The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-11-08

selves, have been working at new uni
versal rife for some time. ani they have
just adopted one. produced at the great
Springfield factory, similar IN many par
ticulars TO the new British rife.
The valiber of the new rife is the same
as that Of the ee-Enheld-namely. .sJ3
inches. 1t also has FIVE grooves. with q
spiral of one in ten inches. The gen.
eral principle Of the bolt action remains
unaltered; but q great improvement has
been effected in the cooking piece. and the
striking gear. the components Of the Lee
Enfield rife which proved in South Africa
most prone 10 get out of order The origin
Of the greater number of ''nisfires'' in the
war was the way" of the striker IN the
bolt being clogged with sand or dirt. IN
the new rife il is not only much more diff
ficult for foreign substances TO work into
the path of the striker. but it is by no
means SO difficult matter to withdraw
and clean it as was formerly the case
The magazine viii contain eleven cart
ridges when properly nested. It is loaded
from a light steel slide which holds the
cartridges in line by their fiange base.
The cartridges may be loaded in patches
Of five or ten. Firing must be from the
magazine in the army rifle inasmuch as
the military authorities have discarded
the use of the cutoff" contrivance
which enabled the Lee-Endaeld to be fired
as a single-loader. 1t is curious point
that. acting upon report Of their adj
visers, the Lords of the admiralty have
decided TO have the rifles which are TO
be supplied to the royal navy and royal
marines fitted with a .cut-off' in order
to retain the advantage OF being able to
load a single shot at time This. how
ever, is the only respect in which the
rifles for the navy anad army will diffs.'
The length of the rife is 5 feet >.
inches, and the barrel is sheathed with
wood from the breech to the foreband.
through which the muzzle just protrudes.
This enables the weapon TO be grasped at
any part without Inconvenience, however
large the number of rounds fired through
it may have been. This is an advantage
which will be most appreciated by mount
ed troops. The weapon is a very well
balanced piece. But it is in its sighting
appliances and contrivances that the new
rife differs most from it's immediate pre-
decessOr. Like the Lee-Erdheld Mark H..
it is sighted 20 $500 yards the extreme
range sights being attached 10 the left
hand side Of the weapon. They are of al
most the precise pattern of those on the
Lee-Endfeld The ordinary sights are.
however. different. The foresight stands
upon a shoulder that is considerably high
er than that on the Old rife. but the bar
leycorn shape has been retained. 1t is
protected from risk of injury from blow
or fall by a pair~of steel lips or horns.
which stand on either side of the sight
pillar. These are inclined slightly out
wards. and at the top are about an inch
and quarter apart. \ very excellent
idea of the appearance Of this novel con-
trivance may be obtained if one places
ones hands together, the back OF one
against the palm OF the other, the fingers
pointing toward the elbow of the opposite
arm, and the thumbs raised. The hands
so placed and elevated in a line with the
face make a good representation Of the
sight guard. 1t is more than possible that
in practice this arrangement will in ce~-
tain lights have the effect of slightly
bunting or obscuring the definition of the
foresight, but this is the only blemish that
can be suggested in the sighting of the
new rifle. The foresight is dovetailed into
the pillar which supports it. and can be
adjusted latterally, so as to cOrret "drift"
or any other ''error there may attach to
it. This is an extremely valuable addi-
ton.