” if he lifts his pistol before the word “_un_,” or
if he fires after “_trois_,” his adversary being considered “out of
bounds” at the word “_trois_.”
Load the pistol and hand it to him, and tell him to cock it.
See that he is standing with the butt properly against his thigh.
Say “_attention, feu!_”--with a good interval apart, then sharply “_un,
deux, trois_.”
He is almost certain to hit the figure, and well before the word
“_trois_.”
Say, “I knew you would find it very easy,” and take him away at once: _do
not on any account_ let him have _another_ shot.
This one successful shot is all that is necessary, even for an expert
duellist before a duel.
If your pupil should miss, explain to him his fault, and chaff him as to
his inability to hit a “sitter.” Above all do not let him get to aiming.
If he hits next shot, his lesson is finished.
In the very improbable event of his again missing, then you will have to
continue your instruction as for one of the below class of pupil.
It is of vital importance to give him absolute confidence in his ability
to hit his man.
He should on no account be allowed to see others pistol shooting.
The most difficult pupil to instruct in half an hour is the man who is an
expert pistol shot at a stationary target, but who has never attempted to
shoot rapid-firing or at a moving target.
If he has besides never used a shotgun, his is almost a hopeless case.
He is certain not to raise his pistol before the word “_feu_,” but it must
be drummed into him that if he cannot let off his pistol before the word
“_trois_” _he must not shoot at all_, or he will be hung for murder.
Then the half hour can be spent in trying to get him to squeeze and let
off in time, but probably the only result will be terribly wild shots, and
he will finish with a feeling of despair as to his ability to hit his
opponent.
I think it is best with such men not to let them have any practice but
merely to tell them that they must keep the butt of their pistol to their
thigh, till the word “_feu_” and that they will be hung if they fire after
the word “_trois_.”
In the actual duel, they will either miss or, what is more likely, lift
the pistol well up to the sky, begin slowly to lower it, and that will be
all, as they will not have fired before the word “_trois_” is spoken.
They will be fortunate if they do not let off involuntarily after the word
“_trois_,” but if they are of the sort who keep their finger outside the
trigger guard till they have had a ten seconds’ aim, there will be no
danger of that.
I have just been reading a book in which the hero “aimed for well over
thirty seconds before firing straight at the light”; he must have had an
arm of steel to be able to fire “straight at” it after aiming for over
thirty seconds.
Another type of pupil is one who has shot both shotgun and rifle, but both
on entirely different principles.
He is a splendid man with a shotgun, quick as lightning in snap-shooting,
or a “tall” bird coming down wind.
He scorns to take advantage of a cantering hare, or a low bird. But the
moment he has a pistol or rifle in his hands, he alters his method
entirely.
Unless he is an officer who has had “field firing” practice, and a few
rounds out of a revolver, he has only shot a rifle at a stationary
bull’s-eye target, or at a stationary stag in Scotland, and all his
shooting has been done in the prone position.
There is a convention in Scotland that a rifle shall not be fired at a
deer unless the deer is absolutely stationary. A man shooting driven deer
or deer galloping is according to this convention “not quite a sportsman,”
though he may be a deadly shot at galloping deer.
It is called “not quite cricket.” That is not a happy simile; Cricketers
do not, I am told, hit at a ball whilst it is stationary, but when at full
speed.
“Not quite golf” seems to me more appropriate; in golf the poor little
ball is treacherously hit whilst sitting on its little nest, basely built
for it by the very hand that strikes it.
A man who is a crack shot with the gun, and who unfortunately is also a
crack shot with the rifle in its restricted conventional sense, at slow
deliberate aim, can perhaps be prepared for a duel by impressing on him to
forget all he knows about rifle-shooting, and to imagine he is using a
shotgun, but the moment he sees the back sight of his pistol in the actual
duel, he will try to use it for deliberate aim and miss. The habit of a
lifetime cannot be altered in half an hour.
The shotgun man who has never fired a rifle, has no need to be told not to
“poke.”
Dwelling on the aim must be entirely drummed out of the target rifle shot,
and he must be again reminded just before he shoots in his duel.
The “shotgun man” on the contrary has to be told--“Don’t pay any attention
to the director of the duel, if he tells you you can fire after the word
‘_feu_.’ You fire after the word ‘_un_’; you do not need all day to hit a
sitter; show them what snap-shooting is.”
It is hopeless to try to instruct in half an hour for a duel, the utter
novice, the man who has never had firearms in his hands. He is either of
those who are frightened at firearms; are sure “it will explode” when
“examined,” or “when you do not know if it is loaded,” or is of the type
who is “not the least afraid” of it. He cocks it pointing at you, turns to
speak to you whilst familiarly poking you with the muzzle to emphasize the
joke. He is of the type that rides at a five barred gate with spikes on
top of it.
It is the courage of ignorance, to use the polite term, but to put it
bluntly--it is because he is “a d--d fool.”
All that can be done with such men is to try to prevent their shooting the
seconds or themselves, and “losing off” at unexpected and inopportune
moments.
They may even in an excess of caution “fire into the air.”
People are very fond of doing this in crowded neighbourhoods “merely to
frighten a man,” and are very much surprised when someone gets hit.
CHAPTER XL
PISTOLS FOR SELF-DEFENCE
These can be divided into two classes.
Pistols to be carried on the person and pistols to be kept by the bedside
against attacks at night.
The pistols to be carried on the person can again be subdivided into
pistols carried openly, and those carried concealed.
For a pistol carried openly, the big army pistols are the best, my choice
being the U. S. .45 Army Colt Automatic (see Plates 13 and 14).
Such pistols, it must be remembered, have great penetration, and if fired
in a room the bullet can go through a closed door or a thick partition, as
if they did not exist.
Hiding behind a door or closing and locking the door is no protection
against a bullet from an automatic pistol, even the very smallest calibres
having great penetration.
The only way in which closing a door _may_ protect those on the other side
is that the one shooting cannot actually aim at them.
As very few men can hit what they aim at with a pistol, this is not much
advantage. In fact, the person shot at by a bad shot is safer than those
at the sides. It is difficult to hit what is desired but something else is
sure to be hit however badly the pistol is aimed.
A pistol intended to be carried concealed is more difficult to decide on
than one to be kept by the bed.
Take the latter first.
The main object of a bedside pistol is to frighten the intruder, without
having to shoot, the next most important point is, if it has to be fired,
that no innocent person in another room should be hit.
For the first reason, to frighten the intruder, the pistol should be as
big and formidable looking as possible. A big double-barrelled,
pistol-shooting dust shot would probably answer best, and need not be
loaded; its looks are enough.
It is more formidable than the largest automatic. It can be fired without
aim; even in darkness it is almost sure to hit what it is intended to
owing to its spread of shot.
If No. 8 or less size shot is used and a light charge of powder, it would
not go through a door or partition.
It must be remembered that such a charge is very deadly at close range,
more so than a bullet even, so should be fired only as a last resource,
also it is of no use to fire at one of two people struggling together, it
will hit them both.
For a burglar escaping, if care is taken to let him get well away, say
thirty yards, before firing, it would mark him for identification. It is
a very ticklish job to shoot at a man running away, as far as the law is
concerned, and had better be avoided.
The other alternative for a bedside pistol is a .44 Smith and Wesson
Russian model with gallery ammunition, and in the hands of a good shot
this is the best of all, as he need not shoot to kill unless necessary.
They are now no longer made, but can still be picked up occasionally.
Now as to a pocket pistol to be carried unobstrusively. It must be borne
in mind that if any one is shot with a pistol the shooter may get into
more trouble, and get less sympathy, than if he carried a pistol openly.
One sees advertisements giving illustrations of vest pocket automatic
pistols of minute size, particular stress being laid on their small size.
This is not the most important feature to be desired in pocket pistols.
A smoker does not complain of the size of his cigarette case, therefore a
pocket pistol need not be smaller than a cigarette case.
Even these smallest automatic pistols are _thicker_ than a cigarette case
and it is thickness which bulges out pockets, not superficial size.
As a rule, a very small automatic pistol means very small bore; small bore
means inefficiency.
A pocket pistol of all pistols must have instant stopping power, as the
shooting is done at a few feet or even inches off.
A pistol which does not instantly render the assailant harmless is worse
than useless. It makes the assailant angry and desperate; he also knows
that now if he kills his man he can claim self-defence, having been shot
at first.
Very few wish to kill their man. He can be held off with a pistol which
commands respect, but a little toy is only laughed at.
[Illustration: PLATE 11. COLT DERRINGER .41 calibre, rim fire]
These modern small size automatic pistols are built on a mistaken idea
that they are the modern prototype of the old Derringer pistol, which was
the most deadly pistol in existence, and the weapon used most frequently
in old-time saloon shooting quarrels.
The Derringer was a vest pocket pistol smaller and more compact than most
vest pocket automatic pistols, but it was not a small bore pistol. (See
Plate 11).
It was just the essential parts of a big powerful pistol, shooting a big
powerful cartridge.
The want it fulfilled was a pistol having great power in a small compass;
one shot was all that was required, as the shot was fired at very close
range.
Some Derringers had a second barrel below the other, but the typical
Derringer was a one shot pistol.
Now if you take a big single shot pistol, how would you reduce it in size
to fit the waistcoat pocket?
First you would cut off the barrel except the actual chamber in which the
cartridge lies.
Then you would take off as much of the hammer as is compatible with
leaving enough grip for the thumb in cocking.
Then you would whittle away all the stock till only the lock mechanism
remained; and this was practically what the Derringer was.
This could be still further improved upon by making it “hammerless”; that
is with an internal hammer.
The Derringer was a rim-shot fire cartridge. My pistol would shoot a
central fire shot.
For those who desire to be able to shoot several shots rapidly and who do
not care to carry two Derringers, an automatic pistol built on the
Derringer principle might suit them.
The difficulty is that the reciprocating mechanism takes up room. It is
attempted to overcome this by making the pistol shaped like a hammer, the
stock coming at right angles out from under the middle of the barrel, but
this is awkward to hold, and to shoot.
One good shot, well directed, is worth a whole pistol full of shots blazed
away.
This is not the popular opinion, for, as long as a constant fire is kept
up, and plenty of smoke and noise, people think great things are being
done. It is only after all is over and there is no result that they begin
to wonder what it was all about.
[Illustration: PLATE 12. COLT AUTOMATIC PISTOL .25
Capacity of magazine, 6 shots. Length of barrel, 2 inches. Finish, full
blued, with case-hardened trigger, slide lock safety and grip safety, or
full nickel plated; rubber stocks. Weight, 13 ounces. Length over all, 4½
inches. Cartridge, cal. .25, rimless; smokeless; metal patched bullet.]
The typical _Air Raid_ newspaper report says, “He fired at least three
tray loads of cartridges, the stream of smoke could be distinctly
noticed”; and the reporter is in ecstasies, and the unimportant detail
that all this “losing off” resulted in nothing does not occur to him.
It is the noise, not the results of shooting, that impresses and frightens
people.
If noiseless firearms were invented nobody would pay the least attention
to an air raid except the people actually struck.
A woman was taken to an asylum a raving lunatic after an air raid. She was
near some anti-aircraft guns which had been firing, no bombs were dropped
near where she was. It was the mere noise of firing that frightened her.
It is the noise that frightens game; I have shot one bird after another
out of a covey of black game on the ground. The rest did not fly off at
the shots because I was hidden and was using a “.22 short” rifle and the
noise of a waterfall drowned reports.
If I had fired a shotgun at one, the rest of the covey would have been off
at once.
For actual protection in a house at night without endangering any one, a
big pistol loaded with blank ammunition (black powder so as to make plenty
of smoke and a little “red fire” powder added to make plenty of flash)
would drive off almost any burglar.
I think this is the best house protection for a houseful of women to have
by their beds at night. The only thing is to avoid burning peoples eyes or
setting things on fire when “losing off.”
“A stern chaser” of coarse salt is a good man stopper without being fatal
and the pain makes the victim think he is mortally wounded.
CHAPTER XLI
DRESS
The dress one can wear when pistol shooting is limited to what the company
present is wearing at the time.
The ideal dress on a warm day would be that of a rowing man with the
addition of a sombrero and nailed shoes, but of course this is
inadmissible.
The absolute essentials are to have the right arm, shoulder, and neck
free, and a firm grip of the ground with the feet.
A soft front shirt is not so necessary in pistol shooting as in rifle or
shotgun shooting.
With the two latter the stock does not get properly imbedded into the
shoulder when wearing a stiff shirt, but in pistol shooting as long as the
neck and right shoulder are not interfered with, a stiff shirt does not
hamper.
Moderately tight clothes, if the right shoulder is free (sleeves cut well
out underneath), help to keep the body rigid.
An overcoat is inadvisable. The sleeve not only hampers the movement of
the right arm but its weight on the outstretched arm is a great
handicap.
An Inverness cape, even if thrown or buttoned back, is also inadmissible;
it hampers the right shoulder.
As having the body rather tightly buttoned up is an advantage, a tight
fitting frock coat is permissible. It is better buttoned than open as
otherwise the skirts are in the way.
A lamb’s wool vest, or a second waistcoat may be worn when shooting
out-of-doors in cold weather. I prefer a thin leather Swedish sleeveless
waistcoat under my coat instead of the usual waistcoat.
In wearing the leather waistcoat it need not show. The coat can be
buttoned over it.
There is a shooting coat, I believe the invention of the late Mr.
Cholmondely Pennell, which has a waistcoat of thick material to wear over,
instead of under, a thin coat. This keeps the body warm whilst the arms
are light and free.
Boots or shoes with corrugated rubber soles or nailed boots should be worn
if the ground is heavy, wet, or slippery.
As nailed or rubber soled boots cannot be worn when in formal dress it is
best to make sure of your foothold when wearing ordinary boots or shoes.
The heel can be stamped into the ground a few times to get a firm stand or
the soles rubbed on gritty sand.
Out-of-doors it is best to wear a hat, as one can see much better when the
eyes are shaded. Have a hat that holds well on your head.
Do not wear the hats made of hard straw with low crowns and narrow brims.
They fly off at the least provocation and the mere fact of your hat
feeling like a partridge who is on tiptoes about to take wing will upset
you and spoil your shooting.
I took a man who had never been to a shooting range before to see the
finish for the King’s Prize at Bisley.
There was a puffy breeze blowing up the range.
He was wearing one of these hard flat straw hats with his college ribbon
on it.
I told him he had better be careful that his hat did not blow off and
interfere with the shooting.
We stood behind the two men who had tied for the Gold Medal, and were
shooting off the tie.
He had just begun to say “my hat never blows off,”--when his hat soared
off his head like a clay pigeon out of a trap, and landed just in front of
the man who was aiming. My companion was a “hat worshipper,” one to whom
his hat is everything. They hold it on when on a runaway horse. If it
blows off they will dive under a train in motion after it, or do things to
save their hat which would gain them the Victoria Cross in battle.
He at once started to jump over the prone shooter after the hat, but I
held him back. All interest in the match was gone, he had eyes only to
watch his hat.
I finally got him a little calmer by explaining that though the shooters
were most probably wishing the hat in a place where straw would soon
kindle, they would not shoot through his hat (I am not talking thus, only
slightly exaggerating).
Men who worship their hats do not like trotters because they splash them.
There was one of the rare winters in England when one could get a few
days’ sleigh driving.
A man had long worried me to let him take some photographs of my trotters
in a sleigh. I telegraphed him to come at once and I would take him out in
a sleigh and he could take snow photos.
I met him at the station with a pair of trotters, both able to trot below
2:18, hitched to a light two-man cutter sleigh.
He was delighted, got tucked in beside me with his camera and said he
would take one or two photos of the horses from where he sat.
I told him not to begin before we got clear of the town, on to the big
open straight road.
Now some men will go out in a cranky boat, or rush a motor car round a
corner through a crowd of children without a tremor, but are frightened to
death of a trotter, especially a keen one who takes hold.
Now my mares had often raced against each other and when together as a
pair had racing in their minds.
They were fresh, the day cold, there had been a thaw and then a frost; the
road was just right and the horses shod with new steel spikes, sharp as
chisels.
I let them step along, the snow came back in a shower of balls on us,
varied by a sharp sliver of ice, which cut like a knife. The horses and I
were enjoying ourselves, and then I remembered my companion.
I called out “Take them now,” as the mares were squaring away racing
against each other.
I only heard, “Wow--Oh” as each snowball hit him. Fortunately he was
holding on to his “sacred” hat with one hand and to the side of the sleigh
with the other, so he had no hand to spare to snatch a rein to upset the
sleigh, he was only able to groan, “Stop, Stop!”
He scrambled out and took the photos from the safety of the side of the
road, and said he preferred to walk back to the station, and the last I
saw of him was with his camera in one hand holding on his sacred (in the
French meaning of the word) hat with the other.
CHAPTER XLII
SELF-DEFENCE
If a man is found in the house at night, he can be generally captured by
getting the drop on him, that is to say, getting an aim on him before he
aims at you, and make him hold up his hands.
But there are cases when, in order to save another or yourself, to attempt
this is merely to get killed.
If a man is rushing on you it is no use calling “hands up.” Shoot instead
of talking.
This especially applies to a man rushing on with a knife. He most probably
will throw it into you if you are not quick.
With an automatic pistol there is little in a room to hide behind which
gives protection and it only gives the opponent courage and time to take a
deliberate shot through the obstacle, if you try to shelter yourself. If
he tries to take shelter behind something impenetrable, if you fire into
what he is sheltered behind it often brings him out and enables you to get
a shot at him.
If he is behind a small tree the big bullet of a .45 Army Automatic would
probably go through and hit him and, even if it did not go through, it
would frighten him so that he would show himself and give you the
opportunity to shoot him.
A big-game shooter knows of many dodges to induce a dangerous animal who
has hidden, to show himself, or charge.
Calling to an imaginary person behind the attacker as “Look out Tom, he’s
coming your way, shoot,” will perhaps make a man, expecting an attack from
his rear, expose himself to you in front. Throwing something towards him
may make him move. The great thing is to keep him moving and prevent his
shooting back.
If attacked by several men at the same time, take a fresh one for every
shot, hit or miss, and then you can begin to take only those not already
hit.
This is the only way to keep the lot off and prevent being attacked by the
rest while you are fighting one.
Get your back against a wall or something if possible so that they can
only get at you from in front.
Taking a fresh one for each shot is my experience in big-game shooting
when you come on a lot which are all shootable.
If you pick out one and he does not drop to your shot and you pump several
more shots into him till he does drop, you may find afterwards that you
have wasted shots on an already dying animal, and let others within range
escape.
As an instance of doing everything wrong and being praised for it, the
following quotation from a daily paper is hard to beat.
The writer of the article evidently approves greatly of a woman firing at
random into the darkness when she hears a suspicious noise.
Even if the noise was made by burglars outside, she was just in the best
position in the lighted window, to get killed. An innocent man might plead
he was shooting her in self-defence.
A pleasant neighbourhood to live in when a woman shoots at random into the
night when she hears a noise!
Below is the article in question omitting names. The passers-by as well as
the lady must have had an “exciting experience.”
SHOTS IN THE DARK
_Lady’s Midnight Encounter with Burglars_
Mrs. X. had an exciting experience just after midnight on Saturday.
She was in her bedroom, which is on a level with the lawn, when she
heard noises in the shrubbery.
As she thought that men were there she procured a revolver, and,
standing in the lighted window, called out, “If you do not leave I’ll
shoot.” There was no answer, so she fired, and there was a scurrying
of feet to another clump of trees. Again she called out and as there
was no reply she fired a second and a third time, and then the figures
of several men were seen running off as fast as they could.
And no wonder!
CHAPTER XLIII
PROTECTING THE EYES AND EARS
There is no direct danger to the eyes in pistol shooting, that is to say,
with a good pistol there is no chance of a blow back of fire into the
eyes, as there is in a cheap, rim fire rifle. The eyes are apt, however,
to get bloodshot and sore from powder smoke blown back into them in a head
wind, especially from the ejecting cartridge of an automatic pistol.
When doing much shooting daily out-of-doors it is well to wear a pair of
big diameter spectacles fitting well behind the ears so that they do not
shift. The spectacles may be of plain white glass, or else of a colour to
suit the state of the sunlight.
Blue or grey used to be the usual colours; lately yellow-green seems to be
the colour most recommended by oculists.
I found such yellow-green glasses a great relief to the eyes when bear
shooting in the glare of sunlight on snow.
I am referring to men who have normal eyesight, not to those who have
already to wear glasses _to correct vision_.
It is important to protect the ears, perhaps even more important than the
eyes. There is very little danger to the eyes but the ears are in very
real danger when shooting.
Even the comparatively slight noise when shooting the gallery .44
ammunition or the short rifle .22, from constant pounding on the same
note, affects the ears unless they are protected.
A concert pianist, one would think, by the noise he makes on the piano,
would injure his ears even more than a pistol shot does, as the noise he
makes is much louder.
Perhaps he does injure his ears and that is the reason he has to pound so
hard and breaks the piano strings in his efforts to hear his own music.
Be that as it may, playing a variety of notes saves his ears as he does
not have the constant hit on the one note and with the same intensity.
The ear is the least known of the various organs and is the one least
successfully treated.
The usual medical man has the following treatment:
Pour warm oil into the ear, then wash out with warm water (a very
successful way to introduce hurtful microbes into the ear).
When this fails the Eustachian tubes are blown out with a “Politzer Bag.”
When this also fails some have a little instrument which buzzes like a
bumble bee or sings like a mosquito which the patient has to listen to.
If even this treatment fails then the patient is bowed out as incurable.
Prevention is better than non-cure, so protect your ears when shooting.
A pistol is unlikely to burst the ear drum unless fired with a full charge
in a small room or close to the ear, but pistol-fire seems to have a worse
effect on the ears than the louder report from a rifle or shotgun, owing
probably to the shortness of the pistol barrel bringing the discharge
nearer to the ear.
The worst of all for the ears is when a man shoots past another’s head
from close behind.
Gout or catarrh aggravates this evil and a man who never shoots may get
“hard of hearing” and have constant singing in his ears from these
diseases alone.
There is the later stage of attacks of vertigo when the semicircular
canals are involved. Few aurists are successful in curing this.
There is only one ear protector which I have found of any use and I have
tried all that have come out.
It is called the Elliott Ear Protector and is made by J. A. R. Elliott,
Box 201, New York City, U. S. A.
Savory & Moore of 143 New Bond Street, London and Gieve, Mathews &
Seagrove, Portsmouth, England have them in stock.
Most other ear protectors act on the wrong principle and are painful to
wear and they bring on giddiness.
To stuff the ears with cotton wool makes the pressure of air on the
outside of the drum differ from the air coming through the Eustachian tube
if this latter is blocked more or less by catarrh (as it is in nine out of
ten persons, especially smokers or residents in damp climates). This
inequality is increased and harm is done to the ear.
When a cold is supposed to be cured, it often is not but has gone from the
early, through the acute, and on to the chronic stage. It then lies
dormant, to wake up every time a fresh cold is caught, and then takes a
deeper hold in the outer, middle, and inner ear. Often what is put down to
gun deafness is really chronic catarrh and gout. People who have never
fired a shot suffer from gun deafness and noises in the head.
As soon as a cold has ceased “to run” people think it is cured. They
neglect to drive it entirely out of the system and it lies smouldering to
take the earliest opportunity to flare up again, like a banked-up fire.
Some recommend wool mixture with modelling wax forced into the outer ear.
This not only has the defects of plain cotton wool but it is a compound
impossible to fully take out again. The modelling composition sticks and
remains in all the crevices of the ear and if forced repeatedly in
dislocates the outer ear passage.
I use modelling wax for sculpture, and it is impossible to clean it out of
the nails even with manicure instruments. It has to be dissolved with
turpentine and peroxide which would ruin ears if used for them.
The Elliott Ear Protector acts on an entirely different principle and it
reduces the noise of a heavy express rifle to a mere thump, like striking
the fist on a wooden table. It takes all the sting out of the shot.
A man who was a gunner at the front during the war tells me that his ears
are quite right owing to his having used the Elliott Ear Protectors,
whereas a man standing next to him had an ear drum burst after a few
shots.
The principle of this protector is to let the sound strike the side of the
tube of the outer ear, instead of directly on the ear drum. The protector
closes the ear tube so that only a very minute, hair-like passage remains,
through which a whisper can come, but any big volume of sound is checked,
like a crowd trying to push through a narrow door and allowed only to
dribble in one at a time.
Even the small amount of sound which does get through is impinged on to
the sides of the outer ear passage. None reaches the drum of the ear
direct, but indirectly by the action of a rubber diaphragm.
The result is arrived at as follows:
A short celluloid rod has a hair thin hole running down it, but not quite
reaching the far end. It enters a hole of the same size running across the
tube.
There is a soft India rubber disc at each end of the rod, the transverse
hole being between the two discs.
In use this rod is inserted into the ear till the uppermost disc just
closes the passage into the external ear, and the lower disc cuts off
access to the ear drum.
Any sound reaching the ear can therefore only pass down this hair thin
passage in the rod and into the space between these two rubber diaphragms.
The sound cannot reach the ear drum. It passes through the transverse hole
into the space between the two discs.
No sound reaches the ear directly. It only hears the vibration of the
inner rubber diaphragm and the diaphragm receives only a very minute part
of the original sound which reaches the ear.
The minute hole in the rod allows of the entry and escape of the outer
air. Thus each side of the ear drum receives an equal pressure of the
external atmosphere.
When very heavy gunfire has to be withstood, care must be taken that the
outer disc fits airtight into the tube of the ear. A little vaseline or
other antiseptic ointment round the edge of this disc makes an airtight
joint, or a third rubber disc is added, but the two discs are ample for
pistol shooting.
The ear protector is easily kept clean and antiseptic by washing
occasionally in a weak antiseptic solution.
There is no inconvenience in wearing these ear protectors and they are not
very noticeable.
With some other forms of protectors, made of hard vulcanite which are
forced in to make an airtight closure, pain and soreness arise if they are
worn for any length of time and this unyielding vulcanite may displace the
anvil and bones of the middle ear, or a sore may be caused and set up
grave inflammation. Any ear plug which requires forcing or stretching the
ear passage is dangerous or painful to wear.
CHAPTER XLIV
EYESIGHT
The back sight of a revolver is held further from the eye, as compared
with a rifle back sight, and the object to be hit is under fifty yards’
distance. The eyes best suited for pistol shooting therefore are those of
moderately long sight, the normal eye in fact.
A near-sighted man, without glasses, has difficulty in seeing the back
sight although the range, twenty to fifty yards, would suit his eyes
better than rifle shooting at long ranges of eight hundred and one
thousand yards.
If a near-sighted man wears glasses the difficulty of seeing equally well
at varying distances comes in.
Men who have worn glasses all their lives cannot be made to realize that
they cannot adjust their focus.
They, unfortunately, have never experienced the blessing of being able to
see a thing close and at a distance with equal distinctness.
Most of them can read without glasses, in fact they take off their glasses
if they want to examine anything minutely which they hold in their hands.
For seeing anything further off they wear glasses (but glasses are only a
compromise). The glasses are made to enable them to see objects clearly
across the street, or to see a motor car before it runs them down.
Anything further is more or less blurred, the further it is the more
blurred it looks.
If their glasses were correct for one thousand yards they would butt their
heads into everything at fifteen yards off.
It is always best when driving to treat any one wearing glasses very
carefully, to remember he can only see in front of him; sideways of his
direct vision he may be as blind as a bat or a horse with blinkers on.
It is on account of this that so many people wearing glasses are run over.
When in addition to this they cross a road holding an umbrella well before
their glasses, it is best to stop the horse and wait till they are across.
This adjusting of a glass for a fixed distance can be seen with
deer-stalking telescopes and Zeiss glasses.
When spying for a deer one makes a mark on the draw tube to suit one’s
usual spying distance, which is about one thousand yards.
One can see deer clearly with this adjustment from the one thousand back
to about three hundred yards, but for a closer view you have to readjust
the focus.
If with the focus correct for the one thousand yards you attempt to look
at an object only as far off as your back sight or even your front sight,
you will see only an indistinct blur.
A near-sighted man, shooting a pistol full arm stretch, without his
glasses, sees his back sight a blur and his front probably not at all, and
the target like a post impressionist picture.
If he puts on glasses to see his hind sight properly, his front sight will
not be distinct, and the target still more indistinct.
I think for a near-sighted man it is best to have glasses made so that he
can see his front sight very clearly.
Then he would see the man target at twenty-five meters quite well enough
to be able to hit it. It is not necessary for him to see his back sight
distinctly.
A good pistol-shot does not focus his eyes on his back sight. That comes
in line by itself when he gets into the mechanical lift of his arm.
As I have already mentioned a long-sighted man can continue pistol
shooting without wearing glasses after he needs them for reading. But a
long-sighted man is apt, when he finds he begins to see the hind sight of
his rifle not as clearly as formerly, to use glasses. Then he has all the
insurmountable imperfections of a glass which cannot accommodate itself to
varying distances like the eye can.
Instead of wearing glasses all he needs to do is to shift his hind sight
forward on the barrel till he can see it distinctly.
The long-sighted pistol-shot does not have this difficulty. He holds his
pistol so far from the eye that the back sight is right for his long
sight.
It is a most extraordinary thing that men who have such bad eyesight that
they have to wear very strong glasses and even then blink and are
half-blind in the sunlight, can shoot very well in those dark coal cellar
shooting galleries.
A clerk who, when writing, puts his nose right down on the paper, holding
his head on one side, in fact a man semi-blind and suffering with extreme
myopia made extraordinary good scores with a miniature rifle in a coal
cellar shooting gallery, at a minute stationary bull’s-eye.
A cellar in which a normal-eyed man would not be able to shoot or to see
his sights!
He is longing to get to the open air ranges with a full charge rifle, but
I discourage him all I can as I know he will be painfully disillusioned of
his skill in rifle shooting.
It is the abnormal conditions of a coal cellar gallery which suits his
abnormal vision. A normal sighted person would only blind himself by
trying to imitate him.
CHAPTER XLV
THE WEATHER AND SHOOTING
Rain, as far as the actual shooting goes, does no harm to shooting. In
fact, if your adversary has to wear glasses it gives you a great advantage
over him as his glasses get covered with a film of water.
A dull drizzle is often accompanied by a dead calm and better shooting
light, than a sunshiny day.
Wind is the great enemy to pistol shooting.
In rifle shooting, in the prone position, the wind not only lends interest
to the shooting, but brings out the best shot, the one who can calculate
how to aim to compensate for the wind’s action on his bullet.
The pistol-shot, on the other hand has to stand against the wind and hold
his pistol with one hand and wrestle with the wind which blows his arm
about.
It is not a question of calculating how much of the bull’s-eye you must
aim at to compensate for the force of the wind from the side; but it is a
matter of mere physical strength to try and hold the pistol steady whilst
being buffeted by the wind.
It is as if you were trying to draw a straight line whilst someone
twitches at your sleeve.
No amount of practice will make you able to draw a straight line or shoot
a pistol under such circumstances. It only discourages you and wastes time
and ammunition. It gets you into timing and letting off wrong. If in a
shooting competition there is a wind and you are shooting at deliberate
aiming, then wait for lulls between gusts, and snap shoot during the lull.
If you are doing shooting “Au Commandmant,” or rapid-firing, you have to
take the wind as it comes.
Bringing up with a very stiff arm, rapidly, is the best defence against
your arm being blown about.
In England all open air pistol ranges have the firing points unprotected.
From a financial point of view this is a mistake. It is better to spend
money on making the range usable in all weathers. Otherwise it is often
deserted as nobody cares to shoot in a high wind.
From the point of view of health it is not wise to shoot in the rain as
there is no walking about to make the blood circulate.
If you keep moving and get into a perspiration and keep so all the time
and take a hot bath and a change of clothing directly you get home, rain
will not hurt you.
Getting chilled after perspiring, or sitting about having afternoon tea by
a hot fire before changing your damp things, does the mischief. Even if
there has been no rain it is much better to change your things at once and
have afternoon tea afterwards. If you get wet and cannot change your
things on the spot it is much better to walk home fast than drive home and
feel cold all the way.
I broke through ice in intense frost when wild boar shooting at Couvain,
Ardennes Belges, and got my boots full of icy cold water (long boots over
the knee). I walked four miles to the lodge and felt all in a glow the
whole way, took a hot bath, had dinner in bed, and felt none the worse for
it.
The others being dry drove home, but if I had done so, I should most
likely have had a dangerous illness.
It is a very great mistake, when overtaken in summer by a thunder shower,
to take shelter when you are in a perspiration; you will get chilled for a
certainty.
Walk home fast, even if you get wet to the skin in so doing. Keep on
walking, or if you are on a horse, keep on trotting and cantering
alternately, till you get home.
If your horse is tired after a hard day’s hunting and it is a cold wet
evening, keep him moving for his own sake as well as your own.
I had ridden fifty miles during the day (a run with stag hounds which had
taken me twenty-seven miles from home). The mare was getting leg weary, so
I unwisely stopped at an inn, six miles from home, and put her in the
stable to give her warm gruel with beer in it.
When I started half an hour later to lead her home she was unable to move.
I had to leave her for the night at the inn and after making her as
comfortable as possible and rubbing her legs with brandy I walked home by
myself.
If I had taken her straight home without stopping to gruel her she would
have reached home all right, and had her gruel there and laid down
comfortably.
Keep moving when cold and wet, take a hot bath and change the moment you
get home. If you feel at all as if you had a chill, go to bed after the
bath, put a hot bottle to your feet, pile the eider-down on top of you,
drink dried raspberry tea, go to sleep, and perspire. Dried raspberries, a
Russian peasant’s remedy, are the best sudorific I know. The raspberries
are dried and then used just as if they were tea leaves, and the tea thus
made drunk very hot, with sugar to taste.
The leather Swedish waistcoat which I mentioned in my chapter on dress
should always be worn if there is the least wind when pistol shooting. It
can be worn on the hottest day as it keeps the sun out also and as long as
one stands still it does not make one perspire, and wind or rain cannot
get through.
A thin mackintosh does not hamper much in pistol shooting.
An umbrella is worse than useless against rain but may be used to keep
the sun off. Of course a hat worshipper invariably carries an umbrella.
In rain an umbrella protects only the hat and it drops the water on your
shoulders, the worst place you could get wet. People run into others and
drip the water onto other people, in fact there ought to be a tax on
umbrellas like there is on pistols.
As to snow, I cannot understand any one wanting to hold up an umbrella
when it snows. One never sees people do that in a country where snow lies
half the year any more than does one see people turn up their collars in
really cold countries.
They have their coats fit properly up to the neck, not with lapels turned
back exposing the chest.
It always amuses me to see a man with a big fur coat turned far back on
the chest so as to show the rabbit skin, dyed to represent sable.
A Russian has his fur “Shuba” double-breasted and buttoned up right under
his chin. His deep collar protects his shoulders, but he does not turn up
his collar about his ears at the least zephyr of air.
CHAPTER XLVI
MILITARY AUTOMATIC PISTOLS
It is the military use of pistols which has doomed the revolver.
During the war, England was the only country which still retained the
revolver as regulation. Every other country had adopted the automatic
pistol in its place.
There are two opinions as to the proper calibre for a military pistol.
England, having to fight savage tribes, had always preferred a large bore
pistol with stopping power. Fanatics who do not value their lives can do a
lot of mischief, even if wounded fatally, by a small calibre bullet,
before they die.
On the Continent a much smaller calibre is deemed sufficient; a .32 or .38
or a 7 millimetre, whereas England and the United States consider .45 or
.455 the best size.
In my opinion the United States .45 Regulation Colt Automatic pistol is
the best of all army pistols. (See Plates 13 and 14.) The way it was
chosen should guarantee this.
It was first chosen because it passed all the military tests such as
sand, rust, and freedom from jamming under rough usage. Then it was put
into the hands of all the best pistol shots in the United States and their
reports examined. It has, therefore, not only passed military but expert
shooters’ tests, and alterations were made in accordance with their
reports.
It may seem a great presumption on my part therefore to suggest an
improvement, but I have been a big-game shot all my life and used ivory
front sights, and I think a black front sight is a mistake.
I am sure a white or silver front sight is the only practical one.
This morning I went out before daylight after deer. It was very misty and
I saw a stag eighty yards off, hardly distinguishable in the mist and
darkness. My white front sight shone like a star on his shoulder when I
took aim and I had no difficulty in taking the shot.
A black front sight would have been so indistinct that I should have
missed or rather not fired at all, as I do not like making a mess of a
shot and letting an animal go off wounded.
It is self-evident that if you want anything to be as visible as possible
you paint it white.
White reflects light better than any colour. If you distribute twenty
white, thirty yellow, fifty red, and eighty blue spots over a piece of
black paper they look to the eye as being of equal numbers, owing to the
blue being so inconspicuous compared with the red, the red compared with
yellow, and the yellow compared with the white.
[Illustration: PLATE 13. UNITED STATES ARMY REGULATION .45 COLT AUTOMATIC
PISTOL
Capacity of magazine, 7 shots. Length of barrel, 5 inches only. Length
over all, 8½ inches. Weight, 39 ounces. Finish, full blued, checked walnut
stocks.
[Illustration]
Cartridges. Calibre .45 U. S. Government, 230 grain bullet. Calibre .45
Colt Automatic, 200 grain bullet. (Both rimless; smokeless powder; full
jacketed bullet.)]
White being the most conspicuous of all it takes fewer spots of white to
dominate. As these spots are on a black sheet of paper very few spots of
white would draw attention from all the colours.
As ivory is fragile, a big silver or plated bead front sight is better for
a military automatic pistol or rifle.
The first thing I did when I got my United States .45 Colt Automatic
pistol was to put on it a white silver bead front sight, first removing
the regulation black knife edge front sight.
I then made the U in the hind sight very big. This pistol has been carried
through the war by my chauffeur, W. Francis, who entered the Russian Army
as a volunteer and has gained the St. George’s cross for bravery and he is
delighted with the sighting of the pistol, and can do very rapid shooting
with it.
For practical use of the pistol in war, self-defence, or duelling, what is
needed is a strong set of sights which can hardly be injured under the
roughest usage; sights which can be seen instantly in a very dim, as well
as strong light.
The best sights for such purpose are those which are used on duelling
pistols.
It is most extraordinary that all pistol sights except the French duelling
ones are so very unsuitable.
The military front sight consists of an upright narrow rod as seen when
aiming. This is very thin and high and is black, with the top, when it has
been used for any time, polished a dull grey, from use.
The hind sight has a very minute notch in it. The result in aiming is as
follows: You faintly see a very thin black rod with a hazy top against
the dark object you are trying to shoot.
By searching for it very carefully you see a microscopic notch in the hind
sight, much too small to enclose this rod when aiming.
You cannot keep your elevation in shooting. As soon as you try to take the
top of this front sight in your minute notch you lose sight of it
altogether.
The rod so blocks the notch that you do not know if you have the front
sight centrally in the notch or at one side.
In fact if I was asked to devise a set of sights to prevent a man being
able to shoot well, the regulation military sights are what I would
choose.
If strong enough the ivory ball would be the ideal colour for a front
sight, as it is a dull white, instead of the reflection which sometimes
comes from silver highly polished.
What is called “frosted” silver would be a good surface for the silver
front sight if it did not tarnish.
The back sight should be just high enough above the barrel to avoid blur
when the barrel gets hot, but otherwise the lower it is the better, having
a big U-shaped notch large enough to enable the white front sight to be
seen in the notch when showing a slight ring of daylight all round it;
both sights as low on the barrel and as far apart as possible.
This combination of sights is seen instantly without any searching or eye
strain. All you have to do is to look at the object you want to hit,
paying no attention to sights, till your fully-outstretched arm, coming up
by sense of direction, points the pistol at the object, and you see before
your eyes this silver ball in the middle of the U of the back sight.
Snap-shooting is made more difficult with military sights on a pistol and
accounts for many men being blamed for being bad pistol shots, whereas, it
is really the fault of the sights. I cannot make good shooting even at a
stationary target with such sights and for rapid firing or at moving
targets my shooting is much inferior to that with the same pistol, when
fitted with duelling sights.
I can understand the English-speaking nations not using duelling sights,
as very few ever shoot a duelling pistol, but that the Continental
nations, with their knowledge of duelling, have not adopted duelling
sights is to me very strange.
The same remark applies to military rifle sights which are such as no
big-game shooter would dream of using.
METHOD OF OPERATION
A loaded magazine is placed in the handle, and the slide drawn fully back
and released, thus bringing the first cartridge into the chamber, leaving
the hammer cocked and the pistol ready for firing.
If it is desired to carry the pistol fully cocked, the safety lock may be
pressed upward, thus positively locking hammer and slide. The safety lock
is located within easy reach of the thumb of the hand holding the pistol
and may be instantly pressed down when raising the pistol to the firing
position.
[Illustration: PLATE 14. UNITED STATES ARMY REGULATION .45 COLT AUTOMATIC
PISTOL. SECTIONAL VIEW]
To lower the cocked hammer, draw it back with the thumb until it forces
the grip safety in flush with the frame; at the same time pull the
trigger, then lower the hammer with thumb.
SAFETY DEVICES
It is impossible for the firing pin to discharge or even touch the primer,
except on receiving the full blow of the hammer.
The pistol is provided with two automatic safety devices:
The automatic disconnector which positively prevents the release of the
hammer unless the slide and barrel are in the forward position and safely
interlocked; this device also controls the firing and prevents more than
one shot from following each pull of the trigger.
The automatic grip safety which at all times locks the trigger unless the
handle is firmly grasped and the grip safety pressed in.
The pistol is in addition provided with a safety lock by which the closed
slide and the cocked hammer may be at will positively locked in position.
CHAPTER XLVII
RECOIL
When buying a pistol the amount of recoil you are able to stand plays an
important part.
This is not entirely a matter of physique.
A slight, wiry man, whose hands and muscles are in hard condition, and who
“gives” to the recoil will be able to shoot a pistol having a recoil which
would knock all the shooting out of a man who was in a flabby condition,
or not accustomed to manual work, even if that man were much heavier and
stronger.
Some men can bear punishment better than others.
The duelling pistol has not only no appreciable recoil, but the recoil is
distributed by the big stock over the whole of the hand.
The duelling pistol has the longest stock of any pistol and also has no
projections to hurt the hand.
The pistol most people would imagine has no recoil is the small .32 pocket
revolver and this is the very one whose recoil hurts more than almost any
other pistol.
Recoil depends on the proportion between the cartridge charge and the
weight of the pistol.
A pistol weighing 2½ lbs. would shoot the .32 cartridge with hardly any
appreciable recoil.
But this same cartridge in a small pocket revolver weighing only a few
ounces kicks very viciously.
Besides it has a very small stock made the same shape as a full-sized
stock.
The result is that, whereas in a full-sized stock the top of the comb is
designed to project over the thumb and forefinger, in the little
vest-pocket pistol this comb comes against the tender part of the palm and
the recoil drives it into the hand.
I have had my hand cut and bleeding after a few rounds with a pistol
intended for ladies’ use!
The surest way to make a beginner flinch is to let him begin with a little
pocket revolver.
I mention revolver because an automatic pocket pistol generally does not
have a stock with projections which can drive into the hand by the recoil.
The makers know that if the slide of an automatic pistol _did_ drive back
into the hand it would do very serious damage. They therefore make the
stock so that it cannot be held with the comb against the palm of the
hand.
Men accustomed to shoot a pistol having a heavy recoil get so used to
bracing against that recoil that they bob forward with an empty pistol to
a recoil which does not come.
A heavily loaded gun, if it misses fire, makes the shooter bob forward
involuntarily to meet the recoil he expects.
An automatic pistol can be used with a heavier loaded cartridge than would
be possible with a revolver.
Not only is some of the recoil taken up in working the mechanism in the
former pistol but the recoil is softer.
The recoil of a revolver can be likened to a blow with the fist, whereas
the recoil of the automatic pistol is like a hard push with the open hand.
The recoil first having to work the mechanism loses its sudden sharp
stinging blow.
I find I can shoot a heavily charged military automatic pistol longer than
I can a revolver which has much less recoil. There is none of the jar and
strain on the wrist in an automatic pistol which a revolver with the
English Regulation cartridge gives.
Cocking the revolver by trigger-pull is tiring to the hand, and a very few
rounds entirely paralyses the trigger finger for the time being.
It is a very unnatural strain to draw back the weight of the spring to
raise the hammer and revolve the chamber with the trigger finger. It tires
the finger very soon.
With the automatic pistol there is none of this strain. Therefore a man
can fire a hundred shots rapidly with the automatic pistol, when he could
not fire twenty-four rounds with a double action revolver, using the
double action, without his trigger finger giving out.
I merely mention this as a matter of interesting ancient history.
Revolvers are obsolete, but it is as interesting to understand how they
were used as it would be if we knew all such lost details concerning the
ancient cross bow, or Bushman’s long blow tube.
When one thinks of the unhappy men who were forced in their training to
shoot heavy military revolvers with alternate hands working the double
action trigger, it is extraordinary more of them did not dislocate their
trigger finger or sprain their wrists.
Let any one take one of these relics and work its double action for ten
minutes without stopping, and when added to this each shot drives the
wrist upwards with great force, he will no longer wonder why men used to
shirk “revolver practice.”
CHAPTER XLVIII
JUDGING DISTANCE
With the revolver, which was not usually shot at longer range than fifty
yards, judging distance was of little importance.
With a full charge .45 revolver, sighted for twenty yards, the drop of the
bullet was not more than about 1½ inches at fifty yards.
With gallery ammunition in a .44 revolver the drop was about 4½ inches.
I am speaking from memory, not from actual calculations or measurements.
The duelling pistol, although shooting the same gallery charge, needs
slightly less allowance at fifty yards, as there is none of the escape of
gas the revolver has at the cylinder.
There was, therefore, no need to judge distance with a revolver but the
automatic pistol with its heavy charge shoots as far as the old time
rifles did and so needs knowledge of distance judging on occasions.
Owing to the shortness of the barrel it is very difficult to do accurate
shooting at long range, but the pistol itself carries and shoots well up
to rifle “midrange” (_i. e._, five hundred yards).
As it is so difficult to shoot at long range with a pistol there is all
the more necessity to be able to judge distance so as to avoid another
cause of error.
A long range revolver match took place in 1911 in Colorado, but many
important details are lacking.
It was gotten up by the Magazine _Outdoor Life_ of Colorado.
The conditions were five sighting shots, and then twenty shots to count.
The target was a brown paper profile of a turkey at three hundred yards’
range.
This description is very vague, as all reports of shooting by non-experts
are; they always leave out vital details and put in a lot of useless
matter; it may mean a target of fifteen inches in diameter (if it only
included the body of the turkey) or over thirty inches (if it included the
whole of the turkey, head, legs, feathers, and tail).
Probably it was the latter size as, if it was only fifteen inches in
diameter, that would correspond to an inch bull’s-eye at twenty yards, or
a 2½-inch one at fifty yards, much too small for revolver shooting.
It is extremely difficult to hit a four-inch bull’s-eye for a succession
of twenty shots at fifty yards. I have hit it ten times in twelve shots
(see page 349), and the much greater difficulty of hitting a corresponding
sized target at three hundred yards would make a full score impossible
with a revolver.
The winner, name not given, made three hits for his twenty shots, six men
hit it twice in their twenty shots, six hit it once, and six missed every
shot.
This is not a very encouraging result of a long range revolver shoot.
Though the automatic pistol would be much more accurate at that distance,
still I doubt if any one could get more than eight shots on the turkey in
twenty shots at three hundred yards.
To be of any use for comparison the actual diameter of the turkey would
have to be ascertained.
Judging distance should be constantly practised, under all conditions of
light, by judging when out walking how far off a man is, and then walking
up to the spot, counting your steps, to see if you have judged right.
Do not measure distance by yard strides and thus draw attention to your
movements and raise doubt as to your sanity.
First measure in private, say one hundred yards, and then walk it with
your natural length of step when walking at your usual speed, and see how
many of your steps go to one hundred yards.
When you know your number of steps for a hundred yards you can measure
distances in ordinary walking and without passers-by noticing what you are
doing.
My natural walk is 104 steps to the 100 yards at four miles an hour.
Try, when you think you are fairly accurate, to judge the distance a man
is off also judge how far a small boy is. You will find at first you think
him much further off than he is owing to having got into the habit of
judging the distance by the height of the man.
When you come back to judging how far off a man is you will underestimate
the distance for the same reason.
Mist makes an object appear much further off than it really is; a sheep
close by appears as large as a stag one hundred yards off.
Distance is very deceptive and if one is accustomed to judging the
distance of an object of a certain size and then has to change to a
similar looking object of a different size the difficulty is increased.
When I have been shooting at stags and judging their distance with fair
accuracy and then change to roe deer shooting, the roe always seems much
further off than the real distance, because a roe at one hundred yards
looks the same size as a stag at two hundred yards off.
This difficulty is increased if the objects are mistaken for each other.
Suppose a river with steep banks, fifty yards broad, in a flat meadow, and
you stand in clear atmosphere and full sunshine at a spot twenty yards
from the nearest bank. From where you stand you cannot see the breadth of
the river; the two banks looking like one line on the green of the
meadow.
A faded, weatherbeaten, red fire bucket, is standing on the edge of the
far bank, and a flower pot on the near bank.
Both objects look identical in size, shape, and colour because of the
linear and aërial perspective at these distances, and it is impossible,
unless they are studied very carefully with a telescope or field glass, to
know which is which and therefore which is the further off. If you are
accustomed to judging the distances of flower pots you would think the
fire bucket was a flower pot and therefore only twenty yards off instead
of seventy.
Be sure you know what the object is when using it as a means of judging
distance, it may be something much larger or smaller of a similar
appearance.
A pony, when seen through a thick haze, mistaken for a horse would
entirely upset your calculations.
The use of being able to judge distances accurately is to enable you to
decide how much to aim above a distant object to make up for the distance
the bullet drops in going that distance.
The drop of the bullet increases rapidly as the distance increases.
Whilst at short range the drop is so slight that it does not signify
except for extremely accurate shooting, the bullet does not drop in
similar proportion at further range.
At two hundred it may not drop more than double what it does at one
hundred, but the proportion of drop between two hundred and three hundred
is still greater and so on; the flight of the bullet describing, not a
section of the circumference of a circle, but a parabolic curve.
When shooting at a man standing upright this drop can be ignored up to
four hundred yards with the Military Automatic pistol; as long as the aim
is taken at the top of the chest it will hit him somewhere.
But if only a man’s head shows it may be missed over or under according as
the distance is misjudged, too far or too short.
If a puff of dust or a splash of water can be seen where the first bullet
strikes it will serve to correct the aim for the next shot.
CHAPTER XLIX
GAME SHOOTING
The single shot .22 pistol is much used in the United States for small
game shooting for the pot, when camping out after big game. It does not
make much noise and also has the advantage of being very portable.
Game birds sometimes come close to a camp in the early morning or evening;
and a sitting shot for the pot can be got at them without disturbing the
ground, when a shotgun would clear all the ground for miles round.
I find a .22 pistol has not enough stopping power to prevent a wounded
rabbit getting to ground and consequently lost. A great proportion of
rabbits hit with this bullet are lost.
I use a .44 duelling pistol for rabbit stalking when they are sitting
outside their holes. If a rabbit is hit by it he very seldom gets into his
hole.
The big bullet does not spoil the rabbit as much as might be thought, the
bullet being round and solid it only makes a hole of its own size and goes
straight through the rabbit.
A .22 hollow pointed bullet makes much more mess and has the
disadvantage often of not stopping the rabbit though it maims it. The
duelling pistol would spoil a game bird if hit in the body but it is all
right for a head shot.
It makes slightly more noise than a .22 pistol but it is a soft noise and
does not travel far.
I think when game for the pot has to be shot that a “.22 short” cartridge
out of a rifle with a telescope sight is best.
After all, hitting the bird at forty or fifty yards off with a pistol
takes some doing, whereas with a telescopic sighted rifle the shot would
be a certainty.
The pistol is very little used for what seems to me to be a very useful
function.
When shooting big game there are many occasions when another shot has to
be fired at wounded game unable to get away.
Say a wild boar for instance is brought to bay by the first shot.
He cannot be approached with safety to use the knife, he is killing the
dogs, he has to be shot again.
Now you do not want to fire your rifle, which makes a boom like a cannon,
as that would disturb the rest of the beat.
If you have a pistol which shoots a big .44 calibre ball with a reduced
charge of powder you can go close up to the boar and kill him without
making much noise.
If a wounded animal gets you down, a pistol which lies close to your hand
may save your life, and if it shoots a heavy charge and is rapidly fired
several times into his body, it would stop most animals except an elephant
or rhinoceros.
A rifle can be lost in falling or lain on, the length of barrel prevents
it being used at close quarters.
The objection to carrying a pistol in big-game shooting is that every
possible ounce in weight has to be saved, especially in a hot climate. The
pistol is so much extra weight and when climbing amongst rocks it is a
great nuisance. To be of any use against dangerous game the pistol must
shoot a big bullet.
In the instance of the wild boar, I mentioned a reduced charge but my idea
is to carry the two sorts of cartridges and to have the automatic loaded
with full charge cartridges, but if game has to be finished which is not
endangering your life, I recommend putting in a gallery charge cartridge
for this particular finishing shot so as not to make more noise than
absolutely necessary, and not to disturb other game which may be near.
An automatic pistol built for a big charge will not function with a
reduced charge. Such a charge does not give enough recoil to introduce the
next cartridge and an automatic only works properly with the exact load it
is designed for. With a reduced charge the automatic pistol, after the
shot, remains half open.
If the magazine and also the cartridge which is in the barrel are first
taken out, the gallery-load cartridge can be put in the barrel and fired.
Afterwards the loaded magazine can be put back again and the pistol is
ready to shoot the heavy charge.
A single-shot .44 gallery ammunition pistol with very short barrel like
the old-fashioned Derringer, could be carried without taking up any room
or appreciable weight and be used for finishing deer, or other
non-dangerous game.
The forester who goes with me moufflon shooting carries a 9 Millimetre
Mauser Automatic pistol for self-defence against poachers and he shoots
small game with it when he comes across it. It is, however, a noisy little
pistol.
Do not take a smaller calibre pistol than a .38 for finishing big game. It
does not kill them clear.
CHAPTER L
SHOOTING FROM HORSEBACK
This needs an entirely different training to shooting when on foot.
It needs knowledge of “Horsemanship” above all else.
Ninety per cent. horsemanship and ten per cent. pistol shooting skill will
beat the finest pistol shot if he has only ten per cent. horsemanship to
his ninety per cent. shooting skill.
By “horsemanship” I _mean_ “horsemanship,” not mere skill in sticking on a
horse’s back.
A man may have ridden all his life and be able to stick on the back of any
horse and yet be no “horseman.”
Merely keeping one’s seat, and “horsemanship” are two entirely different
matters.
The “rider” (_i. e._, sticker-on) turns his horse by pulling a rein. If he
wants to go faster he hits his horse or kicks his heels into it, if he
wants to stop he pulls with both hands.
If he wants to turn, he pulls his horse’s head round and the horse pivots
on his fore legs and his hind legs follow in a wider circle.
The “horseman” uses the aids, that is, his left hand on the reins and the
calves of his legs against his horse’s sides.
By the pressure of the calf of his leg, feeling the horse’s mouth, and the
rein against the horse’s neck, he can make the horse obey his every wish,
because the horse understands, without any tugging, hitting, or forcing.
“Horsemanship” is having the horse under perfect control and obedient to
an indication so slight that it is imperceptible to the onlooker.
The “rider” tries to compel the horse by main force to obey him, and the
horse, even when it understands and obeys, does it in his own way, not his
rider’s way.
It is the difference between two perfect dancers moving as one, and a man
who has a vague idea of dancing trying to lug round a partner who knows
nothing about dancing.
The “horseman” and his horse are one.
The “rider” and his horse are like a policeman taking off an unwilling
prisoner who does not know what he is accused of.
In the one case the horse is watchful for every wish of his rider and
instantly obeys, in the other the horse is all the time misunderstanding
what his rider wants and being punished for his ignorance.
Unfortunately very few Americans or Englishmen know even the rudiments of
the “High School.”
That is why so few “riders” can play polo, both man and pony must be of
one mind and understand each other and that can only be learned in the
“High School,” which is “Horsemanship.”
The reason foreign officers are so successful in the jumping competitions
at the Olympia Horse Show is that they are horsemen in the “High School”
and their jumping horses are trained to it also.
Matador, the celebrated Belgian high jumper, can do the Spanish trot like
a circus horse.
Ladies riding astride generally know nothing of “horsemanship,” but
exaggerate the faults of men “riders.”
Their stirrup leathers are so short that the heels are drawn back and the
toes point downwards. To go faster they hit the horse with their whips or
strike their heels into it but immediately back go their legs into the
“heel up toe down” position with their feet almost driven through the
stirrups.
The legs stop in this position during the whole ride, as if they were
stuffed dummy legs.
They only know one use of the legs, that is to grip the saddle so as to
keep their seats in it.
The “High School” rider uses his legs for giving the indications to his
horse of what he wants it to do, supplemented by the reins, which, by more
or less pressure on the mouth and against the horse’s neck, indicate the
horseman’s wishes to the horse.
A “horseman” does not pull at one rein to turn the horse any more than an
expert cyclist turns the handle bars when he wants to turn a corner.
The cyclist leans to the side he wants to turn to and comes round like a
pair of compasses do when you lean them over and let the pencil swing
round.
If a “horseman” wants to open a gate he does not kick his heels into the
horse and thus force him up to the gate and then lean over the horse’s
neck to try and reach the gate, which the horse is backing from. The
“horseman” holding his reins in his left hand, squeezes the horse with the
calves of his legs and this makes the horse go forward.
As he gets to the gate the “horseman” puts his left calf further back
against the horse’s left side, at the same time putting his left hand
slightly to the left so that the right rein presses against the horse’s
neck.
This turns the horse’s neck and shoulders to the left whilst the pressure
of the left calf against the horse’s left side makes him put his right
hind quarters to the right. The horse now stands broadside up against the
gate and the “horseman” can easily use his right hand on the gate lock,
without having to lean over.
When he has taken hold of the gate a slightly greater pressure of his
right calf whilst tightening the reins makes the horse’s back and quarter
turn, and the gate is opened. He eases his horse’s mouth, squeezes with
both calves, and the horse walks through the open gate whilst the gate
closes behind him.
Suppose two equally good pistol shots, one a good “rider” and the other a
good “horseman” are in a mounted pistol competition.
They are told to walk their horses past the target and shoot at it one
shot out of their automatic pistol as they pass. Both of the horses have
not seen the target before and are rather shy of it.
The “rider” having to hold his pistol can use only one hand to his horse
and being accustomed all his life to guide his horse by pulling at the
reins cannot guide the horse properly with only his left hand.
As the horse comes up to the target he turns his head towards it and his
quarters away from it and begins to sidle away, walking all crooked, the
rider kicks his heels into him to try and get him up to the target and
when he puts out his arm to aim the horse sidles away still more and whips
round away from the target spoiling the shot.
After the “rider” has fired he needs both hands to turn the horse and
bring it back, and, having the pistol as well as a rein in his right hand,
fires one or two more shots, unintentionally.
The “horseman” squeezes his horse by pressure of the calves into his
bridle, his horse like the former horse seeing the target tries to turn
his head towards it and to sidle away from it.
The “horseman” merely moves his left hand slightly to the left, causing
his right rein to press against his horse’s neck and thereby turns the
horse’s fore part straight again; at the same time he puts his left calf
back along the horse’s side and this puts his hind quarters straight into
place. If the horse tries to resist, the left spur touches him and he
gives in.
When the shot is fired the horse is wheeled round to the left by the
pressure of the left hand and right calf whilst at the same time the right
thumb slips on the safety of the automatic pistol.
If the reader is not a “horseman” and wants to learn pistol shooting from
horseback, he and his horse should go through the cavalry course first.
Even when a horse is standing still, he is breathing, so it is difficult
to make good shooting with deliberate aim off horseback.
All shooting has to be done with swing and snap shooting. Care must be
taken not to shoot too close past a horse’s ears; it may be advisable to
put on a hood with closed ear covers, so that he does not get the full
noise into his ears.
There is not much to teach as to the actual shooting, it is almost
entirely horsemanship, finding out which angle suits you best to shoot
from, at what speed the horse moves smoothest, etc.
An automatic pistol is safer than a revolver for use on horseback. There
is no putting to half-cock but only slipping the safety on or off.
If the horse begins to plunge, slip on the safety at once, in fact at any
indication of trouble with the horse put on the safety.
Do not slip off the safety till the instant before firing and slip it on
the moment you have fired.
As you cannot shoot blank ammunition out of an automatic pistol you will
have to use a single barrel pistol for teaching a horse to stand fire.
Be very careful not to scorch him or shoot past his eyes as that will make
him always apt to flinch.
An underbred horse is better than a blood horse as a rule for shooting
off, but when you do get a thoroughbred who will stand fire, as he has
more courage, he will stand fire better than any other horse, and his
paces are easier, especially the canter and gallop.
A handy polo pony makes a good shooting pony if it stands fire, as it is
used to starting, stopping, and turning.
CHAPTER LI
GALLERY AUTOMATIC PISTOLS
Rifles and pistols though greatly improved in some respects are now
progressing too much in one direction.
The inventor’s sole idea seems to be to get the most powerful cartridge
possible.
They have now reduced the rifle to a small bore with an extremely heavy
charge and therefore the rifle has to be made very heavy to be safe from
bursting.
This may be very necessary for war but it is a great disadvantage for the
many other purposes a rifle is used for.
The new rifle is unsuitable for dangerous game shooting. People think that
as such game is shot at very long ranges and that the further off the game
is shot the better the sportsman.
I am constantly asked, “When deer stalking, how far off do you shoot a
stag?”
They expect the answer to be, “A thousand yards or so.”
When I say, “as close as I can possibly get, generally from about fifty to
seventy yards, I never shoot at deer beyond two hundred yards” they form
a very low opinion of my skill.
With bears and wild boar seventy yards is a long shot, from ten to forty
is the usual distance.
Often these animals are in rapid motion. I stand up to shoot, there is no
lying down on the face and aiming for ten minutes.
Modern “improved” rifles are quite unsuited for this.
The long distance they carry is a great drawback and makes them very
dangerous to use in a populous country and for the beaters.
Their small calibre does not knock down an animal instantly like a big
bullet does. They have too much penetration and are apt to hit two or more
animals with the same bullet.
A charging animal a few yards off may do a lot of damage after being hit
by a small bore rifle. There have not been fewer, but more, fatal
accidents from wounded lions and buffalo in Africa since these small bore,
high power, rifles have come into use.
The heavy weight of a double high power rifle is of a prohibitive weight
for snap-shooting.
The recoil also is so great that aim cannot be instantaneously taken for
the second shot.
In the black powder days sportsmen’s requirements were not subordinated to
military requirements.
Express rifles were used by deer stalkers in Scotland and the typical U.
S. rifle for grizzly bears was the .44 Winchester repeater which shot a
small charge of powder.
For big game shooting accuracy is not needed beyond two hundred yards but
a big bullet giving a knock down blow and a rifle capable of firing
several shots in succession with great rapidity. Rifle to be light and
handy as a shotgun.
Needing a smokeless rifle answering to the above requirements, I first
tried gallery ammunition in a .303 rifle, double rifle.
I found the weight of the rifle was too great and the calibre too small.
I then tried a .400 double rifle, lightened very much and shooting a small
charge of smokeless powder, I got the weight down to that of a double
12-bore pigeon gun.
Then I discovered there was danger of getting a full charge cartridge into
the rifle by mistake and bursting it. The difficulty was solved by having
a special chamber and a straight cartridge of large calibre, and small
powder charge of cordite. No high power cartridge can be got into the
chamber of this rifle, as they are all bottlenecked so there is no danger
of shooting the wrong ammunition. This double rifle is light and handy,
very accurate up to one hundred yards and all it hits it knocks down like
Thor’s hammer.
Unfortunately, the automatic pistol also has been “improved” on modern
rifle lines.
The utmost possible power has been put into the cartridge and the pistol
has to be heavy and clumsy to stand this and it has a big recoil and a
terribly loud report.
As it is, at the first shot, all within hearing scuttle underground like
rabbits, under the impression that an air raid is on.
A full charge automatic pistol is such a nuisance in a pistol gallery,
owing to its deafening noise, that nobody cares to use one there, and if
he did, he would very soon be asked by the other shooters to desist.
Inventors vie with each other as to who can produce an automatic pistol
having the most powerful cartridge, just as rifle inventors do.
What is wanted is not a more powerful automatic pistol, the present ones
are far too powerful, but a weak power, large bore one with an extremely
light charge corresponding to the duelling pistol, that is to say, one
shooting a round bullet of .44 calibre with a very small charge of
smokeless powder.
Such a pistol would be an ideal weapon for shooting galleries and would
popularize pistol practice, _then_ pistol shooting would be a pleasure
instead of a penance, when shooting has to be done indoors.
The automatic pistol inventors should experiment as follows:
The external lines should follow the Gastinne-Renette duelling pistol as
nearly as possible.
The calibre and cartridge the same as it is (_i. e._, .44), the bullet
being of lead, and spherical.
The magazine of a size to _take only this cartridge_, as otherwise, if a
heavy charge cartridge were introduced by mistake and fired, it would
smash and perhaps burst the pistol. An automatic pistol made for the light
charge would have too weak a recoil spring to withstand a heavy charge.
The duelling pistol cartridge has the bullet seated far down it, and there
is a lot of spare useless length in the cartridge.
In the automatic pistol I am advising to be made (the Winans model), the
cartridge should be, though of .44 calibre, very short, the round bullet
crimped in the end of it, like the .22 bulleted cap cartridges.
The cartridge being so short and the magazine made to fit, the usual high
power cartridges would be too long to go into it by mistake.
The sights should be those of the duelling pistol.
I think such an automatic pistol would be much superior to any existing
automatic pistol except for military purposes.
As there would be no danger of putting in a higher power cartridge the
pistol could be lightened and balance better, all the weight possible
being taken off the barrel and fore end, the barrel fluted, etc., so that
the balance would be even better than in a duelling pistol, owing to its
shorter barrel.
It may be found that the barrel could be lengthened, so as to be longer
between the sights, without spoiling the balance.
As the gallery charge is so light, the recoil would be all expended in
operating the mechanism--there would be no recoil left against the hand.
Most of the difficulties in designing automatic firearms are having to
withstand the enormous pressure of modern cartridges. If you go back to a
light pressure in the cartridge, all these difficulties vanish and all
parts can be made light.
Such a pistol ought easily to beat all existing rapid-fire revolver
records, as good scores as those under duelling conditions should be made,
in fact I think better scores, as there is no necessity to raise the hand
after the first shot.
With a Winchester .22 automatic rifle I can put the ten shots in three
seconds into a two-inch bull at twenty yards, the only time spent is in
getting the aim for the first shot, the other shots can be put in as fast
as the trigger can be pressed, as there is no recoil, and therefore no
time spent in getting a fresh aim for each shot. The .22 Colt long barrel
automatic pistol (see Plate 4) fulfills most of these conditions, but a
.44 gallery charge automatic pistol would be better.
CHAPTER LII
SHOOTING GALLERY
Pistol shooting in competitions or for practice is conducted either under
cover, in the open, or partly under cover. The latter is much the best
way, so I will keep this to the last.
An open-air range can only be installed in the country, away from
buildings or annoyance to others. Even then it is not immune. Just before
the war several rifle ranges in England were ordered to be closed because
they inconvenienced golf players, and of course golf is much more
important than shooting.
The present automatic pistol with its heavy charge makes such a noise that
it can only be shot in an open-air range, well away from houses. The
objection to such a range is that it takes so long to get to.
Instead of being able to fire a few shots at odd moments, as in Paris, a
man who has a few minutes to spare must take a train into the country,
wasting time and money getting there and back, and he can therefore only
shoot if he has a whole afternoon free and “money to burn.”
It requires great keenness in pistol shooting to endure all the discomfort
of waiting for trains, standing in the wet, etc., for the sake of a few
minutes’ shooting.
The usual indoor range practice is even worse.
It is true it is “only round the corner,” and takes only a few minutes to
get to, but when you _do_ get there!!!
The range is in a part of a building too dark and uncomfortable to be used
for any other purpose.
If a narrow underground dungeon is too bad for a wine or coal cellar, a
brilliant idea strikes the owner of the property: “Why not turn it into a
public shooting gallery, and make it pay?”
The gallery is run on the pay, pay, always pay, and receive nothing,
principle.
The shooter pays for the pleasure of ruining his eyesight and ears, pays
for the target, pays for the cartridges, pays for the hire of a dirty,
greasy, worn out old revolver.
However good a score he makes he receives no prize or encouragement.
No wonder, after one such visit, the public gives the place a wide berth.
The Gastinne-Renette Pistol Gallery at 39, Avenue d’Antin, Paris, is
constructed and run as a pistol gallery should be.
The first essential is to have it in a building well-lighted by daylight
and airy, and where the neighbours will not object to the sound of
firing.
The ideal range is, as at Gastinne-Renette’s, with the firing point
covered and the range itself open to the air, but this is only possible
under exceptional circumstances, and where gallery ammunition only is
fired.
I am strongly of the opinion that unless gallery ammunition is used
exclusively, an indoor or semi-indoor range is inadmissible, otherwise the
shooting must, of necessity, be done in the country and in the open, with
all its attendant inconveniences.
If the range is in an entirely closed gallery it should have plenty of top
light (not artificial light), like a sculptor’s studio, or be situated and
lighted on the top floor of the house, like a photographer’s studio.
Or it may be a long shed with windows down both sides.
A riding school or a gymnasium having plenty of daylight might do.
By the way, although gymnastics do not need daylight (artificial light is
just as good for them), one never hears of a gymnasium in a coal cellar.
It is only the shooter, who is a crank anyhow and not worth serious
consideration, who has to put up with a coal cellar.
It is difficult to get an indoor range large enough for practice at moving
objects.
So-called moving targets which run for a few feet are not moving targets
at all.
To learn shooting at moving objects they should go fast and for a
reasonable distance, not less than ten yards, and the further they run,
and the more varying the speed, the better.
CHAPTER LIII
THE GASTINNE-RENETTE GALLERY
This gallery has been in existence for some seventy years and is
constantly improved and it is the best gallery I know of in any country.
In describing it I will be describing what an ideal shooting gallery
should be like.
The entrance is through a well-lighted daylight passage past the
gunmaker’s shop of the proprietor. A pistol can be bought or hired, or
alteration made to the sights or trigger-pull of one’s own pistol, on the
spot.
One then comes to a long, well-lighted gallery, with cupboards containing
the pistols of the members and very accurate, well-kept pistols, for
lending to shooters who have not brought their own (see Plates 2 and 10.)
Several pistol clubs, such as the “Le Pistolet” and the “St. George,”
shoot here on certain days, at which times the range is closed to the
outside public.
The gallery is heated by hot water pipes in winter.
The secretary sits at a desk and sells the entry tickets, gives the
prizes (gold, silver, and bronze medals and plaques), and also keeps an
accurate record of all winning scores made.
[Illustration: PLATE 15. GASTINNE-RENETTE GALLERY]
The walls are hung with the framed targets which have won the Grand
Medaille d’Or and other prizes.
Two marble slabs, engraved with the names of the winners of the
championship of each year, are by the mantelpiece where hangs the stuffed
head of a Sika stag I shot with a duelling pistol.
One of the long sides of the gallery faces a blank wall in the open air
about thirty yards distant.
Along that side there are cubicles with glass doors facing this wall, and
glass sliding doors opening into the gallery.
Each cubicle has a loading table with drawers for cartridges, etc.
These cubicles have transverse walls in pairs leading to this wall, so as
to enable pairs of shooters, if they so desire, to shoot, without being
disturbed by the rest of the shooters.
The shooter goes with an attendant into one of the cubicles; the door
leading to the gallery is shut and the door on to the range is opened.
The shooter can be seen from the gallery but he is not disturbed by people
talking or coming near him.
The assistant loads the pistols, works the metronome, keeps the score,
etc.
If the score is good enough to win a prize the assistant calls the
secretary to see the target and verify the score and record it in his book
before the shots are painted out.
Paper targets shot at are brought to the secretary for verification and
signed and kept by him.
Over the top of these open-air passages down which the shooting takes
place, wires are stretched to break the sound, so as not to annoy the
neighbours.
There are also sloping boards at intervals above, so that a shot let off
by accident cannot do any harm--the boards catch all wide bullets.
[Illustration: PLATE 16. GASTINNE-RENETTE GALLERY--FIRING POINTS]
The prizes are given on a gradually increasing scale of difficulty, so
that nobody need be discouraged.
The bronze medal for shooting at plaster figures at sixteen metres is easy
enough for the most moderate pistol shot to win, he is thus encouraged to
try for the silver medal at these figures, which is a little more
difficult, and so on.
No medal in any of the series can be won more than once.
If a man wins the gold medal at that series at the first attempt he can
still go in for the silver and bronze medals of that series, but, when he
has won all three medals of a series, he can never compete in that series
again, but of course can shoot for practice at them.
Some series call for extreme accuracy and some for endurance, as that for
breaking a hundred small plates in succession--rapid-firing--under
duelling conditions.
In Chapter XXXIII, I described the target used at Gastinne-Renette’s
Gallery for the three series for the Grand Medaille d’Or.
There are no second prizes in these series.
One gold medal is for twelve shots deliberate shooting with the .44
calibre duelling pistol.
A similar one for the .44 calibre revolver, and also a similar one for the
duelling pistol, shot under duelling conditions.
All are shot at sixteen metres range (seventeen yards one foot).
To win either of the first two gold medals all the twelve shots must be
inside the first ring round the bull’s-eye, that is inside (not cutting a
ring of five bullets’ diameter (2⅕ inches).
To win the third gold medal all the twelve shots must be inside, not
cutting, the second ring round the bull’s-eye, that is to say inside seven
bullets’ diameter (3.08 inches).
This latter appears the most easy competition, but on the contrary whilst
some forty or more have won the first two medals, only five have won the
latter, during the seventy years.
Chevalier Ira Paine is the only man who won both the first named gold
medals. I do not think he tried for the third. In fact I have not seen or
heard of any score of his shot under duelling conditions.
I am the only one during the seventy years the competitions have been in
existence who has won both the gold medals for rifle shooting at moving
objects at this gallery, the Running Rabbit and the Running Man, about
five have won either one or the other of these medals.
CHAPTER LIV
OPEN AIR RANGES
A row of white squares, each with a black bull’s-eye on it, and men
aiming, aiming, and finally letting off their pistols at them, is such a
mistaken idea of learning pistol shooting.
It is all so futile, so useless, except as a sport and a means of getting
fresh air and relaxation.
To occasionally put a series of shots very close together on a stationary
target is interesting, and shows what a good pistol and men are capable of
when working in harmony. But to consider this the sole object of pistol
shooting is the greatest mistake.
Rapid fire, the faster the better, is the essence of pistol shooting, the
only practical use of it.
Deliberate shooting is a game, a sport, and a very good sport, but it is
neither practical pistol shooting or the way to learn it.
An outdoor range gives the best practice, as figures can be put up at
various distances and shot at in rapid fire, moving and disappearing
targets can run in all directions, and come up unexpectedly like at a
shotgun shooting school.
A shelter to shoot from under in wet or windy weather has the disadvantage
of the noise from the shooting when full charges are shot, as is
invariably the case in England.
A corrugated roof gives a terrible echo. It is better to stand in the rain
and wind rather than be deafened.
Six hits in four seconds is the best I know of with a revolver when
shooting at life size figures taken one after the other at distances
varying from about fifteen to thirty yards.
This can be beaten with an automatic pistol. With an automatic pistol it
is a matter of finding the right speed to swing across the figures.
A good open air pistol range can be made behind a rifle butt.
Behind the big butt for a thousand yards’ rifle shooting makes a very big
butt for twenty-five yards’ automatic pistol shooting and allows for
swinging and moving targets on an ample scale.
In an open air range great care must be taken to be very strict as to
rules of safety.
There becomes a tendency to walk down to the butt to examine a target
without first giving warning; to walk about with some cartridges still in
the pistol, etc.
Things which would not be done in an indoor range seem to come natural to
some men when in an out-of-doors range.
Targets that can smash are the best. Plaster heads are much better to
shoot at in rapid firing than to try and hit the six heads of wooden
targets.
In the former case you see the débris of the smash as you pull the trigger
and do not pause in your swing to the next target.
If there is no smash to the shot but only a bullet hole, one is apt to
hesitate after each shot to look for the bullet hole.
It looks so much better and gives such a satisfactory feeling to instantly
see the result of your shot.
A row of plates or bottles placed at various distances and smashed one
after the other very rapidly is much more of an encouragement than, after
having fired without visible result, to be told ten minutes later that you
have made all hits.
There are small rubber balloons manufactured in France which can be filled
with water.
The balloons when empty pack in very little space. A small pump is sold
with them, it can be regulated to deliver a pre-arranged quantity of water
into each balloon, and then a twist at the neck of the balloon closes it.
If the water is coloured with Condy’s Fluid a hit looks very conspicuous
and pretty when the balloon bursts on being struck.
Have them thrown up to shoot at. Great care must be taken that the bullets
go where they can do no harm.
A full charge automatic pistol should not be used for this--a duelling
pistol, having a smooth bore barrel, and shooting No. 8 shot is good
practice and can be shot where shooting a bullet would be dangerous. I
have killed 44 out of 80 live pigeons in this way.
It is dangerous to shoot bullets at hard substances. To shoot at a stone
thrown up, a ginger beer, or a soda water bottle, may cause very dangerous
ricochets.
CHAPTER LV
SHOOTING IN LITERATURE
Most extraordinary ideas prevail amongst writers as to shooting in general
and especially pistol shooting.
One novelist makes his hero see “a flame zigzagging in the darkness,” he,
not troubling to ascertain who was carrying the light, friend or foe,
without hesitation “drew his pistol, took an aim of a good thirty seconds’
duration and fired straight at the flame.”
To aim “straight at” a moving object is the way to miss it, and if the aim
is taken for thirty seconds the hand gets so shaky that a miss is certain,
but most marvellous thing in literature, the hero _does_ miss.
Solomon said, “There is nothing new under the sun.” He was wrong. The
author who makes his hero miss is absolutely unique; in all other
literature the hero never misses, none of Homer’s heroes miss, nor does
David miss Goliath nor William Tell miss the apple nor Robin Hood the
deer.
This unique hero takes an even longer aim, later. He hears a horse
galloping towards him and _aims for ten minutes_ at a point two inches
above where he expected the horse’s head to appear round a rock. I suppose
he aimed two inches high so as to allow for the fatigue to his arm during
the ten minutes’ aim, causing it to slightly sag down.
I expect the next novel I read, the hero, knowing his enemy will arrive in
a month’s time, will keep an aim well above the railway station till he
arrives.
Evidently the idea is the longer the aim the more accurate it is,
forgetting that human muscles and eyesight tire, and that fast moving
objects cannot be hit with a stationary aim.
I have known a stag turn and go the opposite direction whilst a man was
aiming at a tree he expected it to pass.
It is amusing how, in a play, the hero after he has made the villain
desist by pointing a revolver at him, contemptuously throws the revolver
on the sofa and walks away.
It never occurs to the author of the play, or the actor, that the villain
would instantly seize hold of the pistol and turn the tables on the hero.
After the hero has covered the villain with the pistol and has been
applauded the “situation is over” so he throws away the revolver or puts
it back in his pocket and there the incident ends.
In one play the hero gives a loaded .44 revolver as a keepsake to a small
child.
This sort of thing is merely ridiculous and does no harm.
But harm is done if an actor through ignorance shoots another actor.
I have twice seen such an accident on the stage. Once a man blinded
another in both eyes, and in the second case in one eye, by firing blank
ammunition right into the other’s face at a few feet distance.
Men have been killed, one only a short time ago, by having the wad of
blank ammunition shot into them. In one case the gun had several wads
crimped hard into the shell so as to make a good loud bang when fired.
One man in this play was supposed to come across his enemy, and as the
latter fled, to shoot him. The actor, who I believe said he had never shot
a gun before, put the muzzle against the other man’s back when he fired
and killed him.
He had been told that it was blank ammunition and he thought it could do
no harm. This is the cause of all such accidents. Being blank ammunition
it is considered to be harmless.
Old ladies are laughed at when they scream and hold their ears when a man
begins to “brandish” a revolver on the stage or poke about with a gun,
with his finger on the trigger. But the old ladies are quite right to be
alarmed.
There is no knowing what may happen when a man ignorant of firearms, has
one in his hands, even if it only has blank ammunition.
A very favourite attitude with actors is to bang the butt of their rifle
on the ground and then put both hands over the muzzle, but in this case if
the rifle “explodes,” it is only their own hands that they injure.
For the safety of others this is the best thing they can do, before
someone else gets hurt.
Before being allowed to fire blank ammunition on the stage, a man should
be properly instructed in the safe handling of firearms.
Shooting blank ammunition on the stage is always a risky job. People are
so huddled up, that it is difficult to appear to shoot at a man without
shooting close enough to him to injure him.
If the gun is fired over the man’s head, it may set the flies on fire,
burn the eyes of someone in a grand tier box, or the limelight man.
It is a case of “save me from my friends” when a writer who is ignorant of
shooting matters tries to extol someone’s marksmanship.
We read “the anti-aircraft guns at once began to bellow forth defiance.
The shooting was wonderful and it was only the hardest luck that they did
not wing an enemy.”
As the number of shots is not mentioned and the element of luck
introduced, it is not possible to analyse this shooting, but another
writer is clearer. He says “he got within fifty yards, well within point
blank range, and fired 117 shots and the enemy was then observed to be
leaning forward, so it was apparent that he had been winged.”
Now here we have all the facts necessary to work out a simple rule of
three problem.
As 117 shots are to one shot, so is fifty yards to X (the distance the
adversary must be off to enable him to be winged, with a single shot).
This makes X equal 15.381 inches.
As to kill is about three times as difficult as to wing, divide by three,
this gives 5.127 inches as the longest range at which it is possible to
kill a man with a single shot, “which is absurd.” Q.E.D.
Another novel writer made use of one of my books very effectively to
describe the duel, with all details correct, except that he made the
distance between the duellists _five yards_, and they missed each other
twice at this distance!
Allowing for each duellist three feet from where he stands to the end of
the muzzle of his pistol they would have only three yards between the
muzzles of their pistols. The writer must have either been unacquainted
with French metric measures (I gave twenty-five meters as the duelling
distance) or else he confused it with a sword duel.
CHAPTER LVI
GRIP
There is a great variety of opinions as to the shape and size a pistol
stock should have so as to give the best grip.
As I have already mentioned, the grip which suits me best is that on the
French duelling pistol. But what suits one man may not necessarily suit
another.
A smooth, mother-of-pearl stock is very slippery to me, but some think
this gives the ideal grip.
Some men have fat flabby perspiring hands, others have cold damp hands,
both of these seem to be able to hold a mother-of-pearl grip comfortably,
but they do not suit a man who has dry warm hands.
In the revolver days I knew several men who could not grip the Smith &
Wesson Russian model revolver comfortably. They said the stock was too
small for them. Even the Colt stock, according to them, was too small.
They, in consequence, induced the makers to supply Colt revolvers to suit
“The English market” with enormously big stocks.
Now these very men who found the normal stocks too small did not have
abnormally large hands. It was that they held their pistols with much too
rigid a grip.
Some men have special stocks made so that they “can get a firm grip.”
Some of them even go to the length of putting India rubber tennis racket
grips over the pistol stocks. I have tried shooting one of their pistols
so ornamented (?) and found it was like trying to shoot with a big potato
held in my fist.
Others, in order to obtain this “firm grip,” smear the stock of their
pistol over with wet modelling clay, take a grip of it and then have a
plaster cast made of their finger prints in this clay and get a stock cast
from this. When they hold this monstrosity with their fingers embedded in
it, they claim to have a perfect hold.
The idea they are working for is an entirely wrong one. The pistol should
be held as a fencing foil, lying in the palm of the hand. Because the left
hand gets burnt when many shots are fired in rapid succession from a rifle
or gun, a hand guard was invented which slips over to the fore end of the
gun and protects the left hand from contact with the hot barrels.
It was also claimed that, having to hold this guard made the shooter
always hold his hand in the same place, and that this was a great
advantage.
The rigid grip on a fixed spot is, as a matter of fact, a disadvantage.
It caused me to give up this hand guard and substitute an asbestos glove
for the left hand.
In game shooting with a rifle, or gun, one shifts the left hand
constantly, according to the angle of the rifle or gun to your shoulder.
For a high shot the left hand is thrust forward, for a low shot the hand
drawn back.
To sit down and shoot off the knees, the left hand is much further back on
the rifle than if you stand up to shoot off hand.
If you find yourself shooting under, you shift the left hand forward for
the next shot so as to shoot higher.
You cannot do all these niceties (which make all the difference between
first class shooting, and merely good shooting) if your left hand is tied
to one place. The same applies to pistol shooting.
The pistol should not be held in a “firm grip” as these inventors of
potato-shaped stocks imagine.
A fencer does not keep a “firm grip,” nor does a shotgun man.
All have their weapons lying in the palms of the hands loosely and easily,
the grip of the foil is only tightened momentarily for parrying or
thrusting and the game shot handles a rifle or shotgun as lightly as a
woman nursing a baby.
A pistol stock which has all the fingers embedded in it stops all wrist
play. It may answer for a long aim at a stationery target but for any
rapid shooting it is impossible.
How can a man draw and shoot in one movement if he has to fit his fingers
first into each hollow excavated in the stock? He might as well try to
pull on a glove each time before he draws his pistol.
If he gets the hold the least wrong he will miss and probably also get his
hand cut.
How can a man cock or slip on the safety bolt if he first has to take his
thumb out of the “dug out” in which it has taken refuge? He will most
likely fumble the whole thing and drop the pistol.
Very many pistol inventions are the result of a man who, shooting for the
first time, discovers difficulties merely due to his own clumsiness and
inexperience, and instead of consulting a pistol shot, invents something
to overcome these imaginary difficulties.
I have actually seen such an inventor shooting in a competition with an
iron rod up his sleeve attached to his pistol “to keep his arm steady.”
An inventor came to me with something he said would stop all runaway
horses, and was very angry with me because I would not try it on one of
mine, although I told him mine were properly broken horses, not runaways.
The invention consisted of two India rubber bags which, un-inflated, were
to be put inside the nostrils of the horse.
If there was any difficulty in stopping the horse, a pair of bellows was
worked, attached to a rubber tube connecting these bags to the driver.
This inflated the bags, and the horse, according to the inventor, “at once
comes to a standstill.”
I told the inventor that a horse thus choked would throw himself about,
and cause a fearful smash before he died. He probably thought, “what lack
of imagination” horsemen have.
A wooden or vulcanite stock with a small clean-cut file pattern so as to
give a non-slip hold is good.
A too small grip has the fault of driving the nails into the ball of the
thumb; it should be just thick enough to avoid this, any thicker would be
clumsy.
An ivory stock is heavy, but this may be an advantage if there is weight
needed in the stock to counterbalance the barrel, otherwise ivory gives a
good grip, if roughed.
The depth of the roughing depends on the tenderness of the hand of the
shooter.
A roughing which would make one man’s hand sore is hardly enough of a
non-slip hold for a man whose skin is harder.
Sometimes screw heads and pins are not quite flush with the stock and may
chafe the hand.
They and any roughness left on screw heads by the unskilful use of the
screw driver should be filed down smooth.
A sore hand which gets hurt at each shot is very detrimental to good
shooting and the shooter is constantly trying to get a fresh grip in order
to save his hand.
Automatic pistols have almost universally a projection over the hand
between the thumb and the trigger finger for the slide to work on.
This turns the stock into a “saw handle” which used to be common on
English duelling pistols.
I have tried such a stock with very good results on a revolver, but it is
in the way of one-handed cocking.
An objection to a “saw handle” is that it compels the grip to be always
taken in the same place, and as I said before, the grip should be movable
higher or lower, according as you find you are shooting too low or too
high.
A little rosin ground fine and rubbed on the stock and hand gives a good
non-slip grip if the stock is greasy or slippery.
Do not shoot with gloves on. It destroys the sensitiveness of the hand,
especially the trigger finger. I am always afraid of being shot by
accident when a man shooting next me wears gloves, especially the slippery
so-called “chamois skin” ones.
CHAPTER LVII
TRICK SHOOTING
“Champion Shot” shooting on the stage must not be taken too seriously.
No one can keep on shooting at small objects on a man’s head or held
between his fingers without an occasional bad shot, and if it misses by
only half an inch, such a miss may cause the death of the assistant.
Unavoidable sources of accident are, a weak cartridge giving a low shot; a
hang fire, or, as in one fatal accident, the rifle blows open, lowering
the muzzle and the bullet entering the assistant’s forehead.
Aiming to graze the top of the ball minimizes this risk but does not
eliminate it.
A miss too high does not matter, but a miss too low means death to the
assistant.
Managers of theatres are now very chary, since this accident, of employing
“Artistes” who do real shooting. It is too dangerous and the police will
not allow it. All sorts of ways to minimize risk are employed. When
objects are held to be shot at, steel thimbles over forefinger and thumb
are concealed under a glove.
A steel skullcap fitting down to the eyebrows with a rod some four inches
long projecting from the top is employed to hold the ball, the steel
skullcap concealed under a wig with low fringe of hair to cover the
forehead. This is worn by a woman assistant, her high piled up head
serving to hide the rod.
There are several other reasons for employing a woman assistant instead of
a man.
It looks so much more effective to shoot things off a woman’s head or
fingers; and she can wear long gloves in evening dress without exciting
suspicion that she has steel gauntlets concealed under them.
When well arranged, the ball, two inches in diameter, and the aim taken to
graze the top of the ball, a miss must be fully eight inches too low to do
any damage to the assistant when she wears a steel skullcap down to her
eyebrows under her wig of piled up hair.
Some do not even risk that, but, by an arrangement of a steel plate
connected with a lever below it, and the whole hidden behind the “back
cloth,” the shot is fired at the plate a foot higher than the assistant’s
head; this plate forces the bottom of the lever, armed with a spike,
forward. The spike breaks the ball and immediately returns out of sight
through the “back cloth.”
Some natural object is painted on the scene over this hidden target for
the shooter to aim at.
I give below a few exhibition shoots, ranging from real shooting,
through “assisted” shooting down to “trick” shooting, and simple conjuring
tricks.
The reader, if asked to shoot for a charity bazaar or to amuse people at a
village fête, can choose from this list, according to the rigidity or
elasticity of his conscience “in the cause of charity.” And charity covers
a multitude of sins.
It is curious how one never can tell what will be a success with the
public.
A really difficult feat fails to impress the audience and a simple easy
shot “brings down the house.” What must be constantly borne in mind is
that you must never make a bad shot, that spoils the whole thing.
You can cover up your mistakes sometimes.
If you hit the ace of hearts, have it handed round to the audience and go
on to the next item. If a shot is encored do not repeat, go on with your
programme.
To do something well and then, trying to repeat it, to make a miss, is a
fatal mistake.
If your first shot at the ace of hearts just misses the heart by a shade,
this does not matter.
Keep on shooting and make a good group “all cutting into one hole” and
hand it round to the audience, thus covering up the traces of the bad
first shot.
Stop shooting as soon as the hole cuts well into the pip. If you try one
shot too many and get it clear of the “all shots into one hole” then you
have made a fearful blunder--a three shot group is ample.
Never attempt anything which you are not able to do easily. To make a lot
of easy shots without a mistake is far preferable than to try difficult
shots with one or two failures.
If you can trust your nerve it is as well to keep the most difficult shot
to the last, so as not to have an anticlimax. As a climax (if your
conscience will permit you), give one or two “assisted” shots, so as to
end brilliantly.
Always practise on the actual stage and with the same lighting as you will
have to shoot under, when giving the exhibition.
If you do not do this you may find the light different, or so bad that you
will not be able to do yourself justice.
A stage open to the sky, is, on a calm day, best of all, but there is the
risk of a wind springing up. Always shoot on a stage elevated above the
spectators so that all can see, and have the sun at your back.
On an open air stage you can finish as follows:
Have an old-fashioned .44 Winchester, black powder, repeating rifle. These
can still be picked up at second-hand gunmakers’ shops.
Get cartridges for it loaded with No. 10 shot.
Have a lot of the rubber balls filled with water.
It looks most effective if the water is of various colours for alternate
balls.
Get an assistant to throw them straight up as high as he possibly can,
and break them in succession.
With practice you can break them as fast as he can possibly throw them.
The higher and straighter up he throws them the easier they are to break
and yet the more effective they look.
The stop butt should be an iron box with a back sloping downwards, away
from you, at an angle of forty-five degrees, deflecting the bullets into a
tray full of sand.
Some “numbers” for the programme (range fifteen feet) I give below.
Put a playing-card up edgewise horizontally and cut it in half.
Be sure the background is such that you can see the white edge of the card
against it.
If you get your elevation just right, the card will be cut.
Use a .44 calibre bullet in all shooting, as that gives you more leeway in
case you are a little wrong in your elevation.
This is the most difficult shot of all and should not be repeated.
The same shot with the card vertical.
This is slightly easier, as one is less apt to miss horizontally than
vertically.
The “assistance” in this shot is to have the card as much out of dead edge
on to you, as the audience will stand without detecting it.
Unless a spectator is absolutely behind the shooter and looking over his
right shoulder he cannot see if the card is not absolutely dead edge on.
The duffer’s way of doing this shot is to fire dust shot instead of a
bullet.
Hitting the ace of hearts I have already described.
To hit several pips on one card is very difficult. It takes really good
shooting even at the five yards’ range to hit the six pips in succession
on the six hearts.
Also this cannot be “assisted” in any way unless you fluke one pip when
shooting at another with the .22 Colt target automatic pistol (or see
Plate 4). When the “gallery ammunition” automatic pistol is invented air
filled rubber balls can be put in a row and broken in quick succession. In
“assisted” shooting they are made of dark rubber with a minute white
bull’s-eye painted on each, and the balls stand in recesses in a screen of
the same colour as themselves, so that all but the white spot is
invisible.
To the uninitiated it looks as if it is the minute white bull’s-eyes which
are hit.
If the air balls are large, the shooting is very easy. If shot is used
instead of bullets any one can do this trick but the balls must be far
enough apart to avoid breaking two or more balls at one shot.
To snuff a candle if the wick is aimed at requires quick shooting as more
than a momentary aim at the wick dazzles the eyes.
It is better to put the candle in a candlestick and cut the candle to a
predetermined length, and have the pistol sighted to shoot that much too
high.
The aim is then taken at the bottom of the candle in order that the bullet
hits the wick, and therefore there is no glare in the eyes from the flame.
The “assisted” way of doing this shot is to have a pair of bellows with
nozzle curved at right angles, the side of the bellows towards you made of
steel, the nozzle pointed at the candle wick, behind the candle, of course
concealed so that when the background is struck the bellows blow the
candle out.
I give a number of other shots and other information on exhibition
shooting in my _Art of Revolver Shooting_ to which I refer the reader if
interested in such shooting.
A most sensational looking shot is a purely “assisted” one.
It is to break two air balls simultaneously with a pistol in each hand.
The balls are placed some two inches apart. One pistol is loaded with dust
shot, the other with blank ammunition, or even, if the shot charge makes a
lot of noise and smoke, the second pistol need not be loaded at all.
Holding the pistol loaded with shot in the right hand, the other in the
left hand, aiming between the balls with the one loaded with shot and
holding the other alongside it, pull both triggers together, breaking
both balls with the pistol loaded with shot.
Tunes are played on a target so arranged that hitting plates either makes
the plates ring, or else the plates drive back and strike bells.
These plates are large so as to be easily hit, but the exhibition is
“assisted” by small bull’s-eyes on each plate and the audience think these
latter are alone hit.
The tunes are usually played with several “pump” repeating .22 rifles, the
rifles being changed at each pause in a bar in the tune that the band
plays.
Winchester .22 Automatic rifles are better, though I have never seen a
professional use them. The automatic needs only trigger pressure and turns
and quick runs can be played with it.
When the gallery charge, automatic pistol arrives, it will be possible to
use it in the same way for playing tunes. The clips can be dropped out and
a fresh one inserted when the tune gives a pause of a bar, care being
taken not to fire the last shot, but let it carry on the first cartridge
of the new clip, as I have explained earlier.
The plates should be so arranged as to show the “black notes” like a piano
does, otherwise it is difficult to play tunes having sharps, flats or
accidentals, if all the notes look alike.
I saw a “bandmaster” (?) at a village horse-show overcome this difficulty
of his drum and fife band by allowing the “band” to ignore the black
notes and to substitute naturals for all sharps and flats; the effect was
very fine and greatly applauded!
CHAPTER LVIII
THE DEVILLIERS BULLET
Dr. Devilliers has patented a spherical bullet, made of a secret
composition, which is shot out of pistols with only the fulminate of the
cap to propel it.
It cannot be used in an automatic pistol loaded through the magazine as
there is no recoil to operate the mechanism, but it can be shot from a
magazine pistol if used as a single loader.
It is primarily intended for a duelling pistol and can be used in
revolvers.
The idea is to have a bullet which can be used in competitions under real
duelling conditions against live opponents instead of at targets.
The pistol barrel has to be kept cold. When it gets hot after a few shots,
the bullet will partly melt and get soft and then it does not take the
rifling.
The usual way is to have a sort of champagne cooler full of ice and to ice
the loaded pistols for a few minutes before shooting them.
The bullet strikes with considerable force, enough if not protected
against to put out an eye or injure the throat if struck.
I have had several painful grazes on the arm from these bullets going up
my sleeve and I also shot out a piece of skin between the forefinger and
thumb of the pistol hand of my opponent the first time I fired one of
them.
[Illustration: PLATE 17. SHIELD ON DUELLING PISTOL WITH GUARD FOR
DEVILLIERS BULLET]
He fired a shade sooner than I and was lowering his pistol when my bullet
struck his hand, the skin being stretched tight on the stock of his
pistol, the bullet cut a semicircular notch out of his hand.
Since then a thin steel shield is fixed on the pistol just in front of
the trigger guard so that the hand is entirely protected when aiming (see
Plate 17). I patented similar shield on a soldier’s rifle to protect his
usually exposed left hand, and also to partially protect his head, when
shooting.
Do not shoot at any one at a shorter range than twenty metres (twenty-one
yards two feet); the blow from the bullet at twenty metres is not too
severe if the shooter is properly protected.
It is useless for practice to shoot at a longer range than twenty metres
as the bullet rapidly loses its accuracy beyond that distance.
Wear goggles fitted in a fencing mask, the goggles of thick strong pebble
glass or of triplex safety glass (which is lighter).
The fencing mask fitted with heavy goggles is very cumbersome. I think an
aviator’s cap and triplex glass goggles is ample protection except that
the throat must also be well protected by a thick leather stock as strong
as a saddle flap.
A blow on the throat may do serious damage.
I had a bullet come through a too thin leather stock and hit my throat.
I do not think the body need be protected except by a piece of leather low
over the abdomen and this can be worn under the trousers.
It is as well to wear old clothes or a thin black blouse as the bullets
leave greasy marks.
The object of having the blouse black is that the bullet marks should be
more easily seen by the umpire, and scored.
Wear as tight fitting things as you can as long as your right arm is free,
it gives your opponent a smaller target to score on. If he hits some
flapping part of your blouse it scores him a hit even if it did not touch
your body.
In shooting in a competition it may be as well to stand sideways so as to
give the opponent as small a target as possible, but in a real duel
standing sideways increases the risk of being killed if struck. Always
have a doctor present, as a wound from this bullet may be septic if not
properly dressed at once.
In a real duel a bullet, if the chest is hit when facing the adversary,
only goes through one lung, whereas if the man struck is standing sideways
the bullet will pierce both his lungs and so make recovery from the wound
much more doubtful.
In winter be very careful that the bullets do not freeze, if frozen they
penetrate deeply.
The bullets are loaded into the special cartridges as follows:
The cartridge must not contain any powder.
The bullet must not be squeezed into the cartridge, this would distort it
as it is soft.
The bullet must be very lightly inserted in the cartridge.
Open the pistol, keeping the muzzle elevated, insert the cartridge in the
breech, lower the muzzle, put on the cap and close the pistol.
The inventor recommends that only the special cartridges of his invention
be used, these have no cap but only a nipple, and you do not put the cap
on till the cartridge is in the breech of the pistol.
Competitions take place with this bullet as in an actual duel, the
shooting is in pairs until only one competitor remains, the one of each
pair who hits his opponent first is the winner of that pair.
The bullets hit too hard for it to be an amusement suitable for ladies.
Great care must be taken to be sure to shoot Devilliers bullets and not
lead bullets, by mistake.
They are useful for galloping practice on horseback, shooting at an air
balloon fixed to posts, where lead bullets would be dangerous to use.
The cartridges can be reloaded and used many times.
When the cartridge has been fired there may be difficulty in removing the
exploded cap. A wire pushed into the cap through the mouth of the
cartridge dislodges the cap, but care must be taken that the cap is an
exploded one.
These bullets are very apt to ricochet from walls so spectators must take
care.
A canvas sheet hung loosely behind each shooter is the best stop-butt, as
it gives to the blow of the bullet and stops ricochets. A bullet once
fired is too distorted to use again.
CHAPTER LIX
KILLING INJURED ANIMALS
Unless in the hands of a very skilful shot the pistol is most unsuitable
for killing injured animals with.
They will probably be hit many times before a vital spot is struck and so
be horribly tortured.
This remark applies especially to small animals like cats and dogs.
The best weapon for this purpose is a 12-bore shotgun loaded with No. 5
shot but even as small as No. 7 shot is very deadly if fired at a range of
not more than four or five feet off.
With the shotgun a shot directed behind the ear into the top of the neck
kills instantly.
The forehead shot is not suitable for a shotgun on large animals as the
strength of skull prevents the shot penetrating, and the animal is only
stunned.
With a pistol the spot to hit is between the eyes where the hair curls in
the middle of the forehead in horses.
It is better to hit too high than too low in the forehead shot as a low
shot misses the brain.
Load both barrels of the shotgun and be ready to fire the second barrel
instantly if the horse does not collapse at once at the first shot.
The head shot at a few yards off is the place to shoot a cat or dog with
the shotgun but do not attempt to shoot them with a pistol unless you are
a good shot, able to shoot into the ace of hearts at five yards’ distance,
aim at the top of the head, or you may break the jaw instead of killing
the animal.
People have sometimes been wrongly prosecuted and convicted for torturing
a dog when they were trying to kill it instantly and painlessly, but
lacked the skill and nerve.
When an animal is in pain, especially if it is crying out and struggling,
a man is very apt to lose his nerve and be unable to kill it properly, but
will strike wildly.
In killing an animal, in order to do it as painlessly as possible, it is
necessary to treat the matter quite calmly and in what looks to be a
cold-blooded manner, and to know the vital spots.
Decide the exact spot to shoot at, heart or brain, and hit it in that
exact spot and be ready to repeat the shot, if the animal is not instantly
dead.
With a horse I find it is best to put some hay or grass down in front of
it, and when it puts its head down, with its forehead vertical, it gives a
good chance to shoot. There is no use trying to pull the horse’s head into
position and get struggling with it. To shoot a horse, do not use a pistol
of smaller calibre than .44 with full charge.
If properly done the horse feels no pain.
If several horses have to be shot, do not let them see each other shot, or
see the dead bodies or smell them.
A shotgun cannot be used in a crowd, nor for that matter can a pistol.
As soon as a horse is injured everyone runs up to enjoy the sight and they
crowd round, so great care must be taken not to shoot until the people are
cleared away from the line of fire.
If possible get the horse into a yard with a high wall round it before
shooting and be sure boys are not perched on the wall.
I saw a man kill a small dog instantly as soon as it was run over by a
motor car by picking it up and dislocating its neck by stretching, like
wounded hares and rabbits are killed.
But this requires great skill, knack, and nerve.
Otherwise not only would the dog be further tortured but he would bite.
Nobody can understand his fellow creatures or be judged by them. Each
human being from birth to death is absolutely alone, everyone is
misunderstood as to his motives and thoughts, he is as separated from
others, even when in a crowd, as if the Atlantic Ocean were between them.
He is praised for what does not deserve praise, and blamed for what he is
not guilty of.
He cannot understand why another finds pleasure in what he himself hates.
One man likes to get soaking wet crawling all day to shoot a stag, which
another thinks is folly, as a stag already shot, can so much easier and
cheaper be bought at the poulterer’s shop.
I cannot understand the pleasure of sitting up all night playing cards,
smoking and drinking, when it is much more comfortable to be sleeping in
bed; another man thinks cards, drink, and gambling Heaven on earth.
To give an instance of how one’s motives can be misunderstood:
A poor old worn-out white horse, after struggling on slippery
cobble-stones to pull a cart load of stones, fell and could not get up
again.
An eager crowd at once collected watching the owner thrashing the horse
over the head and kicking it.
The horse was struggling desperately to rise and kept falling and groaning
and was bleeding at the mouth where the man was kicking it.
I rushed up to remonstrate. A man, a stranger to me, called out “I can’t
stand this, let us buy the horse between us.”
The owner of the horse made us pay much more than the horse was worth.
We got a vet. who said the horse was so injured that it must be killed, so
he killed it.
Next day a paragraph appeared in the local paper.
Two well-known visitors to our beautiful town performed a very
graceful act yesterday.
A poor man lost his horse, his faithful dumb friend who had been his
constant help and companion for years. These kind gentlemen took
compassion on the hard lot of this man in his grief and presented him
with a handsome sum to buy himself a new horse.
The brute made quite a good thing of it, as the paragraph brought him
various sums from sympathisers, and he was able to buy a heavier whip, and
a stronger pair of boots, and a new horse, to thrash and kick.
Possibly the historian who wrote that Nero fiddled whilst Rome was burning
was mistaken and poor old Nero was doing his best telephoning for the
County Council Motor fire-escapes to come and save the Christians from the
burning houses.
I misunderstand others. I did not appreciate a man’s piety when he refused
to help me rescue a dying horse because it was Sunday.
The best instrument of all for killing injured horses is what is
obligatory in all Belgian slaughter houses, not only for cattle but for
sheep and pigs. (See Plate 18.)
It consists of a short pistol barrel of .38 bore with a bell-shaped muzzle
which is applied to the forehead of the animal to be slaughtered.
A tap with a mallet fires it and the bullet goes through the brain and
spinal column of the neck causing instant death. Its fault is that it may
go off by accident if dropped on its plunger.
No Belgian race or horse-show can begin till a veterinary is present with
this instrument, to be used in case of accident.
One can do very little to alleviate the torture of a horse standing with a
broken leg, or lying with a broken back in the London streets, owing to
the regulations.
[Illustration: PLATE 18. THE GREENER KILLER
This illustration clearly shows the position in which the Killer should be
placed. It is advisable to have the barrel in a line with the pith, but so
long as the “medulla” is pierced, instantaneous death is assured.]
Thrice, within a few months, I have stood by a horse for hours unable to
do anything for it, but to put a rug over it as it was shivering so from
the cold (having been injured when in a profuse sweat), and moisten its
mouth.
I was not allowed to kill the horse, only a licensed slaughterer is
allowed to do that, and then only if the owner can be found, and gives his
consent for the horse to be killed.
I have since seen one of the principal horse-slaughterers of London and
got his telephone number, and arranged with him to send immediately to any
part of London, at any time of the day or night, if I telephone to him.
But even then if we cannot communicate with the owner of the horse we will
have to stand doing nothing, possibly for hours, beside the suffering
animal.
The poor old worn-out, half-starved horses in London are not only worked
to death, but when injured, they are not even allowed to die, without
further torture.
There is another form of humane killer which I am not able to endorse,
although the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals seem
to think highly of it.
I refer to the instrument which consists of a pistol fixed at right angles
to a pole called, I believe, the Humane Killer.
The pistol is fired by pulling a wire which runs down the pole to the
hand.
I consider this instrument very dangerous to use for slaughtering animals
but it would be very useful in trench warfare.
An ordinary firearm is dangerous enough if it happens to be pointed in the
direction of the spectators. But what will be thought of a pistol which,
when you carefully keep what corresponds to the barrel (_i. e._, the pole)
from pointing at anyone, you find it shoots at right angles to your aim.
Several of us stood round a man demonstrating the operation of this weapon
when unloaded. I said to him, “You cannot bring that pistol on to the
forehead of that stuffed ox’s head without pointing it at one of us during
the process.”
He was not able to do so. Each time he tried one of us called out, “You
are pointing it at me.”
I will explain by analogy the reason of this difficulty.
Some men, in defiance of the conventions, cut cheese into small cubes,
stick their knife into them and convey the cheese into their mouths,
without cutting their mouths, and acquire great skill by long practice.
Take a sharp knife-blade, fasten it firmly at right angles to the handle,
and ask an expert cheese eater to cut cubes of cheese and transfer them to
his mouth with this safety (?) knife. He will cut his mouth before he has
eaten half a dozen pieces of cheese.
CHAPTER LX
COMPETITIONS
The duelling clubs at Gastinne-Renettes’ have very practical and
interesting competitions.
These clubs exist for duelling practice, there is no shooting with
deliberate aim to make highest possible scores, all is conducted on actual
duelling lines.
The word duel means _single combat_, so all these competitions are
conducted in pairs, the winners again competing in pairs and so on till
finally only one remains, as in cock-fighting.
Each participant in such a pool, when putting down his name, pays a
nominal sum which goes to provide a medal for the winner.
In order that each competitor shall compete against each other competitor,
there are printed scoring-cards on the lines of longitude and latitude in
maps, so that by running the finger down the list of names and then at
right angles down the spaces for results, it can instantly be seen when
any particular pair must compete and at which target each will stand.
Each competitor alternately stands to the right or to the left of whoever
is his opponent.
Only the pistols supplied by the range are allowed to be used, and these
are given so that each shooter uses each pistol in turn and as all are
purposely varied as to trigger-pull it requires a really good shot to win.
He never knows if he is going to have a light or heavy trigger-pull.
This is the chief difficulty in these competitions, as also in actual
duels. When a pair of competitors are each facing a separate man target,
the director of the combat gives the word “Attention, feu, un, deux,
trois.”
If they both hit anywhere on the figure, the one who fired first is the
winner of that pair.
It is usual to have a timer, to decide who fired first.
The director cannot fulfil both offices effectually.
After all have fired in pairs, each with each of the other competitors,
the totals are added up and the one who has won the most combats is the
winner of the medal.
If two or more have an equal score then these again shoot against each
other to decide the winner of the medal.
It is not good scoring but quick hitting which wins.
A good hit counts no more than a bad one; a hit in faster time than the
other shot, wins.
Winners are not the same men who win at deliberate shooting. Target shots
seldom win, it is the lightning quick shot who wins, even if he cannot hit
a smaller target than one eighteen inches broad by five feet high.
The whole art of this shooting is to be able to keep from missing by more
than three inches either side of your aim, not caring what your
trigger-pull is, or how it varies for each shot.
As to elevation, that needs no attention; you cannot miss over or under a
five-foot target.
Bring up at top speed putting all the attention on not jerking to the side
should your trigger-pull happen to be one of the heavy ones; aim slightly
more to the right than the actual centre of the figure to allow for an
occasional pull to the left with an extra heavy trigger-pull.
It is the very hard pulling pistols which give almost all the misses.
Men in constant practice in such competitions are in the best training for
a duel or for self-protection.
With Clubs which use the Devilliers bullet the competitions are conducted
on exactly similar lines, except that the competitors fire at each other
instead of at iron targets.
Theoretically this is even better practice. It gets a man used to seeing
his adversary actually before him and being able to study his movements
and note if he is active, and try to be a shade the quicker of the two.
The inaccuracy of the Devilliers bullet as compared to the lead bullet
(with a powder charge) is a great disadvantage.
You feel that there is an element of fluke in the shooting. You may make a
very good shot and the bullet being too soft or the barrel too hot that
bullet does not take the rifling properly and gives you an unmerited miss.
Seeing your adversary raise his arm as you do yours and trying to
anticipate his let-off by hitting him before he can hit you, is the great
advantage of the Devilliers bullet as training for a duel.
In snapping practice with an empty pistol, it is well to practice facing
your reflection in a mirror to get used to the adversary’s arm rising.
When first trying it this necessity to get used to anticipating your
adversary’s movements is very apparent, a man who can shoot very quickly
and coolly at an iron target when standing side by side with his opponent
does not see the other man, he is thinking only of time.
When facing his opponent and shooting at him he watches his opponent’s
hand and tries to time him, that, is to say fire just before the moment
his adversary’s arm is absolutely level to shoot, just as you time a
pigeon out of a trap for when he is well clear and yet before he can make
his dart.
A well-known pigeon shot said, “I do not understand all this talk about
easy and difficult birds, all birds are easy if you time them right.”
The same with duelling, if you take your opponent just _before_ he can get
his swing on to you he is properly “timed” and “an easy bird.”
CHAPTER LXI
POLICE PISTOLS
I modelled a statuette of a mounted cowboy and gave it as a challenge
trophy to be shot for with revolvers, open to all citizens of the United
States.
It was won first by Dr. Louis Bell, then after two others had won it, it
was finally won in 1894 by Roundsman Petty of the New York Police Force,
who twice successfully defended his title to it, and thus it became his
own property.
Since then the police in several states have regular police competitions.
I also gave a statuette modelled by myself as a challenge pistol trophy to
the State of Maryland (my native state).
For years I tried to induce the police authorities of London, England, to
let me give a challenge cup for the police to shoot for, but without
success, till, by perseverance, I, in 1915, induced them to do so.
In 1917 an automatic pistol won it, till then it was shot for only with
revolvers.
I am sure the better the police can shoot, the less apt they will be to
draw a pistol unnecessarily; they are confident in their skill; it is the
man who is given a pistol for the first time who looses off and hits the
wrong man.
I think it is a mistake to arm police with a .38 or .32 pistol instead of
a full-size .44 or .45 military one. A policeman has often to face great
odds and a mob will not, like enemy soldiers in battle, spare him when
down. A mob will kick him to death. It is wrong therefore to give him a
less powerful weapon than a soldier is given.
I suppose he is given the smaller pistol, as in some countries the police
do not carry a pistol openly as part of their equipment so when they do
carry pistols they have them concealed.
I think also this concealment is a mistake; if a pistol is carried openly
and the carrier is known to be a good shot, he can keep order without
shooting, whereas a man with no visible pistol may be ill-treated because
he appears unarmed and therefore harmless; and he has to draw in order to
maintain his authority or in self-defence.
In the case of my Challenge Trophies given in the United States, the
competitions are changed from revolver into automatic pistol competitions
as the revolver is obsolete.
If a policeman is unarmed, he cannot be expected to keep as cool and have
as good judgment in an emergency when his own life is in danger as he can
be when armed with a good large calibre pistol that he knows how to shoot
to such good effect that he is in no personal danger.
If, when a riot starts, he can instantly drop a ring-leader each time the
crowd attempts a rush, or break the arm of any man trying to throw a
stone, he can get the mob under control with much less bloodshed than if
they get out of hand with impunity and the military have finally to be
called out.
A cool deadly shot can keep a big mob at bay. It is when police shoot and
miss that the crowd begin to jeer and lose all fear of the police.
It is a great mistake to fire over the head of a man to stop him, it only
makes him think you are a bad shot.
My servant got me out of a very nasty predicament when we were travelling
one pitch dark night through a forest we had never been in before. We were
being led by a guide who we felt sure was taking us in the wrong direction
in order to lead us into an ambush and rob us. We had been walking away
from where the compass told us was our proper direction for hours.
My servant without a word loaded my rifle and handed it to me.
The guide immediately turned and in half an hour we were back at our
lodgings.
He had seen me kill a galloping bear in thick high cover a few hours
before, and he did not like the look of my double-barrel rifle pointing at
his back.
CHAPTER LXII
INVENTORS
There are several types of inventors of firearms, including those who
invent real improvements, and those who delay invention by making all
sorts of things which are not only useless but are even dangerous.
Inventors, to do any good work, must be conversant with their subject,
and, if possible, skilled mechanics as well.
This is the difficulty when shooting experts, who are not gunmakers, try
to invent anything.
The shooter knows what is necessary, often far better than the gunmaker.
The shooter has to use the firearm, and often finds details in them, which
are very beautiful perhaps, from a mechanical point of view, but which are
very awkward or even impossible from the practical shooting point of view.
A noisy bolt action for example.
The shooter knows what he wants but cannot put it into practical shape;
the gunmaker, if he is not a shooting man as well, does not know of this
want.
The best way out of the difficulty is for the shooter to collaborate with
the skilled mechanic and then between them they can evolve something
really useful. This is the way most improvements are evolved, the shooter
constantly testing the invention and pointing out its _faults_ to the
gunmaker who alters till the thing works well.
If an expert mechanic (even if he is a gunmaker), who is not a shooting
man tries to invent a firearm improvement by himself, and he finds it
works in the workshop, he thinks that is all that is necessary, and the
invention is a failure as no shooting man will use it.
The expert shot who is unmechanical, cannot put his ideas into practical
shape, and if he does not go to a gunmaker and ask his help, the invention
never takes shape; in this way some invaluable inventions never see the
light, for want of a little mechanical knowledge.
But there is a third type of inventor, who is absolutely hopeless and the
despair of any shooting man he shows his invention to.
This is the man who knows nothing about shooting but he has his own ideas
as to how shooting is done, and is too conceited ever to try to learn
anything.
He is the type of man who says “Oh, we will muddle through.”
Such a man has a vague idea that, as he himself cannot shoot, therefore
his own individual difficulties if he tried to handle a firearm are the
difficulties which all shooting experts labour under.
He does not know that an expert laughs at the difficulties of a beginner,
which never trouble a man when he has become expert.
As well might a man the first time he is put on a horse imagine that,
because he has to fly up and down off the saddle at each movement of a
cantering horse, that the expert also has to take care not to fall off.
The expert can sit on a cantering horse without the least lifting from the
saddle, whereas the beginner flops up and down.
In the same way the expert shot has passed the stage which the inexpert
inventor tries to invent against.
A horseman would not buy a saddle with straps to tie down the rider,
invented by a man who did not ride.
The non-rider thinks such things absolutely necessary to keep from falling
off, the expert horseman not only knows such things are unnecessary, but
would be a danger in case the horse fell, as the rider could not fall
clear.
In the same way inventors of firearms, if they are not shooting men,
invent dangerous things for overcoming dangers which do not exist except
in their own imaginations.
This would not matter so much if they would listen to experts but they
refuse to learn, and actually try to instruct experts.
I had a man come in recently to show me a terribly dangerous pistol he had
invented.
He was pointing it about in all sorts of dangerous directions and finally
put the muzzle against his own body whilst he tried to cock it.
I suggested to him he had better first see if it was loaded.
He smiled at me in a pitying superior way, but opened the breech and took
out a loaded cartridge.
“Why it is loaded,” he casually remarked, re-inserting the cartridge and
beginning again to fumble with the lock, whilst he held the muzzle against
his body.
I said, “Don’t you know you can _kill_ yourself if it goes off,”--“that is
the great beauty of my invention,” he informed me radiant with delight, “I
have made this thing,” pushing the trigger with his left thumb, “so that
it only moves at a pressure of fourteen pounds so it is quite safe.”
These know-alls work up through all the steps man has gone through in
perfecting firearms, instead of taking up the work from the highest it has
come to.
Most likely the first inventor of firearms found he shot people
accidentally when “pulling at this thing” (as my friend the inventor
called the trigger), then discovered by experience that, however heavy the
trigger-pull is made, it is sure to kill somebody accidentally if pulled
hard enough, and finally came to the conclusion that it is safer to have a
light trigger-pull if the muzzle is not pointed in a dangerous direction,
than to have a half-ton trigger-pull and keep the muzzle pointed against
one’s body.
[Illustration: PLATE 19. WINANS’ REVOLVER FRONT SIGHTS]
In the matter of sights an optician, even if ignorant of firearms, may be
able to give a valuable hint to an inventor, but this usually applies to
sights for accurate aiming at distant stationary objects; for a pistol it
is more often expert shooting knowledge which is useful in designing
sights.
It was my combination of sculptor and shooter which gave me the idea of my
front sight, any one not a sculptor would not be apt to stumble on the
idea of undercutting the sight so as to give a deep shadow below and so
make the top stand out light against a dark lower portion. (See Plate 19.)
In the same way some entirely distinct branch of learning may be of use to
the inventor of firearms; but in all cases, this must be subservient to
practical shooting knowledge; the man who tries to force his ideas onto a
shooter, against the shooter’s expert knowledge, makes a mistake.
The highest authority can always learn something new from an expert; but
the man ignorant of a subject who tries to teach an expert merely exposes
his ignorance, like a politician who tells a general how to conduct a
campaign.
CHAPTER LXIII
SIMPLIFICATION
It is human nature to keep on in the same old groove, to try to avoid
change, even if that change is for the better. This habit is owing to it
being so much easier not to have to think for oneself but merely to do as
you see others do.
But following convention is not progress.
Convention is the deadly enemy of progress. Simplification is the twin
sister of progress. All improvements are the result of simplification, not
of elaboration.
The public when they see some very elaborate invention say “how clever,”
but the really clever inventor is the one who can make a simple apparatus
do the work that formerly could be done only by a much more complicated
apparatus, or even took several apparatuses to accomplish.
The Universe appears to consist of endless variety, but the more it is
studied (whatever else remains a mystery), this one fact becomes plainer
and plainer.
Everything acts in unison.
The Universe is One Perfect Whole.
The Universe can, even with our limited knowledge, be reduced to a few
simple elements, governed by a few simple “laws.”
It is, from a solar system, to a sub-microscopical organism, subject to
the same “laws” and working as one whole.
Probably, it will be ultimately discovered that there is only one “Law”
and one Element in the Universe.
All has to obey this “Law,” there is no such thing as “luck,” “chance,” or
destruction. All has always existed through incessant permutation; and
will exist, from all eternity, through all eternity.
The ancients, and the modern Mahometans knew this. The ancients called it
_Fate_, the Moslems call it _Kismet_. If a man tries to make an automatic
pistol contrary to the Laws of Nature, it naturally will not operate
properly, he loses his temper, says it is just his luck, but he reasons
wrongly.
If he studies the laws of mechanics, which are one form of the Law of
Nature, and complies with them, his pistol will act properly; if not and
he is ignorant of the laws of mechanics, his pistol will not act properly;
it is not his “hard luck” but simply that he is trying vainly to work
against Nature, and Fate holds him in a steel grip.
If he obeys the Laws of Nature, which are another name for Fate, he can go
on like a train following its rails, but he can no more make a pistol
constructed on wrong principle function properly than he can stop the sun
in its course.
Simplification is the goal to be striven for in pistol shooting as it is
in sculpture.
I saw two men, as I was writing the above, mowing a field.
One, an elderly man, was working in the conventional manner, cutting short
deep swaths with a half blunt scythe set at the wrong angle to the handle,
working in a cramped position.
The other, a young man, was examining his scythe.
He altered the blade at an acuter angle to the handle and gave it a twist
sideways so that the cutting edge should lie horizontal when in use.
Then he sharpened the blade as carefully as he would strop a razor.
Putting himself into a firm position so that he could swing from the hips
as an athlete about to throw the discus would, he made long clean sweeps
with his scythe, taking a short depth, but this with a clean cut, and the
cut grass thrown clear to the side, his return being only just clear of
the grass, like a good sculler feathering.
At the least sign of bad cutting, he re-sharpened the scythe.
Although I know nothing of mowing, I could see at once that this was an
artist and a workman at his job, and one who used his brains and took a
pride in doing good work.
I asked if he was not the champion mower of the district. I was answered
“not at all--he is only the carpenter.”
This is the sort of man who invents.
He diagnoses faults and thinks out how to correct them. He did not, like
the other man who had been mowing all his life, work as his father and
grandfather had done, because it was the conventional manner. He thought
out for himself and improved by simplification.
It is evident that the cut should come on gradually, not jump into a thick
bunch of grass all at once, so he set the blade at an angle which made its
entry into the grass deeper progressively, and so on with all the rest.
The inventor who knows his business, when he has made something to
accomplish its object, does not rest there. This is only the “blocking
out” as we sculptors call it.
Then he begins to simplify.
Anything not absolutely necessary is eliminated; he sees if some member
cannot be dispensed with by making another fulfil two or even more
functions.
This is how Nature works, many organs have several functions; the function
of our tongues is not only speech but to help swallowing, to judge if what
we put into our mouths is too hot or too cold to swallow, if it is fit for
food, or corrosive, etc.
The automatic pistol is still capable of great improvement.
All the recoil is not made use of, some is wasted and diverts the aim by
jumping the pistol about.
The noise of the discharge is an evil, it ought to be made to do work, not
deafen.
To invent a sound-deadener to put on the pistol is working on wrong lines;
it is not simplification but it is complication.
Instead of first making a noise and then inventing something to destroy
that noise, why not avoid making that noise?
The idea that ugliness does not matter is also a fallacy.
I was objecting to a pistol a man was shooting (and of which he asked my
opinion), on the ground that it was so ugly. “What has ugliness to do with
a pistol?” he said. “In my opinion, everything,” I answered.
Nothing correct mechanically is ugly, that is the Law of Nature.
The early, impractical, automatic pistols were extremely ugly; the best at
present, the U. S. Army Colt, has graceful lines, and the perfect one will
be beautiful.
The essence of architecture is beauty in utility.
Look at a first class hand made gun built by an Artist; it has the
graceful lines of a classical piece of sculpture.
An automatic pistol should be as simple as possible, the simpler the less
likely to go wrong.
The supposed antagonism between Art and Mechanics, between Science and
Religion are imaginary.
If we simplify Art to its essential essence and perfection as the Ancient
Greeks did--what do we find?
Sculpture is proportion and the essential planes.
What else is mechanics?
Science reduces all to the ONE UNIVERSAL FIRST CAUSE, and this is also the
foundation of all religion.
In pistol shooting, all resolves itself into aligning the pistol and
discharging the bullet.
The shortest distance from one point to another is the straight line.
Therefore do not “flourish” or “brandish” the pistol up and down before
discharging it.
Merely bring it to alignment and discharge it in so doing.
Time is wasted if the trigger is pressed after alignment. Therefore begin
pressing the trigger as the pistol is coming to the level.
This is the whole art of pistol shooting.
The way to advance any art, however humble, is for each to help the other
with his experience.
Nothing is so inimical to success as convention.
All progress is made on the lines of pruning off all not absolutely
essential, in other words by simplification.
APPENDIX A
I think it advisable to give the following World’s Records made by myself
with revolvers and black powder as they are now unbeatable, the weapons
and cartridges being obsolete.
They stand in the same category as the “high wheel” trotting records.
If there were similar records, diagrams, and details of scores made with
sling, long bow, crossbow, Persian bow, American Indian bow, blow pipe,
javelin, matchlock, wheellock, etc., available, of what inestimable value
they would be to the historian and archeologist.
Instead, for want of such records, all knowledge of the capabilities of
these weapons is vague and legendary.
Under each diagram I give all details. Most of diagrams are the actual
size and all have the position of each bullet-hole accurately shown.
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 1. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE.
Stationary, 20 yards, 10 shots, South London Rifle Club, May 21, 1889; .45
Colt Cavalry Revolver, Military sights, Eley ammunition. Black powder.
(Full size.)]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 2. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE.
Stationary, 20 yards, 11 shots, South London Rifle Club, August 21, 1888;
.44 Smith & Wesson Revolver, U. M. C. gallery ammunition. Black powder.
(Full size.)]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 3. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE.
Nine shots at 20 yards, North London Rifle Club, May 5, 1897. Black
powder; .44 Smith & Wesson Revolver, gallery ammunition.]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 4. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE.
Twelve shots at 20 yards, at the North London Rifle Club, Sept. 4, 1895.
Black powder; .44 Smith & Wesson Revolver, gallery ammunition.]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 5. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE.
Nine shots at 20 yards, at South London Rifle Club, Sept. 22, 1892. Colt
.45 Target Revolver. English “Mark I” regulation ammunition. Black
powder.]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 6. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE.
Ten shots at 20 yards, at South London Rifle Club, July 3, 1888; Smith &
Wesson .32 break-down model. Black powder.]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 7. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE. TWENTY YARDS
DISAPPEARING TARGET.
“Military” target, Wimbledon, 1888; .45 Smith & Wesson Revolver. Eley’s
ammunition. Black powder. (Full size.)]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 8. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE. TWENTY YARDS
DISAPPEARING TARGET.
North London Rifle Club, May 29, 1895; .45 Smith & Wesson Revolver, U. M.
C. ammunition. Black powder. (Full size.)]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 9. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE. TWENTY YARDS
DISAPPEARING TARGET.
“Any” Revolver, Bisley, 1896; .45 Smith & Wesson Revolver, U. M. C.
ammunition. Black powder. (Full size.)]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 10. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE. SIX SHOTS IN 12
SECONDS.
“Any” Revolver, Bisley, 1895. Rapid firing; .44 Smith & Wesson Revolver,
U. M. C. gallery ammunition. Black powder. (Full size.)]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 11. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE FOR MILITARY
REVOLVER AND SIGHTS.
Bisley, 1895. Six shots in 12 seconds at 20 yards; .45 Smith & Wesson
Revolver, U. M. C. ammunition. Black powder. (Full size.)]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 12. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE. TWENTY YARDS
RAPID-FIRING TARGET.
Bisley, 1895. .45 Smith & Wesson Military Revolver, Winans sights. U. M.
C. smokeless ammunition. Black powder. (Full size.)]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 13. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE. FOR 3-INCH
BULL’S-EYE TRAVERSING TARGET, 20 YARDS.
Wimbledon, 1888; .45 Smith & Wesson Revolver, Eley ammunition. Black
powder. (Full size.)]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 14. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE. FOR 2-INCH
BULL’S-EYE TRAVERSING TARGET, 20 YARDS.
Bisley, 1896. .45 Smith & Wesson Revolver, U. M. C. ammunition. Black
powder. (Full size.)]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 15. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE ADVANCING TARGET.
“Any” Revolver, Bisley, 1896; .44 Smith & Wesson Revolver, U. M. C.
gallery ammunition. Black powder. Target advanced from 50 yards to 20
yards. (Full size.)]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 16. AUTHOR’S WORLD’S RECORD SCORE FIFTY YARDS
TARGET.
Bisley, 1894. Twelve consecutive shots: Six with .44 Smith & Wesson
Revolver, six with .38 Smith & Wesson Revolver. Smith & Wesson
self-lubricating bullet. Black powder. (Half size.)]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM 17. TWELVE HIGHEST POSSIBLE SCORES MADE BY THE
AUTHOR IN REVOLVER COMPETITIONS AT 20 YARDS IN 1895.
English regulation mark ammunition. Black powder. The diameter of the
original bull’s-eye is 2 inches.]
APPENDIX B
THE LAW RELATING TO REVOLVERS AND REVOLVER SHOOTING IN GREAT BRITAIN AND
IRELAND
It is perhaps advisable to explain something about the right of carrying
revolvers in England, and the using them in cases of necessity, and first
it should be explained that a revolver is a gun so far as the Gun License
Act of 1870 (33 and 34 Vict. c. 57) is concerned, and that a license fee
of 10/ per annum has to be paid for the privilege of carrying or using
one, though a license to kill game includes the lesser gun license. In
fact it has ever been held that a small toy pocket pistol is a firearm for
the purpose of the Act. There are various exceptions to the necessity of
taking out this license, and it may be as well to enumerate them,
especially as many people keep revolvers in their houses and would be
astonished if they thought that a gun license was necessary for the so
doing--but it is not, so long as the revolver is kept or used in a
dwelling house, or the curtilage of a dwelling house. This is one of the
exceptions to the Act, and a very proper and necessary exception it is,
for it would be most unreasonable to enact that the mere keeping a
revolver for the purposes of protection should compel one to take out an
annual license. Moreover the enforcement of such a restriction would be
almost impossible without an inquisitorial search through every house.
Probably because there is very little reason for carrying a revolver about
with one in this country the exception does not apply to the so doing, and
the mere taking a revolver across the street would technically compel the
taking out a license. The curtilage of a house is much the same as its
courtyard, and would no doubt include a yard and garden adjoining the
house, but not a field beyond.
Further exceptions are that no penalty is to be incurred by any person in
the naval, military, or volunteer service, or in the constabulary or other
police force, but it should be noted that this exception applies only
where the person claiming it is in the performance of a duty or in target
practice, so that the policeman or volunteer off duty would still be
subject to the obligation of having a license.
Another exception is that of any one carrying a firearm belonging to a
person having a license or certificate to kill game or having a gun
license, if he is carrying it by order of, or for the use of, such
licensed or certificated person, only he is bound to give his name and
address and the name and address of his employer if called upon.
The occupier of lands using or carrying a firearm for the purpose only of
scaring birds or killing vermin on such lands is exempt too, as also any
one using or carrying a firearm for the same purpose on any lands by order
of the occupier, if the latter has a game license or certificate, or a gun
license. Again, a gunsmith or his servant carrying a firearm in the
ordinary course of trade, or testing it in a special place, need not have
a license.
Lastly, a common carrier carrying a revolver in the ordinary course of
business is exempt.
To show how strict the law is, it may be added that the killing of vermin,
which, as above mentioned, is allowed without a license does not include
rabbits.
As the penalty is £10 for carrying firearms without a license, I have
thought it advisable to enlarge somewhat fully on the above topic.
There are also various penalties and punishments which may be imposed upon
persons misbehaving while in the possession of loaded firearms, or
wantonly discharging them. Thus any one who is in possession of a loaded
firearm and is found to be drunk, may be apprehended, and is liable to a
penalty not exceeding 40/, or, in the discretion of the Court, to
imprisonment with or without hard labour for not more than one month.
Then, any person who in the streets of a town wantonly discharges any
firearm to the obstruction, annoyance, or danger of the residents or
passengers, is liable to a penalty not exceeding 40/ for each offence, or,
in the discretion of the justices, to imprisonment for not more than
fourteen days (no hard labour).
It is hardly necessary to say that the wrongful use of a revolver as an
offensive weapon is very heavily punished, it being provided that any one
who shoots at a person or attempts, by drawing a trigger or in any other
manner, to discharge any kind of loaded arms at a person with intent to
commit murder, is guilty of felony and liable to penal servitude for life,
or any less term, or to imprisonment for not more than two years with or
without hard labour and solitary confinement.
Again, any one who unlawfully and maliciously wounds, or causes any
grievous bodily harm to any person, or who shoots at any person, or who by
drawing a trigger or in any other manner attempts to discharge any kind of
loaded arms at a person, with intent in any of these cases to maim,
disfigure, or disable any person, or to do some other grievous bodily harm
to any person, or with intent to resist or prevent the lawful apprehension
or detainer of any person, is liable to penal servitude for life or for
not less than three years or to imprisonment for not more than two years
with or without hard labour and solitary confinement. “Loaded arms” are
defined as “any gun, pistol, or other arms which shall be loaded in the
barrel with gunpowder or any other explosive substance, and ball, shot,
slug, or other destructive material, although the attempt to discharge the
same may fail for want of proper priming, or from any other cause.”
Finally, any one who unlawfully and maliciously wounds or inflicts any
grievous bodily harm upon any person with or without any weapon or
instrument, is liable to penal servitude for three years, or to
imprisonment for not more than two years with or without hard labour. The
words “unlawfully and maliciously” are difficult to construe, and
therefore it may be well to state that a man who fired in the direction of
a punt, in order to deter the occupant from fowling in a particular
locality, and wounded him in so doing, was convicted of malicious
wounding; and generally that if a wound were to be caused mischievously
and without excuse the person who inflicted it would probably be found
guilty under this enactment.
So much for the strict offences caused by the improperly carrying or
making use of revolvers. Before, however, leaving this subject it will be
advisable to enter at a little length into the rights which any one has
of using a revolver in self-defence, or in some other analogous manner.
Supposing a man has passed through the ordeal of the Gun License Act and
is properly and legally carrying a loaded revolver, in what cases of
emergency would he be justified in using it? Well, this is a very
difficult question to answer, and one which in each event would depend
entirely on the circumstances of the particular case. It is therefore
impossible for me to lay down any exact principles governing every event
of the kind which might happen, and I will content myself with stating a
few hypothetical instances and what course of conduct might be adopted in
each instance.
There is no doubt on this point, anyhow,--that one is justified in using a
loaded revolver in self-defence, where an attack of such a murderous
character is made as to threaten one’s own existence, or the infliction of
serious bodily harm; and, if the assailant should be killed, yet the using
of the revolver and so disposing of him would be deemed as having been
justifiable. The same rule would apply to shooting an assassin who was
attempting to kill someone else. For instance, if while standing on a
railway platform I were to see a man shooting at someone in a railway
carriage, and at such distance that I could not actively interfere except
by shooting, I should be right in firing at the assailant, and though my
shot should prove fatal, still no blame could be attached to me.
How far one is justified in using a revolver in beating off or capturing
burglars in one’s house is, as already mentioned, a matter which can only
be decided by the facts of the particular case. Assuredly where a man is
awakened in the night by the noise of burglars breaking into or already
in his house, and seizes his revolver and confronts the robbers, he would
be justified in firing if the robbers threatened to attack him, and it is
assumed that he would also be right in firing at a robber making off with
booty who refused to stop when challenged to do so, if there were no
reasonable chance of arresting him in any other way; though in the latter
event he should endeavour so to shoot as to cripple rather than kill.
Indeed it may be said, extraordinary though the statement may seem, that
even in the hurry and skurry of a conflict with burglars the mind should
remain calm and collected, so as to judge whether a mortal shot is
required, rather than one which will only “wing” the opponent.
In connection with this branch of the subject, the justification of a
fatal shot may to some extent depend upon whether the robber was himself
armed. If he were, then the killing him would be more easily justifiable
than if he were unarmed. This is somewhat instanced by the law regarding
an assault and battery in self-defence, which is that where there is an
assault the person resisting must show that his assault committed in
self-defence was not more violent than he in good faith believed to be
necessary and committed on reasonable grounds, so that it would not be
right to inflict a heavy beating on a person who had only committed a
slight assault upon one. So when all danger is past and a man strikes a
blow not necessary for his defence, he commits an unjustifiable assault
and battery,--and this principle would apply to the preventing of crimes,
so that though one might be acting correctly in firing at and killing a
man who was murderously assaulting a third person, yet, after the assault
had been committed, it might be wrong to kill the murderer if he were
only discovered when running away, unless that was the only means of
arresting him.
Another point which has sometimes exercised the minds of those in the
habit of carrying revolvers is whether they are justified in using such a
weapon to put an end to pain on the part of dumb animals where recovery is
almost impossible. It may be said generally that no one can with safety
interfere in such cases, even with the most benevolent intentions, so that
if a horse, dog, or other animal has been so injured as to be suffering
extreme agony, yet it would not be legal to put the poor creature out of
its misery, unless with the consent of the owner.
The exception has been made by the Injured Animals Act, 1894, but that
only empowers a constable to kill a horse, mule, or ass which is so
severely injured that it cannot be led away, when the owner is absent or
refuses to consent to its destruction, after a certificate has been
obtained from a certified veterinary surgeon that the animal is mortally
injured or so severely that it is cruel to keep it alive.
The exception that has been introduced by the Act of Parliament passed in
1894 and called “The Injured Animals Act, 1894,” provides for the
slaughter, without the owner’s consent, of horses, mules, or asses, in
cases of injury so serious as to make it cruel to keep them alive. It does
not apply to animals other than those enumerated above, and is hedged
round with such restrictions as to render it of little avail. These in
brief are as follows: A constable must find the animal so severely injured
that it cannot without cruelty be led away, the owner must be absent or
refuse to consent to the destruction of the animal, and the constable
must obtain the certificate of a veterinary surgeon that the animal is
mortally injured, or so severely that it is cruel to keep it alive. After
doing all this the constable may kill the animal.
The foregoing statements as to the law are not exhaustive, but they are
made with the intention of helping the revolver-carrying section of the
public to know what they may be responsible for and on what occasions or
emergency they may safely use their weapons. To make sure that no legal
error has crept in, these statements have been submitted to Mr. C.
Willoughby Williams, of No. 1 Brick Court, Temple, Barrister at Law, who
is of opinion that the law as set out is correct.
It will be seen, from what is said above, that if a gun or a game license
is obtained, it is not illegal to carry a loaded revolver, so that if any
one had to go along a lonely road, or had received a threatening letter
which had alarmed him, he would be quite in his right in taking about with
him a loaded revolver. It would even be quite right for any one to carry
about a loaded revolver in his pocket merely as a protection in case he
should be unexpectedly attacked, but any one carrying about with him such
an article should be prepared to use it only in cases of great emergency,
and should keep a clear head on his shoulders.
Another example of the advantages of carrying a revolver would be if one
were attacked by a mad dog. In such a case, if the dog attacked in a
ferocious manner, it would be permissible to shoot the dog, but it would
not be allowable to shoot a dog on the supposition that he was mad, unless
he was attacking one; though, of course, if there were no doubt about the
dog’s being mad, then, for the sake of others, it would be wise to shoot
him.
Again, if while carrying a revolver any one were passed by a runaway
horse, and such horse were about to run over a child, it might be
permissible to shoot the horse in order to save the child, if one were too
far off to catch hold of the animal. These, however, are all matters of
degree, and what would be right and proper to do in one case might in a
case almost similar be quite wrong.
* * * * *
NOTE.--Since the first edition of this book was issued, the Pistols Act of
1903 has come into force. This Act stops the sale, by retail or by
auction, or the letting on hire, of any pistol (which would include a
revolver), unless the purchaser has a gun or game license, or is entitled
to use or carry a gun without such license, or unless the purchaser shows
that he purposes to use the pistol only in his own house or the curtilage
thereof, or that he is about to proceed abroad for a period of not less
than six months. The Act also prevents the sale or hiring out of a pistol
to a person under the age of 18 years, and places a very heavy penalty on
any one knowingly selling a pistol to a person who is intoxicated or not
of sound mind.
APPENDIX C
THE LAW OF CARRYING WEAPONS IN THE UNITED STATES
The statutes of the various States upon the subject of carrying weapons
are substantially similar, the main differences relating to the persons
exempted from their operation, and to the manner of carrying the weapon,
some making it an offence to carry the weapon at all, whether concealed or
not; others prohibiting the carrying of concealed weapons only.
These statutes have been held to be police regulations, and not to
conflict with the constitutional right of the people to keep and bear
arms.
Weapons are considered to be concealed, within the intent of the statutes,
when they cannot be readily seen by ordinary observation.
In some of the States, as in Kentucky, Louisiana, and Missouri, the
carrying of “deadly” or “dangerous” weapons is prohibited. Most of the
States, however, specify the weapons prohibited. Such weapons as pistols,
dirks, butchers’ or bowie knives, stilettos, daggers, swords, brass
knuckles, razors, slugs, etc., are usually specified in nearly all of the
statutes.
Officers of the law are usually exempted from the operation of the
statutes. The officers must, however, be duly appointed, and in the
discharge of their duties at the time of carrying the weapons.
Persons who are threatened with bodily harm or who have reasonable grounds
to apprehend danger or attack, are usually justified in carrying concealed
weapons. It is not every idle threat, however, which would justify one in
carrying concealed weapons. The threat must be such as to cause a
reasonable apprehension of danger. Examples of this exemption are found in
the statutes of Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, Texas, Maryland, and West
Virginia.
Persons on their own premises are frequently exempted from the operation
of the statutes. This is so in Arkansas, North Carolina, and Texas.
Some of the statutes exempt persons who are travelling. This is so in
Arkansas, Mississippi, and Texas.
The burden of proving exemption rests usually upon the accused. This has
been expressly decided in Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri,
Montana, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas. In Michigan, however, it
has been held that the prosecution must prove that the defendant does not
fall within one of the exemptions.
INDEX
A
Accidents, 10;
from loaded weapons, 21, 160;
how to prevent, 26, 33, 58;
on the stage, 282, 291
Africa, shooting in, 261
Alcohol, danger from use of, 4, 95, 140, 145
Allowance, 93, 243
Ammunition, 44, 251, 262;
blank, 282;
Eley, 334, 340, 346;
U. M. C., 335, 341, 342, 343, 344, 345, 347
Animals, killing wounded, 305
_Art of Revolver Shooting, The_, quoted, iii., 17, 81, 135, 191, 297;
changes made in, 25
“Au Commandemant,” shooting, 227
Author, duelling championship of, 61;
running deer championship of, 87;
snap shooting score of, 106;
member of London Royal Academy, 159;
author’s trotting horses, 210;
Sika deer shot by the, 271;
gold medals won by, 275;
trophies modelled by the, 317;
sights designed by the, 324;
world’s record scores by the, 333-350
Automatic pistol, accuracy of the, 1;
the Colt regulation, 2, 45, 80, 84, 133, 200, 212, 231, 233;
dangerous to handle, 3, 46, 129;
sole weapon in the U. S., 17;
how to hold the, 21, 286;
inventors of the, 22;
danger from recoil, 59;
the civilian, 84;
the police, 84;
the Savage, 84;
the Smith & Wesson, 84;
the German military, 84;
recoil of the, 59, 84, 96, 97;
shooting with the, 97, 113;
the safety bolt of the, 99;
powerful cartridge of the, 109, 251;
the U. S. army, 109;
description of the, 113, 118;
faults of the, 125;
the Colt new safety, 128;
cleaning and care of the, 152;
military automatics, 231, 248;
proper ammunition for, 251;
the Mauser, 252;
use on horseback, 258
Automatic gallery pistols, 260;
the Winans model, 263;
.22 long barrel Colt, 265;
.22 target Colt, 296;
capable of improvement, 329;
graceful lines of the Colt, 330
B
Balance, 50, 80
Balderston, John Lloyd, quoted, vi.
Barrel, length of, 48
Bavaria, alcohol tests in, 147
Bear, shooting, 261
Bell, Dr. Louis, 317
Big game shooting, 23, 213, 250;
in England, 154
Bisley, shooting at, 16, 94, 156, 209, 342, 343, 344, 345, 347, 348, 349
Boar, shooting wild, 228, 250, 261
Brains, shooting requires, 163
“Brandishing and Flourishing,” 3, 29, 59, 282, 330
Breech, the, 118
Bridge, playing at, 55, 140
Brookhart, Major S. W., quoted, 148
Bulleted caps, 50, 51, 52, 56
Bullets, soft lead, 72;
drop of, 247;
Devilliers, 300, 315
Burglars, frightening, 28;
shooting at, 214
Butt, the, 55
Byron, Lord, quoted, 34, 188
C
Carpentier, 188
Cartridges, obsolete types of, 45;
the proper, 97;
ejection of, 130;
cordite used in, 262;
duelling pistol, 264
Chantry Bequest, the, 159
Clay pigeons, shooting at, 73, 90
Cleaning, 27, 127, 152
Clip, cartridges in a, 120
Clubs, shooting, 75
Cocking, trials at, 42, 241
Colds, danger from, 218, 228
Colt, the regulation .45, 80, 84, 133, 200, 212, 231, 233;
the civilian, 84;
the police, 84;
new safety, 128;
the Derringer, 203;
.25 cal. automatic, 205;
.22 long-barrelled automatic, 265;
.22 target automatic, 296;
graceful lines of the, 330
Competitions, the way they are conducted, 9, 78, 266, 313;
entering for, 43;
Gastinne-Renette, 73, 313;
mounted pistol, 256;
duelling, 303;
police, 317
Condy’s fluid for colouring, 278
Cordite, cartridges of, 262
Crane, R. Newton, quoted, 192
Cuirass, a bullet-proof, 2
D
_Daily Mail_, letter to the, 151
_Daily Mirror_, the, quoted, 191
Deer-stalking, 71, 157, 260
Derringer, the Colt, 203, 252
Devilliers bullet, the, 300, 315
Devonshire, red deer in, 154
Disconnector, the, 128, 238
Distance, judging, 243
_Don Juan_ quoted, 34, 188
Dress, 207
Drinking, harm done by, 4, 95, 140, 145
Duelling, practised on the Continent, 16;
position to stand in, 78;
distance in, 108, 182, 274;
question of, 171;
remarks on, 176, 180, 185, 189;
swords used in, 177;
penalties for, 184;
laws on, 192;
preparations for, 194;
competitions in, 313
Duelling pistols, 16, 47;
the Flobert, 49;
the Gastinne-Renette, 50, 123, 263, 274;
the regulation French, 52, 62, 182;
author’s championship with, 61;
balance of, 80;
sights on, 234, 264;
recoil of, 239;
.44 used for rabbit stalking, 249;
cartridges for the, 264;
Sika stag shot with a, 271;
use of Devilliers bullet in the, 300
E
Ears, guarding the, 5, 215;
Elliott’s Protector for the, 217, 219
Ejection of cartridges, 130
Elliott, J. A. R., Ear Protector, 217, 219
England, revolver in use in, 17, 231;
shooting in, 154;
duelling in, 191;
open air ranges in, 227, 266;
law regarding firearms in, 360
English National Rifle Assn., 16, 156
Euclid quoted, 3
Exhibition shooting, 135, 291, 297
Eyes, protecting the, 215
Eyesight, 222
F
Falling bullets, danger from, 10
Faults, correcting, 165
Fencing, 59
_Field_, the, quoted, vi.
_Flanneled Fools_, 6
Flobert pistol, the, 36, 49
Francis, W., chauffeur, 234
Furlong, Dr. W. V., letter from, 151
G
Game shooting, 249;
rifle used in, 260, 287
Games, pistol shooting and, 13
Gastinne-Renette, duelling pistols by, 50, 123, 182, 263;
gallery of, 54, 267, 270;
competitions, 37, 313;
prizes, 73, 137, 170, 271, 273;
Ira Paine at gallery of, 137;
targets used by, 167
Gieve, Mathews & Seagrove, 217
Goggles, use of, 302
Golf, compared with shooting, 5, 55, 266;
time wasted at, 6;
temper shown at, 140
Grande Medaille d’Or, 73, 137, 170, 271
Greener Killer, the, 310
Grip, how to, 80, 84, 285
H
Hammer head attachment, 84
Hammer, positions of the, 33
Hammerless pistols, 43
High School of Riding, 254
Horse pistols, balance of the, 80
Horseback, shooting from, 253
Horsemanship, 254, 258
Horses, docking, 24;
runaway, 288
Horsley, Sir Victor, quoted, 147
How to hold the automatic, 21
Humane Killer, the, 311
I
Inventors of firearms, 123, 320
Irving, Sir Henry, 144
J
Jambing, 69, 84, 127, 153, 232
Jellicoe, Admiral, quoted, 146
K
Killers, the Greener, 310;
the Humane, 311
Kipling, R., quoted, 6
Kraeplin, report of Prof., 147
L
Landseer, Sir Edwin, 158
Languages, learning, 18
Law, relating to revolver shooting in Great Britain and Ireland, 351;
relating to carrying weapons in the United States, 360
Le Pistolet Club, 70
Lee-Metford, the, 24
Learning to shoot, 53
Literature, shooting in, 280
Lodge, Sir Oliver, quoted, 150
London Royal Academy, the, 159
Long-range shooting, 108
Long-sighted shooters, 20
M
Magazine, the, 97
Maryland, trophy given by the author to the State of, 317
Matador, 255
Mauser automatic pistol, 252
Metronome, the, 103, 272
Military rifles, trigger-pull of, 41;
pistol sights, 63;
sights of, 156
Moufflon shooting, 252
Muzzle-heavy weapons, 50, 69
N
National Rifle Association, 95
Near-sighted shooters, 20, 85, 222
North London Rifle Club, 336, 337, 341
O
Ogilvy, Captain, quoted, 136
Olympic Games, the, 72, 77, 87, 148, 255
_Outdoor Life_, the, 244
P
Paine, Chevalier Ira, 70, 136, 188, 275
Paris, shooting galleries in, 54
Pennell, Cholmondely, 208
Petty, roundsman, 317
Pigeon shooting, 40
Pistol shooting, unpopularity of, 13;
the way to learn, 25
Pistols, duelling, 16, 17, 49, 50, 52, 62, 80, 123, 182, 239, 249, 263,
264;
single-shot, 20, 31, 41;
American, 51;
the .22, 77;
shot used in, 73;
how to hold, 80, 286;
the Colt regulation .45, 80, 84, 133, 200, 212, 231, 233;
the civilian, 84;
the police, 84;
the Savage, 84;
the Smith & Wesson, 84;
the German military, 84;
rifle stocks for, 85;
the U. S. Army, 109;
description of, 113;
vest pocket models, 203;
military automatic, 231, 248
Police pistols, 49, 317
Position, the correct, 58, 92
Powder, use of black, 17
Practice, value of, 60, 61
Prizes, the Grande Médaille d’Or, 73, 137, 170, 271;
given for shooting roebuck, 157;
the King’s Prize, 209;
at Gastinne-Renette’s, 271, 273, 314
Purchasing an automatic, advice on, 125, 127
R
Rabbit stalking, 249
Rain, shooting in the, 226
Range, choice of a, 55, 266;
the indoor, 268;
the open-air, 276
Rapid firing, 100
Recoil, 51;
of automatic, 59, 84, 96, 120, 126, 239, 330;
of rifle, 261
_Referee_, the, quoted, 190
Revolver, the, 1;
no longer used, 56, 242, 318, 333;
the .32 pocket, 239;
world’s records with the, 333;
.45 Colt cavalry, 334;
.44 Smith & Wesson, 335, 343, 348, 349;
.45 Smith & Wesson, 340, 341, 342, 344, 345, 346, 347;
the .38 Smith & Wesson, 349
Ricochets, danger of, 279, 304
Riding, benefit from, 7;
expert, 322
Rifle, right kind of, 23;
pistol compared with, 111;
the military automatic, 119, 125;
shooting clubs, 158;
in game shooting, 260;
modern improved, 261;
the .44 Winchester, 262;
the .22 automatic Winchester, 265;
author’s record at shooting the, 275
Roebuck, shooting the, 157, 246
Royal Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, 311
Running deer, the, 93, 95, 125, 156
Running shots, 86, 92
S
Safety bolt, the, 98, 133, 238
Savage, the, 84
Savory & Moore, 217
Scotland, shooting in, 154, 198
Seer, damage to the, 42
Self-defence, shooting for, 132, 212;
pistols for, 200, 206
Shooting galleries, 9;
the unpopular, 14, 53, 64, 225, 267;
the Gastinne-Renette, 54, 267, 270;
pistols for, 263;
the ideal, 268
Shooting, the instinct of, 8;
unpopularity of pistol, 15;
big game, 23;
exhibition, 135;
brains required in, 163;
dress, 207;
use of spectacles, 215;
near-sighted, 20, 85, 222;
from horseback, 253;
trick, 135, 291
Shot, the No. 7, 74, 305;
the No. 8, 201;
the No. 10, 294;
the No. 5, 305
Shot gun, trigger-pull of the, 40;
shooting with the, 90;
as sporting firearm, 155
Sights, hind, 20, 21;
the U back, 56;
the black front, 56, 155, 232;
the white bead, 57, 232;
learning about, 62;
French duelling, 63;
the telescope, 250;
Winans’ front, 324
Simplification, 326
Single-shot pistols, bad shots from, 20;
how to handle the, 31, 41;
American, 51;
shot from, 73;
description of the, 113;
cleaning the, 152;
.22 used in United States, 249
Smith & Wesson, the, 84;
hammerless safety, 98;
Ira Paine’s, 188;
Russian model, 202, 285;
the .44, 335, 343, 348;
the .45, 340, 341, 342, 344, 345, 346, 347;
the .38, 349
Smoking, harm done by, 4, 95, 140, 142, 145
Snap-shooting, 104, 197, 236, 258
Somersetshire, red deer in, 154
South London Rifle Club, 334, 335, 338, 339
Sport, meaning of, 7
Spoons given as prizes, 13
“Sports,” worship of, 7
Squeeze, the, 99
St. Francis of Assisi, 172
St. George, cross of, 234
St. George Pistol Club, 270
Stock, shape of, 285
Stockholm, games at, 72, 77
Swing shooting, 88, 258
T
Targets, moving, 16;
rapid-firing, 16, 345;
disappearing, 16, 340, 341, 342;
stationary, 17, 86, 276, 334, 335;
shooting at, 29;
the man, 48, 71, 75, 77, 93, 132;
construction of, 56;
instruction regarding, 71, 268;
animal, 73;
mechanical stag, 75;
French duelling, 77;
the running deer, 93, 95, 125, 156;
painters of, 157;
the perfect, 166;
the Gastinne-Renette, 167, 274;
military, 340;
traversing, 346, 347;
advancing, 348
Temper, control of, 139
Tennis, shooting compared with, 5
Timing, 19, 88, 316;
apparatus for, 102
Tobacco, danger from use of, 4, 95, 140, 142, 145
Trajectory, flat, 23
Trick shooting, 291
Trigger-pull, 38;
for pistol, 48, 65, 188, 241, 314
Trophies, challenge, 17
Trotting, records, “high wheel,” 17, 333;
horses, 210
U
Union Society of London, 189
United States, automatic pistol in the, 17;
revolver and rifle teams in the, 148;
laws on duelling, 192;
.22 single-shot pistol used in, 249;
law regarding firearms in the, 360
Unload, how to, 129
V
“Vanoc” quoted, 190
Vise, shooting from a, 57
W
Waistcoat, leather, 208, 229
Walking, steps taken in, 245
Weight, pistol, 46, 49, 116, 240
Williams, Lord Justice Vaughan, quoted, 189
Wimbledon, shooting at, 156, 158, 340, 346
Winans, model automatic, 263;
front sights, 324, 345
Winans, Ross, 120
Winchester, the .44 rifle, 262, 294;
the .22 automatic rifle, 265, 298
Wind, shooting in the, 226
World’s record scores, 333
Z
Zeiss glasses, 223
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