The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1860-07-20
RICHMOND VA, FRIDAY, JULY 20. 1850

How THE QUEEN HIT THE BULLS Eye
The London correspondence ofthe Manches-
ter q uardian gives the following satisfactory
account of how Queen Victoria happened TO
hit the "bull,s eyer with rife at the distance
of ur hundred yards, during the recent tar
get shooting festival of the National Rifle As
sociation:
When the Royal party arrived at the rife
tent, Mr.. Whitworth was waiting to receive
them. The moment was one of liz tense inter-
est among the spectators, for owing to the
settlement of the new ground upon which the
supports of the heavy mechanical res: were
based considerable uncertainty in the earlier
experiments was observable. Before the ar
rival of the Royal party Mr.. Whitworth and
his assistant made several attempts to hit the
target at the q ueen's distance, 400 yards. The
markers flag was anxiously watched; some
times il poiE ted little to the right. sometimes
a little to the left, until an apprehension per-
vaded the crowd that although the target
ought to be hit, the bulls eye would certainly
be missed by Her Majesty. Mr. Whitworth's
face, it was declared, wore an anxious and dis
satisfied expression. We cannot tell whether
Mr.. Whitworth WAS playing little with pub
lie curiosity, but when the hour approached at
which Her Majesty was setting ont from
Buckingham Palace, the flag Of the marker be-
gan TO exhibit tolerably satisfactory ap-
proclamation TO the bulls eye. Mr.. Herbert
now came up to the rifle tent, and Mr.. Whit
worth giving him the string, permitted him to
discharge the rife The Minister OF War de-
clared that that would do, and only hoped
| that the rest would do its duty as well as the
rifle.
| When the Royal party gained the rifle tent,
| Her Majesty, advancing TO MIR. Whtworth,
asked him TO explain what she had to do. EIr
| Nhitworth pointed out the butt and target,
and then presenting Her Ma esty with a piece
of scarlet cord, attached to the trigger invited
Her NJ iesty to pull it and discharge the rifle
| The q Queen, amid the breathess silence of the
| Court and the assembled thousands, fired the
| rifle without the least decomposure or start
| at the report Her Majesty directed her eye
| anxiously to the target to observe the result
| The marker ran out and Immediately waved
| his flag. The Queen had hit tie bRiFs eye! The
| royal bullet struck the bulls eye an inch
above the exact centre. When the result was
communicated to her Majesty, her face was
| suffused with glow of unms taxable plea
| sure and delight, and she turned to receive the
| congratulation Of the Royal family.
Yesterday, when Her Majesty after firing
| from Mr.. Whitworth's rife, had retired to
| the Royal pavilion, gentleman, who had
| hurried to the target, returned with a hastily
| made pencil sketch, denoting the exact position
| of the bullet in the bulls eye. The sketch was
| handed by Mr.. S Herbert TO the Prince Con.
| sort. aud by him laid before the Queen. HeI
| Majesty burst into low, silvery laugh of de.
light, and the diagram was then inspscted
| with great interest by the Prince of Wales
and the Prince Alice and the Juvenile mem bers
| cf the Royal family Her Majesty expressed
| wish that the target might be brought from
| the butt for her inspection, and waited Il q uar
| ter of an hour on the Royal Pavilion to see it
The target, however, being made of solid iron
requires eight men TO carry il, end as the ia
tigue parties OF the Guards left the ground hal
| Majesty's wish could not be complied with
photograph of the target has been taken for hel
| Majesty's inspection.
Her Majesty's rifle, with the fixed mechani
cal -esl, has been removed to the Royal Pa
| vilion. Fhe eentre plate of the Queens tar
let, has been taken out, and also exhihlted il
| the Royal Pavilion. A gold medal, to be pre-
sented TO her Majesty by the Council of the AS
sociation, for her excellent central shot, is alsC
shown. A charge of Is. is made for the ins pee.
| tion % he Pavilion containing these object.
OF interest.