Sunday Washington globe., 1902-06-29

shot into a six-inch ring az from 400 TO 500
wards in the hands Of a good marksman.
How many Of the rifles Of today can even
meet these figures let alone beat them2
Yet the Ballard earned its reputation before
Lyman Sights Ian important auxiliary Of
today came into existence.
Again, quoting from an article which ap-
peared in one OF the early Harpes (Harper's
magazine describing where a party of
travellers, numbering FIVE, including negro
blacksmith had taken refuge in a buffalo
wallow and were making a fight for life
against several hundred Indians, who had
attacked and burned their stage, killing two
Of the party. THE blacksmith was armed
with a Ballard rifle with which he was
capital shot, keeping the savages from clos
ing in--they were riding, circling around
us at a distance of three.hundred yards and
pouring in rain Of rifle bullets, their OBJ
jeCt being to compel US to exhaust our am
munition that they might take us. The In
dams we're mounted and kept their bodies
screened behind their horses"
The long.range Sharps rifle enjoyed an
almost equal reputation with the Ballard,
and taking the same cartridge, i. e. 40 90
and 4s.1oo In fact it has been stated that
the Sharps was directly responsible for the
going of the buffalo, ss the shooter could
screen himself at long range and almost
decimate a small herd ere they could locate
their death Many of these rifles sold at
prices ranging from $50 to SIoo, and were
iue substantial samples of the American
workmanship Sample is on exhibition at
the National Museum at Washington).
Samples of the Sharps acquired consider
able fame in the hands Of Jim Lanes fol-
lowers in the early days of the Kansas row
| Iincoln's time) and Berdan's Sharp
shooters. it is claimed, were armed with an
army model of the same make.
The Colts revolving rife, deep chambered,
was fine sample Of workmanshp-built
like a watch-and was the favorite of Lieut..
/ Col Marcy of frontier fame (killed in the
Mexican war I'm told
/ OF course weapons of the revolver style
were supposed to be shorter ranged than
the single shot pattern, yet if the incidents
| of the Muggins-Taylor fight Gust prior to
the Custer affair." are truthful, Colts re-
volviug rife, in the hands of one Of the be-
sieged, killed Sioux chief at distance Of
over one mile Neither was it chance
shot, as the shooter took several careful
sightings before pulling the trigger. The
I
licher, Savage, ETC., have a very long range
and wonderful penetration, with low traiec-
tory yet it is doubtful if they could hold
their own at long and mid-ranges with the
older famous weapons. In fact l believe
that a fine gun of the pattern of Sharps,
Ballard, or Remington (the latter still in
the field, would have considerably the best
of the contest.
The short range guns as built to-day by
the Stevens Arms Company are unexcelied
up to their limit of range as special target
weapons. And the Winchester, Colt, and
Marlin companies have also regulations in
this line. The old Billiards., Sharps are
things Of the past, but doubt if they be ex-
celled for years TO come. C.B.
N. B.-The Ballard rife herein referred to
as tested and reported in Appleton o. was
one Of the older models, !, e., breech loader,
built TO use the ordinary soldiers linen car
fridge (muzzle loading Springfield car
tridge) which was inserted in the breech OF
the ballard The rifle could also be used
with the metallic cartridges Of that day
long rim fire. In the test it is not stated
which kind of ammunition was used. The
40 85 and 45.Ioo were later models, being
well known in the 7o's and early Sos.