The Sunday telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1914-1927, 1915-12-26

this small bore work. Last year only
thirty-six clubs entered the matches
SO that there are double the number
this year. It is expected the matches
will begin the week ending December
Is and they will last for eleven weeks.
The winning team in each class will
receive medals but any club in any
OF the classes can win the national
trophy II they make the highest grand
aggregate in all the matches. Each
club will be represented by a team
OF ten competitors, the j five highest
scores to count for the teams weekly
record. Each man will fire twenty
shots prone at seventy-fiye feet, u.s.
liber rifles with sights other
than telescope anywhere on the rife.
The target used has q half inch COUNT
ing bull with concentric rings one
quarter inch apart, the sighting bull
being two inches In diameter. There is
also a large entry for the inter-col-
legiate league matches. These will
begin the week ending January 49,
and will also last for eleven weeks.
The inter-high school matches and the
military school matches will begin the
same time. Efforts are being made
to get out the targets for the first
match in the school and college
matches so that the teams can shoot
their first match before the Christmas
holidays. In these matches the old
target with the one and one-half inch
sighting bull will be gone back to. The
shooting as formerly will all be done
at fifty feet using the % caIiber rifle
and short cartridge.
The first two weeks in January will
be busy times for the National Rifle
Association and the National Board
for Promotion OF Rifle Practice. The
former will hold its annual meeting Of
the board Of directors at the New Wiz
lard hotel on the evening Of Wednes-
day. January IL, and the following day
the annual meeting Of the national
board will be held in the office OF the
assistant secretary of war. There will
also be meetings OF subcommittee
on rules and range construction and
legislation and It is probable that
meetings will be held with the mil
itary committees OF the house and
senate. At the national board meet
ing 1t will be decided whether there
will be annual matches during 1916.
Sentiment outside of the war depart
ment seems to be unanimous for these
matches to be held annually, but the
department will probably take the
stand that 1t is impossible to
Spare the Troops
for the matches during maneuver year,
which will be in 1916. This objec-
ton could probably be met by the use
OF national guardsmen to do this work.
As to q range for holding the 1915
matches there are still only three
ranges available: Camp Perry, Ohio,
Sparta, Wis, and Jacksonville, Fla.
The Sparta range would require the
of considerable money to
get 1t ready, for the matches. Quarter
master storehouses and mess buildings
would have to be constructed and
considerable repair work done to the
range itself. Sea. Grit, OF course, is
anxious to have the matches and
everybody would be pleased to go to
the beautiful and salubrious seaside
range in New Jersey, but If more than
forty teams should attend the shoot,
1t would be almost impossible for the
Sea Grit range to accommodate the
match and owing to the lay Of the
range 1t is practically impossible to
extend Its size. It has been suggested
that with very little expense and
trouble the Camp Alger range, the
state range Of the Illinois national
guard could be made available for the
national matches II Illinois wanted
them. All required Of the range would
be the construction Of an additional
butt Of fifty targets. AS an alterna-
tive the war department may ask Con-
gress for an appropriation to be made
Immediately available for the con-
struction Of a large federal range
near Washington. Efforts have been
made for the last ten years to provide
the national capitol with a model fed
eral range which. could be used Joint
" by all branches Of the service sta
toned in and around Washington, as
well as the national guard and
Civilian Rifle Clubs,
the high school cadets and the boy
scouts. 1t Is only a matter Of time
when the national guard range at Con.
gress Heights, d. O., will have to be
abandoned. A commission appointed
by the war department Investigated
the question Of a federal range near
the district and reported to Congress
three sites which were available, two
In Virginia and one In West Virginia,
II Is understood that one Of the yir-
ginia sites recommended is within ten
miles Of Warrington and on or near a
local suburban trolley line. Without
doubt all the states Of the union would
welcome and look forward to with
great pleasure sending a state team
to national matches that might be
held In or near the city OF Washing
ton and the, latter part Of September
is generally productive Of ideal wealth
err. The whole questions opens up
possibilities which would mean the |
great enhancement OF rife practice In
terest in this country. Beyond doubt
nothing has ever been done to In
crease this interest as much as the
national matches and the government
Is well repaid for the expenses con.
nected with holding them. Il