The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-10-02
DAINTY REVOLVERS.
Pear1-HRndIed and SiIver-Trimmed
Which Women Garry in Muffs.

Pear1-HRndIed and SiIver-Trimme ID =,
Which Women Garry in Muffs.
New York Tribune.
A peep at the show case where the
glittering beauties of the most modern
American revolver are displayed in any
of the great firearms stores of lower
Broadway, suggests strongly the magni-
tude of the change that the last decade
or two has brought in the vital art of
killing. One is struck especially by the
increasing slimneSs of the barrels, which
appear to be approaching without limit
the diameter of an ordinary fountain pen
Do you sell these things principally for
defense against burglars?" the inquisitive
one asks
We don't ask any questions of custom
erS, replies a salesman who has been
selling fire arms for forty years. 81 dare
say most of the revolvers bought by
peaceful citizens are intended as protec-
ton against burglars. Then a good many
people-both men and Women-enjoy tar
get shooting"
The latter information threw an inter-
eStlng light on the progress of the fair
sex toward emancipation. But. in view
OF recent discussions at The Hague and
all over the world anent the stopping"
powers Of the DUN dunn bullet, the uues-
ton presented itself: How would these
pretty things do in a sudden tete-a-tete
with determined burglar? Would such
a bullet stop a burglar so that he would
be beyond the power of replying in kind?
Certainly it would" said the veteran
salesman. of course, everybody knows
that the larger the bullet the greater the
shock. But these are quite large enough
You are thinking of what they talk about
the military rifles, aren't you? Stories
about soldiers being shot through and 60
ing on as If nothing had happened? You
are leaving out of account the different
powers of the powders used The Krag-
Jordenson and the Lee Metford drive
their bullets at a muzzle velocity away
beyond anything you get from one of
these revoYers, and that is why the
bullet can make a clean little hole
through man that he will hardly no
tee, The revolvers we sell now are most
~ thirty-two and thirty-eight calibers.
Well, that is much larger caliber than
the army and navy rifles have, and the
powder used does not give nearly as high
velocity The consequence is, the
wound is much more lacerated."
From which it appeared that the
strnegth of the common domestic revolver
IS like Woman's, in its weakness. The
smokeiess powder of the army and navy
is so powerful and produces such a violent
d
order in the two services cautions all who
use revolvers not to fill empty revolver
cartridge shells with long-range arms
powder The smokeless powder used in
the trade for revolver target practice and
anti-burglar cartridges is a much less
violent compound.
1t may be that the steady improvement
in the appearance of revolvers has charm
ed women, but, upon inquiry, it turned
out that women are beginning to buy re-
volVers for purposes less sportive than
target practice. In this show case,
among the pearl-handled articles of Of
fenslve. and defensive luxury with the
chased barrels and plated fittings, were
one or two tiny things that could not
have been made for target practice be-
cause their barrels We're too short
Ladies carry those things in their
muffs sometimes" said another salesman,
and sometimes in their satchels.'