The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1911-06-14

WAPAkC -tETA, o.. June 10
Possessing only the stump of an arm
on the left side, and no arm at all
on the right side, and using his
teeth to pull the trigger. Al Wine
miller is conceded to be one of the
most amazing rifle shots in Ohio, if
not in the United States. state
ment that will be attested by all who
have entered into competition with
him, either in shooting at clay pig
cons. live birds or a bull's-eye tar
get. SO far as is known there is 10
living man handicapped as he is who
has made such d record. and not for
the purpose of revenue or exhibition,
but purely for the love of a sport
that he has. followed from boyhood.
He would rather win a match with
no stakes at all than forego the
pleasure of the competitions His
winnings since the LIST of January
have been two quarters of beef one
beef hide and one dollar in cash,
What makes Winemiller's perform
ance all the more extraordinary is
arm until fifteen months ago. His
left hand was caught in the cug; Of
a traction engine and crushed into
pulp in 1898, and an amputatloli
above the wrist became necessary.
Until that time he had been an en-
thusiastc hunter, always scorning a
shotgun and employing rifle eN-
clusively, even in the shooting of
small game.
lie had 4 wonderful eye for rarge,
aud with his old one-shot ride an
black powder charges. instead of the
metallic cartridge that he uses nov,
tr made some wonderful scores. HIS
accuracy # aim continued even al
lrr his hand had been crushed ana
removed This accident did not IL
tc.'fere with his love of his c'lcHen
So, TT any longer than it took the
stump to heal and to enable him to
devise a strap hold which he usel in
lieu of band.
Arm Gone Keeps on shooting.
IN January. 1910, Winemiller
right arm was caught in "A four-lacn
Dot running from bolt cutter in
tn shop of the Wupek Wheel Com
puHy. He was drawn up to the line
shaft and whirled around until his
arm was mashed and manGled close
up to the shoulder socket The sur
geons took it off entirely. Winemil-
Ter made a marvellous recovery, and
as soon as he was able to be about
ne began dcvisng means to enable
him to keep on shooting.
He bought a twenty-five repeating
Remington and had hole bore in
the trigger. Through this he fasten-
cd a wire and covered the free end
of it with a leather bit which he
could take in his mouth This dc
vice was made under his direction
by a gunsmith and then he went off
into the woods where no one would
see him so that he could practice
and carry out the plan he had in
view.
This town is sixty miles north of
Dayton, in the gas and coal region,
and almost everybody within radius
of forty miles knows the armess
marksman, and is proud of his skill
and courage in continuing in sport
after being crippled in manner that
would have discouraged ninety men
out of a hundred
When Winemlllef is feaoN 10 S'
into action he selects a stump or
fallen log. wiggles out of his coat
shakes the box of cartridges out or
specially prepared pocket, removes
the lid with his teeth and dumps the
cartridges on the ground Then
and always to the amazement OF
veteran marksman-he places ms
Remington at rest, with the muzZle
pointing upward, holding it in posi-
ton with a leather thong strapped
to the stump of his left arm, leans
over and presses the spring OF the
magazine with his teeth. causing the
receptacle to open. With his mouth
he drops in the cartridges. The mag
azine is snapped into place by press
ing the top against a tree stump
and the armless shooter again en-
ploying his teeth puts on the cart
ridge box lid and returns the box to
the pocket in his coat. Then he lifts
the stock of the rifle to his armleSs
socket and draws d bead at the OBJ
feet at which he intends to shoot.
The thong is in the form of loop.
fastened in the barrel and is slipped