The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1901-01-08

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war, 1865, the
....-------AA ---1 soldiers used the
f1intlocks. Tie percussion cap had then
been invented and put to test, but Gen
eral Scott considered it dangerous to
campaigning far into the enemy's coun-
try with weapon new to the troops. I
The sfiintlocks in this country 100
years ago We're chiefly of French make.
having been supplied by the ally of the
patriots during the Revolution. Being |
on hand and available and the country
far from wealthy, these muskets We're
retained with some slight improve
ments until worn out by age. In the
Indian fights early in the century the
ordinary hunting rifle of the settlers
played a conspicuous part. as it had on
certain trying occasions in the Revolu-
ton. The first American sharpshoot-
ing In pitched battles was that of the
rife corps armed with hunting rifles.
General Daniel Morgan, the Virginian,
won his fame as the leader of picked
rifemen and by his ability and courage
turned the tide in many battles.
Morgan joined the Continental army,
under Washington, at Boston, with
company of Virginia rifemen and aft
erward followed Arnold to Quebec with
three companies. In that battle his
Z sharpshooters gave good account of
their skill, and Morgan finally led them
in desperate charge against the Brit
!sh guns. At Bemis Heights Morgan's
corps proved invincible, and the heav-
iestIlosses of the British that day were
In front of the squirrel rifles of Nor
ganIs men. Many a gallant British Of
ficer went down before the unerring
aim Eof a Yankee hunter.
TIE hunting rifle as weapon of war
even outlasted the Indian troubles and
the Gwar of 1872 At the outbreak of
the kivil war the volunteers of the bor-
der Estates marched into camp with
theif rifles and carried them until they
could exchange them on the battlefield
for 1.-THE heavier army weapon. Even
Il II Fes north; Wien the populace turned
Ito repel the raiders from over the
u Ter, the hunting rifles were in evil
The percussion cap was invented in
1878, but not until the middle of the
century, did tbs improvement extend
to all the armies of the civilized world.
The United States had engaged to some
J extent in the manufacture of muskets
and rifles for its troops from 1895 on
ward, but not until the invention Of the
Springfield rife in 1855 was there a
distinctive American weapon for the
d army The Springfield quickly dis
placed the old mssket, whether flint
LOCK- or percussion. Previous to the
Springfield the American manufactures
were made after French models. Old
flintlocks were changed into percussion
andf the barrels rebored and groOyed
SOME Belgian rifles were imported, and
at the outbreak of the civil war in 1866
there were arms of various caliber ant
!. styla in use by regiments serving to
q gethSr The Confederates in 1861, be
ing Without arms or arsenals, imported
weaIiDns, receiving the Enfield rift
chiefly, and this was far superior Il
the filtered jmuskets Of their enem,
and, Some thought, to the Springfield.
In t1S6l there were only enough
Springfelds on hand to arm the United
Stateb regular regiments at first, ant
even swhen the armory at Springfield
was pushed to its highest capacity tn
!. output was not sufficient to supply tn
needs lof the new army. Shiloh AM
Stone River, two Of the bloodiest bat
ties in the west the first IL months o
II the war, were fought on the northern
side BY troops armed mainly with oil
III flintlock muskets altered into percus
sion rifles. At Vicksburg the army Sc
cured with its captu1s some 5000
stand of arms, mostly Enfelds in goo
condition, and these were distribute
to the soldiers who had carried the oil
style weapons. With these guns the
had been at quite the same disadvaI
NAtage against the Confederate Enfield
as the American militia in Cuba wit
their smoking Springfelds against tn
: smokeless powder Mauser Of the Spa'
iartls. Up to the time Of the civil VIZ
GuOrCS& were ludQC CllC Wol1S oNSlH
& improve upon the muzzle loader the
In universal use. But after that col
fict it was plain that the breechloadt
was to be the gun Of the future for tt
fighting man. For more than 80 yea
experiments had been going on wit
breechloaders Several had been ties
ed before the war by the United Stat
government, and several cavalry reg
ments in 1S64-5 carried the Spence
magazine carbine, loading at the breet
and good for seven shots without i
charging Sharp's rifle had also MAJ
history on the border, and, there bell
many kinds Of repeating rifles
sss sporting purposes, the fighting man
Y manded something better for hurn'
game than the clumsy breechloadt
The demand brought out in suecessi
the deadly Winchester, the Remingt
and finally the breechloading Sprin
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