The Opelousas courier., 1900-03-31
B0ER CRAFTSMANSHIP.
FACTS ABOUT RIFLE SHOOTING OF
PECULIAR INTEREST JUST NOW.

practically Impossible to Hit Man or
Beast at 1000 Yards Except ~bysChance,
or When Every Condition Is Perfect.
"Do you shoot a rife? Do you
know what the limitations of hat
weapon are? Do you know hat the
craftsmanship with which the aver
age Boer is accredited is well-nigh
as impossible as Baron Munchausen's
boosted performance Of shooting At
ducks at a single shot with q pearl,
and SO gauging his charge of powder
that the pearl lodged in the heart of
the last duck in the line? Do you
know that the American people are
reading a lot OF tommy rot?"
This yolley Of questions came from
a man who. has had experience with
firearms aud has given more than
casual attention to the matter Of marks
manship.
He was vexed because an acquaint-
ance had called his attention to pub
lished statements that would lead one
to believe that it was an easy thing
for a Boer farmer to stand on his
back porch and with his trusty rifle
shoot an anteiope-or, if need be, a
man-700 or 1000 yards distant.
500 you know that in shooting at
q man 1000 yards away any marks
man has about as much chance to hit
him as you have to find a needle that
has been thrown into a load Of hay?
If you don't know these things, go
and get some information. Go to A.
P. ingalls, and get him to teach you
the a b c of craftsmanship. He has
made a lifelong study of rife shoot
ing. He was born and bred to it, and
for years he was one of the best long
distance rifemen in the west. He
can explain how and why no man can
shoot as these Afrikanders are said to
shoot"
The other man sought out Mr.. In
gals and gathered a store OF informa-
ton about rife shooting that is of
peculiar interest in these times OF
war.
The mentor is an elderly man, with
| q red brown beard streaked with gray,
deep-set, keen eyes aud a gift of in
cisive, homely speech.
"Can an expert rifeman hit an OBJ
iect the size of a man 1000 yards
away?" said the visitor.
"Of course he can," was the reply.
"You stand for q target 1000 yards
from me and I will kill you nine times
out Of ten. Any mar can do it."
That seemed to settle the matter,
and the visitor was sorry he had
listened to the mar who had sent him
to Mr.. ingalls,. but he plucked up
heart and asked if the feat could be
performed under all conditions.
Certainly not" said the veteran.
SIT practically can't be done unless
the marksman knows the exact dis
lance Of his target aud precisely what
his gun will do and has taken the
proper care to load his shells, and his
sights are adjusted to the wind"
"Do you believe these stories about
the Beers ability to pick Of men or
antelope at from $50 to 1000 yards?"
"No; and no one else does who
knows anything about shooting. It
would take a ton of lead fred out of a
rifle to kill a man 1000 yards distant
under conditions that prevail in war.
''There are three great difficulties
to be surmounted: The first is esti-
mating the distance; the second is
gauging the wind; the third is the
absolute inability of any man to hold
q gun perfectly steady without a rest
Il might almost say with o rest. l
have known one man who could Judge
distance accurately. but he was a
freak, such as these men who carry
| columns and columns of figures in
/ their heads. He could glance at an
object, say 200 yards away, and tell
you the distance, and he wouldn't
miss it two yards. I saw him kill a
deer 400 yards away once. That is
the longest successful shot / ever knew
to be made at a live target when the
| distance was known to a certainty.
"Now, for the wind: In a 1000
yard range a wind blowing three miles
| an hour will defect a bullet about Is
feet. That has TO be allowed for, and
as the winds force is rarely the same
over the entire range, it is practically
impossible to gauge it accurately for
q chance range.
"As to the inability of a mau to
hold a gun perfectly steady, anybody
knows that is true. But there are
marksmen who can drive tacks with
q rife or cut q string with q bullet.
| That is true, hut not ct long range.
| Let me illustrate:
tsTo give you an idea Of the care
that is necessary to make a creditable
long distance target / will ask If you
know why long-distance rifemen use
8 round barreled gun instead of the
oetagon-shaped barrel that most
| sportsmen like?
mo? I thought not. You do know,
| however, that steel expands with
| heat. You may even remember the
| figures as to the expansion and con
traction Of big bridges according as
| the weather is hot or cold. Idon't;
| but I do know that for every grain oil
powder burned in d gun there is a
| corresponding expansion ofthe barrel.
I also know that if that expansion is
not eauable the gun will not shoot
true.
another thing that target shooters
| do who make scores worth nothing is
4 - q I n 49, w. Mvyn q n M