The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1875-07-30
A Point Not Well Taken.

In its comments on tho recent rifle match
iu Ireland Saunders News Letter makes
the following remarks: "Nor should it be
forgotten, as slight extenuation Of oar
failure, that whilc the American team was
selected from nation of forty millions,
who are familiar with tho rifle from their
cradle, ours was selected from n province of
five millions, where, except in privileged
cases, the use Of that weapon is forbidden"
These are quite natural observations, and
yet they are erroneous. For a long period
the rifle was peculiarly an American weap-
on, but that time has passed away, aud the
rife peculiar to that period has passed out of
use. The rife did not originate in the Uni
ted States, neither riAed small arms nor
great guns. The plan Of riling firearms
was known in Europe before it was in use
here 1t is nevertheless, the fact that, in
the carly history of the American colonies
and for more than half century after thoy
became States the rifle was largely in use by
the great portion of the adult American
male population.
Everywhere in this country game Of all
kinds was abundant, and particularly squir-
rels, rabbits, wild turkeys, bears and deer.
The hunting of this game familiarized near
| " all the inhabitants of the colonies with
| the use Of the rife This hunting practice
was supplemented by the necessity of defence
against the Indians, who then ranged along
the whole border of our country, and for
many years there was an inces5ant frontier
warfare. That brought about the transition
| in the use of the rifle from mere hunting
piece into that Of military weapon, and
was the foundation Of the skill in the use of
! the rifle in warfare which made the unframed
| American militia such formidable adyersa-
ries to the trained and disciplined armies of
| Great Britain in the two wars with that coun-
try. But, as already observed, that period
and practice passed away many years ago,
except among the sparser populations of the
remote western frontier. The weapon of
that time has also disappeared from use, 1t
was roughly made gun, with lint-lock as
well as riaod bore, with length of six feet
Of barrel and sometimes more.
The modern rifle is a very different fire.
arm. The greater part of its improvement
has had its origin in the United States, but
the modern weapon is quite rs familiar
throughout all the military countries of Eu-
rope in some form as Il military weapon as it
has ever been in this country. 1t is shorter
arm, the barrel in the United States being
generally less than three feet long-say
from tbrty-lour to twenty-four inches. With
this modern rifle the population OF the Uni
ted States is not in any wise more familiar
than the military countries of Europe, it
is quite doubtful if in any community in the
United States there could be found great er
number of persons well practiced in the use
of the weapon than in any similar communi
ties in the United Kingdom, France or Ger
many, Belgium or Switzerland. In target
firing practice it is quite likely that there are
rs many skilled marksmen in either of those
countries as in the United States. So that
it will be seen from the consideration of
these points that the observations made
by Saunders's News Letter are not well
grounded.
As further matter worthy of note, concern
ing an erroneous impression that the old
rifle as we meet with it in the early history
of the American colonies originated on this
side Of the Atlantic, it may be mentioned
that the plan of ''riAing" firearms can be
traced back in Europe to the fifteenth CEN
tury, In respect to brecch leaders, there
was patent issued in England as early rs
1904 to one Abraham Hall. 1t was not until
1911 that patent for breech loader was is =
sued in the United States. After that we took
the lead. Between that time and 1860 there
were about two hundred patents issued in
this country for improvements; and in the
eleven years following 1870 there were alb out
seven hundred patents granted here for i'm
= proyements in breoch-loaiing firearms. 1t
may be said in general that, with the eXcep-
) ton of the German "needle-gun" and those
of similar pattern, nearly all the firearms
on thebreech principle are of Ameri-
can orig origin.-Phaadepbit Lcdgcr.