Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-03-19
UTAH RIFLE TEAM
HAS GOOD CHANCE
General Wedgwood Believes This
Years Showing Will be
Credit 10 State.
NEW RULES ARE ANNOUNCED.
Increased Congressional Appropria-
lions Make Possible Different Nam
ncr Of Conducting Big shoot.

niN u NWANN'NANA DIX FHAANNAa
rhc utah rife team 90 be sent 70
t1e national matches al Camp Perry
ohio. probably In Angst. viii not have
tl face the men who for years have
shot in these matches. winning prizes
wear after year. This Year. for the
benefit OF teams younger In the CONF
p.tiHous. three classes have been arr
ranged. to- be known as classes a. B
aud G.. In class Q Utah win have 20
fare teams from 20 other states. IN
This classification. Gen. Wedgwood. who
Was team captain last year. and-tne
presen, adjutant- general of the state
moons. is confident that Utah will rank
h.eh. Prizes are TO be offered In each
class. The men Of the team win ue
the is having the best range scores for
this seasons practise
Arms and the Man, military
pubIsation edited by Gen. James A.
Drain In Washington, a man who has
devoted many years TO the promotion
OF rifle practise, says regarding the
matches tor 1903;
When the first national match was
shot IN 1903. II teams competed. AT
tllt time only "a few sanguine lnd-
yiduals considered 10 possible that the
dime would ever come when o. teams
would lake part. Yet 90 teams shot in
Igls-l5 state and territorial teams, ana
live service teams.
Changes IN the kind and order o.
nla in the elimination clause, and 100
many minor particulars were made
from year to year in the rules to goy-
lu these great contests The most
radical departure In rules winch mas
ever been made ln the history Of the
national match was that authorized by
the national board for the promu0n
OF rifle practise at It's last meeting Ia
Washington ID. g.. during January last.
FUN report OF that meeting, with
al the changes On the rules agreed to
uy the board, appeared ia Arms and che
Man of Jan. o. There also was pre-
-euted the plan Tor shooting the match
at one and the same time as single
contest and yet with series Of three
W.unig teams.
our readers viii remember that
a plan TO accomplish this subdivded
but GENERALLY conducted contest was
submitted by General Thrift OF Iowa,
8s the joint product Of the labors OF
Captain ROmeyn. Lieutenant Mumma
30 had not been submitted TO the COM
mittec on rules, as had other sugges-
tOns for changes in regulations gov
eulug the board, after approval Of
the general plan embodied iu the
memorandum of General Thrift re-
ferred the whole matter to the COM
mlttce on rules. with power
'As the suggeted change involved the
payment OF an increased prize list IL
was necessary 20 secure additional APP
propriations from Congress before IL
could be put into effect These, large
Iy through the efforts Of the Honorable
D. a. T. Hull, chairman OF the military
committee. were secured As soon as
the army bin which contained this pro-
vision had been passed by Congress
aud signed by the president, the COM
mIttee on rules was called together
by It's chairman. Gen. Bird W. Spencer.
auln action was had 10 complete the
rules for the matches Of this year. The
committee has met and adjourned and
its report has been approved by the
president Of the board, Cen oliver.
Having published the changes
agreed 20 by the board our issue OF
Jan.2l, IL seems unnecessary at this
time 10 do more than 10 refer TO the
changes subsequently made. In the
first place we wish TO call particular
attention TO the action OF Congress IN
last year which excluded from the
matches officers above the grade Of
captain. and all civilians. BY leaving
out this provision officers of all grades
are eligible to compete ia the team and
individual rife matches and In the
national pistol match this year, and
members OF the National Rife assOcia-
lion and affiliated clubs may shoot I'm
the national individual rifle match
and iu the national pistol match. This
viii be good news TO many enthuslas.
tic rinemen ana pistol shots who were,
by the terms OF the law last year, de-
barred from participation In the
matches.
Turning now 10 a discussion OF the
rules for the division OF the teams
shooting I'm the national team match
into three divisions for the purpose Of
prize winning We may say briefly that
an impression which has seemed to
prevail that the match viii be separ-
ated into three parts, is quite an err
runeous one. There will be just one
national team match as heretofore. but
the nrst n teams viii be shooting for
one set o. prizes. the second IS teams
for another set. and all OF the rest OF
Tho teams for "a third series. The
teams will be- placed bon these three
divisions according TO their standing
boz the national team match of 1908.
Any AINNI MiNNll AlNH AlhA ~ fhANuH~
ly competed in the national matches
will be placed in the last or & divi-
sion. a team which has previously
competed and has dropped out for any
reason viii be returned 10 the division
bon which n would have been had the
match been divided into divisions the
year n last shot
40 team iu "a higher division can
win "a prize iu "a lower, but a team in
B or q division might win the first
prize II ~ made score sufficiently
great 10 excel that of am the other
teams contesting 80 team can win
more than one prize. but every team
shooting in the match has "a chance 20
win the national trophy by piling up
a. larger score than any other team
Tho elimination clause of last year.
under which ouc-third uf the meme
beers Of the winning teams became
Ineligible Co compete on tho succeeding
team, ana $50 forth was changed Co
"siN members of the team winning
first place.
Five members of the team winning
second place
-Four members Of the team winning
third place.
Three members on tho team winning
fourth place.
Two members OF tho team winning
ffth place