The Sun.
London, England, 1867-07-12 00:00:00

The Wimbledon Meeting.

The prize meeting of 1867 bids fair to earn an
enviable reputation in the annals of the association
as the successful year. The experience gained in
previous years must be credited with a considerable
portion of the success of the arrangement , but it is
no small credit to the executive that, so far, every
department has fulfilled its functions with an exac-
titude and completeness altogether unprecedented.
The officers and sergeants at the different firing
points deserve great praise for the prompt, business-
like, and yet courteous style in which the large
number of men competing for the Queen's Prize
have been got through the two ranges already fired.
Both on Wednesday and yesterday the whole of
the firing of the 2,050 men who actually came to
the targets was completed before seven o'clock, and
the returns were in the statistical tent before gun-
fire at 7.15 a.m. There, in an incredible short
time, these voluminous returns were carefully scru-
tinised, and every score worthy of note was ex-
tracted and placed in the hand of the representa-
tives of the press.
The shooting yesterday comprised precisely the
same programme as on the previous day, except
that the practice for the Queen's Prize was at 500
yards. The weather was extremely fine ; but a
shifty rear wind blowing first from ono side and
then from the other destroyed the hopes of many
who stood well on the previous day. The average
shooting was decidedly below that of the previous
day. Steady men missed from time to time in a
manner quite unaccountable. A story is told of
one unfortunate Lancashire man—said to bo a
member of a crack Manchester corps--who came to
the 500 yards targets with a good score from the
200, and made two bull's-eyes for sighting shots,
then went vigorously in and missed every shot for
his score. To say that he went away a sorrowful
man is but faintly to describe a state of feelings that
did not admit of comfort. Some very good scores
were made, as must necessarily always be the case
where so many first-rate shots come together, and
tolerably early in the day it was generally known
that two competitors—Lieut. Evans of the Robin
Hoods, and Corporal Lake, of the Staffordshire
Battalion—had made 19 and 18. Lieut. Evans had
made the very good score of 17, and Corporal Lake
18 at 200, and therefore they stood for the aggregate
at 36 marks each. With anything like propor-
tionately good shooting at the 600 yards, one of
these gentlemen ought to come in the winner of
the silver medal, or to run the winner very close
indeed. The long Enfield, however, falls off so
much in accuracy at 600 as compared with 500
yards that the element of luck enters very largely
into a calculation of the chances, and all that
could be safely prophesied is that the skilful
member of the Robin Hoods will turn up some-
where amongst the first sixty who are entitled
to shoot in the second stage. Captain W. Wright,
of the 30th Cheshire, stood at 35, with 16
and 19. There were some scores of 34, while 33's
and 32's were as plentiful as blackberries. It should
have been mentioned that the very good results ob-
tained at the 200 yards in the military breechloader
competition on Wednesday, by Sergeant Pace and
Corporal Andrews, of the 26th Kent, were made
with the regulation Snider and Boxer cartridge.
At the 200 yards range no higher score was made
in this most interesting competition than has been
At 500
breechloader,
Lieut.-Colonel
already recorded. in five
Halford, with the Henry
minutes' firing got off 36 rouhndsi
hearnndummbaedre
was 76
marks. On the p revious day a g
Richards breechloader, Mr,
made with the Westley
points in 36 rounds. In this rifle
Edge inakiog 81
is made of consumable paper, the
the cartridge
means of ignition being a small central fire-cap in
a wad at the rear of the cartridge. It is a great
advantage to have no cartridge-case to withdraw
after firing; but if this gain b.; secured at the ex-
pense of exposing the working parts of the breech
to corrosive action of the ignited gases it is dearly
Pt •
irchlsed• The wad left after each explosion is
forced forward by the cartridge that is next inserted,
and blown out of the barrel. This also is objec-
tionable, as tending to interfere with the accuracy
of flight of the bullet. The wad left is supposed
to protect the action from this wearing effect of the
explosion, but it must of necessity do it much less
completely than the cartridge-cae now so generally
adopted. At any rate, the guns tried here worked
admirably, and therefore it is to be regretted that
Mr. Westley Richards, taking exception at the de-
cision of the Council that the Henry rifle fulfilled
the conditions of a military arm, should have issued
the following notice :
The Council having decided to admit the rifle Colonel
Halford shot with yesterday, and being in our opinion
a match rifle, and not a military arm, which our rifles
are, there is nothing for us but
to witsihdraw from the
competition. We have consequently i day closed our
tent, and withdraw all the rifles wo had lent our friends
and other volunteers.
July 11, WESTLEY EICUEDS An co.
IL