Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1888-03-02
AMERICAN FIREARMS.
The Manufacture of Breech-
Loading Rifles.

Result Is that Our Patents Are Adopted or
Stolen by Foreign Powers
IL 10 not generally known that the principal
foreign legations In Washington have attach
ed alert military or naval officers, or both,
whose business II is To note and report to their
respective governments inventions aud i'm
proyemenis In ordnance aud ordnance stores,
saws n Chicago Times special These foreign
officers visit our many yards aud inspect the
big guns aud projectiles and targets. When
the signal service experiments with an i'm
proved Photograph, or por able tower, or field
telegraph tran u, or other appliance for lncreas-
ing or lettering facilities tor communication,
when ord nary means are lmpracticable. or un-
desirable, there is also TO be found the foreign
military attache. He visits the national small
arms armory at Springfield, and the cartridge
manufacturing arsenal at Frankford. lie
taxes notes in the patent Office ara keeps pace
With all modern Yankee inventions and i'm
brovements In the matter Of rifles, carbines,
and reyolvers. From the Zalinsky dynamite
gun TO the movable base Moose cartridge for
email arms, now under trial In the United
States army, lie Is on deck every time. Ii ii
not surprising, therefore, that American In
~yent.ons are known and adopted or stolen by
foreign powers. In no one respect have w
laiC HIplt n'NhAht IlOSlSbS tudu III luc mht
ter Of improvement in our breech-loaiine
rifles. In 1861, the United States government
bought In Europe about $4,000 rifles ara
rarbines, besides home orders for over a nit
Ion stand of small arms. In contrast with
this immense importation, the following data
Df American inventions becomes interesting.
THE LEE MAGAZINE Bolt GUN
was patented in 1873. 1t eau be used as a sin
1e loader or as a repeater. 1t claims TO
obylate all the objections urged against the
I'LL
Zines, are furnished with each te, and are
detachable. Each mag Zines carries five car
tridges, and NAV be carried, charged, either
In the cartr dge-boX, or In the pocket Of the
solder. Ii requires but five seconds TO charge
a magazine with fresh cartridges. From twenty
five To- thirty Shots can be fired from this gun
In forty seconds. Mr.. Borchardt has fired
ten shot. from the Lee In l2l4 seconds, using
two filled magazines. The inventor has fired
hfiy shots in SKY seconds. The gun weighs
when fully loaded nine pounds. The balance
~ the gun Is not changed when II T. Tired;
thus the relative weight which one extremity
OF the arm bears to tue other remains always
the same. This gun WAS stolen by Austria
and renamed the Manlicher. The plagiarzed
Lee was adopted by Austria, Austria
hungary, and Belgium; also b. Mexico.
denmark adopted the mechanism Of the Lee
magazine gun with smaller caliberel barrel.
The Remington rifle is another well known
American invention. IL has rece we'd i'm
r~rovements in this country, and is known
sometimes as the e.. X. Remington, Hepburn
Remington, Remington-Keene, etc. TINS arm
can be used either as II single loader or rs a
repeater. The magazine Ia carried under the
barrel, thereby enabling IL 10 carry the great
est number possible OF cartridges within a
gwen weight aud length OF barrel. The Rem
lugtOn-l.ee carries ten cartridges. The e.. X,
Remington is II tripp.e-barreled rifle. The
mag zine Remington Is ALWAYS left at half
cock. II can be brought to the full cock read
lv and quickly while the arm is being car.
ried To the shoulder and without removing
tie fingers from the trigger. in this last re-
spect it differs from other magazine guns,
which can only be cooked by removing The
baud from the trigger. 1t weighs. fully load.
Ell, % pounds. Mr.. Whipple has fired ten
shots ia seventeen seconds.
Mr.. krminglon's gun has been adopted By
Norway, Sweden. Denmark, the Argentine
Republic, China, Egypt, Colombia. and Mad
sgascar. In 1913, a Mr.. Mauser made, under
the patronage of Mir Remington. at llion, ~.
Y, a rife 10 which the uame "Mauser" was
given. After the model was completed II was
adopted by Germany. The Turkish govern
ment has recently contracted with German
armOries for The manufacture Of 55u, 90 Mau-
ser repeating rifles and necessary ammunition.
American manufacturers lose <l5,OOl,O 900 by
this award. Mr.. Remington dispO>ed OF his
Interest in the Mauser for $500. The capacity
Of the Remington armory is ample for the pro-
duction ~ one thousand military firearms per
day, besides sporting arms, ammunition, sew
lng-macbines, etc. IL, with all It's franchises,
10 to be sold al public auction, pursuant 10 an
order OF the supreme court OF the state Of
New York, on the lat proXimo.
The Evans magazine rife is an American
invention, the general principal Of which Is
similar to that OF the well known Spencer aud
Meigs repeater. also American arms. Used
rs a magazine gun, IL IA fed by the manlpula-
ton Of a futed cylinder In the butt-stock.
The rifle holds thirty-eight small cartridges,
IN "a magaZ ne running the length OF the butt
stock, forming In Itself the small Of the stock.
The motion OF the lever cocks the hammer,
which is concealed. AS the cartridges In the
magazine are in separate cells aud can not by
any possibility come I'm contact with each
other, the premature discharge Of any cart
ridge is impossible. The barrel is % inches
long; weight, loaded, o. pounds. The Evans
can be loaded in half II minute, and twenty
eight shots fired in from fifteen 10 twenty
seconds II has been adopted by Russia for
use in her navy.
The Peabody is a fragrant instance Of the
practice OF foreigners In utilizing American
inventions without due credit and proper
~rccOmpense. A Swiss named Martini derived
his breech loading system from Peabody, and
Mr.. Henry, OF Scotland, united his rifed bar
rel with IL. Hence what Is called the Martini.
Henry rifle OF Great Britain. The Peabody
rifle was adopted 10y the English arms com
mission after 4 long series Of experiments
with different nds Of rtfing. 1t was adopt
ed by the Turkish government after long and
exhaustive trials In competition with all the
prominent breech.loading rifles OF the world.
IL endured the test OF actual experience In
war between Russia aud Turkey. In Turkey
II Is called the Peabody Martini rifle. The
Providence Tool company made 6OO.0O0 OF
these rifles for the imperial Ottoman govern
ment. The handspring OF the Peabody
brecch loader is a coil. There are seven
grooves Of peculiar shape, with a sharp twist,
one turn in twenty inches. 1t is not n re-
peater. IL is used In England, Afghanistan,
Turkey, aud India.
The Burton, Ward Burton, or Burton Lee
magazine rifle IL the invention Of Americans.
The magazine Is on the side OF the rife, or In
the tube below the barrel, as In the Winches-
ter. The magazine holds eight cartridges,
aud the rife has the advantage ~ what IL
known RS the closed bolt action. England has
taken thfs system w.
Mr.. Is b.. Hotchkiss, an American, exhibit
ed at the centennial At Philadelphia the maya
zine gun bearing his name. In 1883 he made
many changes and Improvements in the arm.
The magazine carries five cartridges. The
weapon Is provided with a cutoff to enable the
gun to be used as q single-loadcr. at will OF
the soldier. 1t weighs, loaded, 92S pounds
Mr.. Albee has fired ten shots In fifteen seconds.
Twenty-three shots has been fired from the
Hotchkiss In one minute This test was In
the presence Of a board OF officers Of the Unit
ed States army, Maj Gen. Terry being presi-