Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-09-04
If Correspondence Of The Evening Star.

|
! speetively for New York and Washington on
Saturday has been impossible. Only few of
the New Workers have put in an appearance
and the number OF instances where they have
been matched against each other is not great.
Generally it is safe TO say that the gentlemen
/ from the empire state doing better shoot
| ing than they did last September, while it is
very questionable indeed whether soma Of the
District veterans nave improved as much as
they need to- No acquainted with the
facts can for moment doubt New Works
earnestness in this matter. they have started
out TO win the hfitcu trophy. aLG. if possible.
the interstate prize we'll, and :. will take
| heavy scores TO defeat them the entire state
! has beer ransGcked for the nest material. and
| as result Gen. Robbins vii. face the targets
| on saturday with eies er of the oest men that
can DC picked out OF tins ~ 900 National Guards
| men on whom this common weritb relies for
| military protection, The ofC- sre 'rcnendOEs,
and when you adj " them vi hauiicap of
| which wrote yesterday 'sp &c al guns eTd
| special @mmunit,cn--yoU .Iaye bui.t sround
| tue two big Trophies fence that looks tai
enough ami strong enough 20 shut o.. he Dis
/ rrict or any other team that maT coma here TO
I compete.
| 'So sIGSs OF DIsCoURAGEMENI"
But there are no signs of encouragement
among the Washingtonians. Every man is get
ing ready for Saturday and most OF them are
| bending their energies toward practice for that
| great day rather than in the direction Of prize
winning. The struggle will be even sharper
than that OF last year, because of the difficulties
thal must be surm0uRted by visiting teams be-
| fore victory Is possible. Without the discour-
aSements so plentiful here the first regiment
! team captured New Jerseys big trophy n week
ago, and II may be that the brigade team i'll
by steady work rise superior to its surround
.srNtS
success when to the evenly baIarced judgment
OF unprejudiced minds such q result seems
more or less improbable. " the matches were
TO be shot on even terms. the same guns and
ammunition being used, it would be safe tc
predict a victory for Maj. Polards team, but
when there is big combination to prevent the
Springfield guns winning sach prophecy might
prove TO be decidedly dIsj Ointed
PERHAPS TOO MICH PRACTICE.
Opinion is somewhat divided here as to
whether many of the Washingtonians have not
temporarily injured their shoe ting qualities by
doing little too much i'll the line OF practice
For nearly two weeks several of the rifles have
been almost continuously warm-at times IN
bearably holland the effect of such a ccntin-
uous banging away could hardly be regarded
as beneficial Believing that a rest is necessary
most OF the team will take a rest tomorrow.
The program gives the day principally TO New
J ork competitions and the opportunity thus
afforded Will be seized upon by the crowd. The
presumption Is that everybody will come up
fresh and smiling on Saturday morning. ready
to do his best and in condition to exceed his
expectations.
TIE SPRINGFIELD RIFLE IN The RAIN.
One of the valuable discoveries made on
this trip is to the effect that the Springfield
rifle cannot easily be beaten when the rain is
pouring down. Given a sufficient amount of
moisture anu II Will be hard indeed for New
ioIk To get away with the District of Colum-
bia, but should Saturday prove hot and dry
then you may add additional advantages in favor
Of the special Remington used by the New
York team. 1t looks like rain at this time. but
there may be none when 1t Is most needed.
When the meteorological conditions lack
humidity the SprinSfelds foul 10 such an ex-
tent that regular shooting is an impossibiiity:
the Remington barrels are not so affected be-
cause they are built differently lie, all Wash
lngton pray Tor rain at Creedmoor on Saturday.
And while there Is praying being dOue few
anti mosquito petitions would not be out of
place. The pests DO not bother the men when
they are in doors and il wouldn't matter very
much If they did. but the winged and hungry
Insects are more than nuisances on the range.
When 2 man lies down in the grl So he becomes
a center of bloodthirsty attraction and many a
promising shot goes wrong because of IL mos
quito bite.
SHOOTING IN THE PRESIDENTS MATCH.
the military championship of the United States
has been concluded and the winner is not a
WashingtoEian. For while it looked as though
the big honor might be brought back by Capt.
Cash or Lieut.. Stewart, but their luck failed
them lust when they needed most assistance
Quite number of the countrymen from the
national capital entered the match-Maj. Pol
lard. Capt. Cash. Capt Bell. Lieut.. Graham.
Lieut. Stewart. Lieut. Vale. Lieut. Harries
Sergt. Hutterly. Sergt. Smythe, Private Dickey
and Private Hinebaugh-but only three OF the
aggregation secured prize money i'll the first
stage and they were all missing in the
final. The match is shot in two stages. the
first comprising seven shots each at 200 and
500 yards. The seventeen. highest men III this
stage were given prizes OF Various values and
the privilege OF shooting ten shots at
the second stage-600 yards. The man
whose aggregate in both Stages was
the highest was given the champion
ship and S25 in cash. Capt Cash got 80 al 2o0
wards and 30 at SEQ yards. Ill the final he got
80. which made his tctsi 1902. Lieut. stavart
had 80 at 200 and 81 at 500; his GGc-yarC score
was ii and his total los Sergi. Hnfterv
crossed the fence with u SO. made up OF a %
and 80; in the second stag he got 81, which
made his total So The winner YVES Sergt
findiay o. the twenty-tLird New York, his total
being los
wAsuISGIoN1AS WINNERS.