FIRE-ARMS. 1. RIFLES.—Single-shot arms have almost wholly given place to those hav ing a repeating or magazine construction for sporting purposes, and have been completely su perseded by the latter for military use, The Winchester Repeating-Rifle during the last decade has appeared in various improved forms. We illustrate the latest, known as the 1S90 model, in Fig. 1, which shows the weapon in its entirety, and also in section closed. The system is a new one, with a sliding fire-arm movement, and is especially suited to small cartridges. The breech-block locks itself in plain view, and is of such size as to permit a strong firing-pin and extractor and offer a good cover to the cartridge-head. The gun locks at each closing movement and can not be opened ex cept. by letting down the hammer or pushing forward the firing-pin. The parts are few and interchangeable. The gun can not be prematurely fired, nor can the hammer be pulled other than at the proper time.
In charging the magazine the milled-head at the top is turned until the tube is unlocked. The inner tube is drawn out until it strikes the stop. The loading-hole is thus opened so that cartridges can be dropped into the magazine until the latter is filled. The magazine of the •22 short-gun will hold fifteen •22 short Winchester cartridges. After the magazine is filled the inner case is pressed down, turned, and so locked. When the hammer is down, the mo tion of the handle backward and forward unlocks, opens, and cocks the gun, forces the car tridge into the chamber and locks the piece. The gun once closed is locked, while the hammer stands at full or half cock. To open the gun without firing or letting down the hammer the firing-pin is pushed forward and the handle simultaneously pulled backward. When the gun stands at half cock it is locked both as to the opening of the breech and the pulling of the trigger. The hammer can not be cocked by the motion of the breech-block from this position, but must be cocked by hand.
The Lee-Spied or English 3agazine Elite, represented in Figs. 2. 3, 4, is the military weapon recently adopted by Great Britain. The illustrations exhibit the principal parts of the bolt-action, The mode of operation of the bolt-action is as follows: The bolt moves backward and forward along the axial line of the barrel. When it is forward, its end fits into the open ing of the barrel, closing it and forming a breech-block. When it is back it leaves a recess, into which a cartridge may be dropped or fed, and when it is again pressed forward it drives the cartridge before it into the barrel, ready to be fired. There are, however, other operations to be performed besides putting the cartridge into the chamber. The bolt must be securely locked so that it can not be driven backward by the powder-pressure into the soldier's face: the mainspring must be compressed ready to drive the striker against the base of the car tridge, and after the charge has been fired the cartridge must be extracted and the empty case thrown out. The locking of the bolt is affected by rotating it on its axis so as to bring its rib behind a projection or snug on the body. In position it is impossible for the bolt to be driven out, unless it should double up under the endwise pressure. The mainspring, which is contained in a recess in the center of the bolt, is compressed by the rear part of the striker meeting with the sear before the bolt is home. The further movement of the bolt
then compresses the spring, which is subsequently released by the trigger. The extractor is a hook pivoted to the head of the bolt, and springs over the rim on the base of the cartridge when the latter.• is driven home. it often requires a very considerable amount of force to dis lodge a cartridge, which, of course, becomes expanded by the explosion. It is customary to effect this at two operations: first it is started a distance of in. to in. by a rotary move ment of the bolt, and then it is pulled out by the straight backward motion. A lug on the bolt, taking into a spiral groove in the body, accounts for the first small 'motion. Turning to the arm before us it will be seen that the body is cat away at the top and bottom (Fig. 1), to allow cartridges to be fed in by hand from above, and also to be pushed up from below out of the magazine, according to circumstances. When the magazine is out of action the car triages are prevented from rising by means of a cut-off. This is a plate pivoted near the front end and provided with a thumb-piece projecting on the right-hand side of the stock (Fig. 2). By pushing this cut-off in it partially covers the mouth of the magazine, and forms a bed for a cartridge to be laid on by hand. By drawing it out it leaves a clear opening for the cartridges to rise from below. There is sufficient of the body left to form a guide to the bolt, and prevent it falling out. At the extreme rear end the bolt is embraced around about three quarters of its circumference, while a guide is formed for the long-rib (Fig. 4), which constitutes a portion of the bolt and prevents it being rotated until it is nearly home. The head of the bolt, with the extractor, which does not share in the rotation of the bolt, is guided by it lip which takes around an undercut rail on the right-hand side of the breech. This piece (Fig. 2) simply moves backward and forward, and is never turned on its axis. It is secured to the bolt by a turned shank, which fits into the latter, and is prevented from drawing out by a set-screw (full-size in illustration). This set-screw passes through the dust guard and is screwed into the bolt ; its point projects into a slot (Fig. 4) formed in the shank of the head to the extent of about in. This slot is of considerable length, to allow of the relative motions of the bolt and its head. The extractor is a hook set in a slot in the bolt head ; it is pivoted on a small screw and is pressed down by a spring, so that it may always catch over the rim of a cartridge. The bolt is bored from end to end. Through the center runs the st riker. At the front this has a needle to impinge on the_ cartridge, and at the rear end (Fig. 1) a spindle to which is attached a cocking-piece that extends below the bolt and engages with the sear on the trigger. The mainspring surrounds this spindle inside the bolt. The is guided by a in the exterior of the bolt when the bolt is with drawn, as in Fig. 1; and also, when the bolt is nearly home, by a groove in the lower side of the body. The cocking-piece does not share in the rotation of the bolt, and to admit of the relative motions two longitudinal grooves are formed in the outside of the bolt, and these two grooves are united by a short inclined groove. A lug in the cooking-piece works in these grooves and prevents the rifle being fired before the bolt is securely locked.