Morning journal and courier., 1880-08-20
Rifle Shooting in Austria.
Ten Thousand MarEsmen Competing in the International Matches-The Prizes and Some of Their Winners.

Ten Thousand Marksmen Competing in
 the International Matches-The Prizes
 and Some of Their Winners.
 Correspondence of the New York Worldl
 VIENNA, July 31.-Vienna has witnessed so many festivities during the last week that it's state of perpetual excitement can only be compared with that of a year ago, when it celebrated the Emperor's silver wedding. The centre of attraction was about ten thousand rifemen, who came from all parts of Europe to compete for prizes whose value must have reached $1OO GOO and which formed 8 dag zling exhibition in a small pavilion built for that purpose. For two months committee of more than one hundred persons had been busy with the preparations for this grand festival, which took place in a beautiful park
 between the old and the new beds of the Rlv- CT Danube. A hall had been built in which 5000 persons could dine at once and this was beautifully decorated with flags and fine
 branches. A kitchen was attached to the hall, where great culinary feats were execu- ted that were as worthy of notice as those achieved in the banqueting hall itself. On Sunday, the 18th of July, the rihemen enter ed Vienna in long procession of 1O, ,000, car rying their rifles and flags, some of the latter battered and faded by long wear. The most interesting person among the number was, perhaps, peasant from the Tyrol, who per
 sonified Andreas Hofer, in his picturesque dress and long beard, who executed by NdpO10Ou l. D0CduS6 AO S0IN0u HIS I41up6EOI faithfully and would not surrender the place given to his trust. The Swiss rifemen, 800 in number, appeared in straw hats and with ! umbrellas, which did not look very sports manlike. When the procession had passed along the decorated Ringstrasse the greater part of the competitors assembled on the enormous square in front of the Francis Jo- seph Barracks, fortress like building in red brick, where they were welcomed by the Elm peror himself. Then splendid banner was
 brought forward, which was blessed by the Archbishop and nailed to the staff by the Empress herself, who looked charming as she always does on the rare occasions wheu she is pleased to show herself. With this
 banner, the gift of the Empress, the process sion once more moved forward, while Vien- mas famous society of male singers began to sing Te Deum. After three hours march ing through an applauding population, the park was reached, and short banquet took place and then the shooting commenced. There were 250 stands, most of which were the ordinary black and white circles: others were entire figures with the outline of man, intended for the practice of rifemen for the battlefield, and very few were small black centres on white targets. The smallest dis tance was 250 yards, the greatest being 800 yards. The prizes were in proportion to the difficulty of the feat achieved. At the small CT targets a few cents were paid for every shot, and if marksman did but hit the cir cles often enough he could obtain prize goblet or a silver watch worth about SIP. This prize was only worth having if it were obtained in a few shots, but if it took very long the cost of the shots amounted to higher than the prize. For the few select targets each shot cost from half @ dollar to three dollars and but one or two shots were allow ed at time. The finest prize, a splendid goblet in gold and silver, presented by the Archduke Charles Louis, the Emperor $ brother, was won by lady, Mrs. Hirsch, from Vienna The Emperors prize was a beautiful tea-service in massive goln, and in all there were over two hundred prizes of considerable value, most of them master pieces of artistic industry. There were also numberless contributions from merchants of every branch of commerce-casks of wine, rifles and beautiful objects in porcelain and terra-cotta. Besides there were some very singular objects for the competition of sports men-for instance parcel containing two dozen pairs of ladies' stays. The Archduke Louis presented the prizes on the last (the eighth day of the festival. He read the names himself and at times was unable to re- frain from smiling when the lucky winners persisted in lowing or attempted to carry off their prizes themselves, even when they con sisted of caskets so heavily laden with silver coins that the winner could not help totter- ing down the steps.