The system of loading by means of a temporary clip is clearly brought out in the engrav ings. The clip itself, k, is a piece of thin plate steel bent over at its edges to form a groove or rebate, in which the flanges at the bases of the cartridges fit. This groove is open at either end. so that the cartridges are free to slide out. To prevent them chattering out during transit. a light spring, made of a piece of steel ribbon, is laid in the bottom of the groove and holds the flanges of the cartridges firmly against the turned-over edges of the steel strip. But if pressure be applied to the cartridges in a line parallel to the clip, then they can be readily made to slide out of the groove. Provision is made in the body of the rifle for hold ing the clip perpendicularly, or nearly so, over the month of the magazine in such a position that a moderate pressure applied by the thumb to the upper cartridge will feed the whole of them downward into their places. The clip is left standing, supported at the sides and the bottom by the solid metal of the rifle body, and held by the elastic pressure of the piece f. The first movement of the bolt throws out the clip, and the piece f springs back into place.
In the 3larser magazine the cartridges are pushed in sidewise instead of endwise, and yet the spring does not force them out again as soon as the pressure is withdrawn. This results from the construction of the magazine, i. The lips are turned over for nearly the entire length, but they are divided by a straight cut from the sides, and are so elastic that they readily spring apart to receive a charge. They arc, however, sufficiently strong not to be opened by the elastic pressure which forces the cartridges upward. The base of the top cartridge projects above the month of the magazine sufficiently to be caught by the bolt a when it is moved forward. forcing the 'mint of the bullet up an incline into the barrel, and thus spring ing apart the lips of the magazine to allow the cartridge to escape from it.
The feeding arrangement is formed of two leaves, each acted upon by a spring. The botttffil Of the magazine is pi vuted at its rear end, and secured by a screw at its forward end. If this screw be withdrawn a few turns, the of the magazine, with the spring attached to it, drops down, and a few turns more enable the feeder to he detached and withdrawn. By pressing on the button which conies through the front of I he trigger-guard, the catch-lever elm be withdrawn nil the magazine liberated.
The bolt is merely a hollow cylinder of steel with it handle at one cud and two locking bugs at the other, which slide through two grooves in the breech the gun. and on the bolt being rotated lock behind two projections. In fact, they constitute an interrupted screw. The strain of the (.x0419,1011 is thus borne by the base of the bolt and the breech of the barrel, and is not transmitted through the body. The gate, which is cut through one of the locking pieces on the end of the bolt, is made to aceommodate the piece f. A blade hinged Io this piece projects into the body of the rifle, and passes through the gate when the bolt is drawn back. This gate is so deep that the blade is pressed by a spring into the path of the empty case, forcing it out of the grasp of the extractor, and flinging it sidewise out of the arm on to the ground. Also connected to this piece f is a stop which normally prevents the bolt being drawn out of the gun. But by pressing back the piece with the thumb the stop is withdrawn, and the bolt can be removed in less than a second. It can then be taken entirely to pieces in a couple of minutes. and this without tools. To lock the rifle, so that it may not be accidentally fired, there is provided the safety appliance d on the end of the bolt. This is a short spindle with a cam at each end, and a roughed thumb-piece by which it can be turned half-way round. When the spindle is rotated the cam at the front end takes into a recess on the end of the bolt, and locks the latter against being turned, while the cam at the rear end inserts itself before the nut on the end of the striker, and holds it fixed. The barrel is turned parallel to two diameters, the front portion being rather more than half the length. The body is secured to the wooden stock, but the barrel is only clipped to it, and is left perfectly free to expand and contract. It lies in a deep groove in the wood, and is held by parallel clips, which serve as guides. The bore of the barrel is 7.65 mm. in.). The front sight is a barleycorn. The back sight is marked up to 2,050 metres.
The relative differences in operation between the Lee-Speed, IVIannlicher, and Mauser rifles may be summarized as follows: (See Engineering. April 3, 1891.) The German Repeating-Rifle is represented in Figs. 10 and 11, and, as it represents the practice of the foremost military nation in Europe, is of especial interest. It is of the same type as the Mannlicher arm above described. The distinctive feature is the method of issuing and loading the cartridges. These are arranged in packets of five, held together by a light steel clip. The packages, including the clips, are placed in the magazine. The cartridges are fed upward one at a time, and, when the last is loaded into the barrel, the clip falls out of the bottom. The breech is closed by a bolt, which turns down over the magazine. At its forward end this bolt has two lugs. which enter the rear of the chamber in the barrel and lock behind two projections therein. The projections are tapered at. one part, so that when the bolt is turned to lock it. it also advances about in, In unlocking, this motion starts the cartridge. The extractor is mounted on the end of the bolt in front of the lugs. It is let into the side of the loose head, and is secured by the sides of the groove in which it lies, being slightly hammered over. At the opposite side is a disengaging-pin, which is designed to throw out the empty cartridge-case when the bolt is drawn completely back. In Pig. 10 the
end of the pin has struck against a stop in the body, and has been suddenly forced forward, tilting the cartridge-case over to the right and out of the arm. The slop against which the pin strikes, as well as a large stop which stands in the path of the lug, are both mounted on a pivoted spring-arm, and can be instantly withdrawn when it is desired to remove the bolt from the gun. The body of the bolt is exceedingly strong and solid ; the handle is firmly attached to it. and could not be broken off by any violence. The bolt is bored from end to end, and within it are placed the striker and the mainspring. As already stated, the former has a fiat head entering a slot in the extractor, while its point. projects riglit through to reach the cartridge. The rear end of the striker is screwed to receive a nut, which holds all the parts together. It also carries the cocking-catch, which is guided partly by the Unit and partly by a long finger which projects over and bears upon the bolt. A bent on the lower side of the catch also slides in a groove through which the sear of the trigger projects. The cocking is effected by means of two cam-paths, one cut into the wall of the bolt. and the other forming a spur or projection on the cocking-catch. Supposing the arm to have just been fired, these two surfaces lie together, and the bolt forms one continuous cylinder with the cocking-catch. When the bolt is rotated to unlock it, the cocking-catch can not turn at the same time, because its finger lies in the slot cut in the body. The two inclines. therefore, move over one another, and the catch is forced back until the point of its incline rides on the that end of the bolt. The bolt is now drawn back to extract the empty cartridge, and then forced forward to load a full one. In its progress the cocking-catch meets the sear of the trigger. and is held by it, so that when the bolt. is turned these inclines come opposite each other, and the full force of the spring tends to drive the striker forward as soon as the trigger is pulled. If the trigger should be pulled before the bolt is locked the one incline strikes the other, and so prevents the striker reaching the cartridge. There is a safety-catch by which the bolt can he locked, and rendered incapable of being fired until the catch is turned back. This consists of a spindle cut away on one side for a part of its length, and is provided with a thumb-piece to turn it. The spindle lies in a recess in the cocking-catch, and in the finger which projects from the latter. In the position shown in Fig. 10 the spindle offers no oppo sition to the cocking-catch going forward. but if the thumb-piece be turned over to the other side, the uncut end of the spindle takes into a recess in the end of the bolt. and locks all the parts firmly together. The safety-catch also serves to lock the nut on the end of the striker bolt. The spindle is pressed outward by a spring, and its round end takes into a similarly shaped recess in the under side of the nut. By pressing the spindle forward the nut can be released and turned. The magazine is exceedingly compact. and is combined with the trigger guard, as it is not intended to be removed, except at rare intervals. The feeder-spring is a bell-crank, with one arm exceedingly short. This short arm is pressed upon by a plunger, around which is a coiled spring. This gives a very even motion, with little difference of pressure between a full and an empty magazine. The clip, with its complement of cartridges, is thrust into the magazine, and is held by the projection on its back taking into the catch in front of the trigger-guard. By pressing the knob on this catch the holder can be released. and will spring out. upward. The following table gives the dimensions of the rifle: The Schmidt is represented in Fig. 12. This arm has been adopted by Switzerland. Its most striking feature is the large number of cartridges that the magazine contains, viz., 12. Accommodation is found for this large number, without the use of an un wieldy magazine by making them lie alternately right and left. In other words, the width of the magazine is about 1+ time the diameter of a cartridge, and consequently it will admit a very considerable number without being of any great depth. The magazine is filled from packets of cartridges, each containing six ; it therefore requires the contents of two packets to replenish it when empty. It can, however, he supplied with cartridges one at a time, like the Lee-Speed. By means of a " cut-off " the magazine can be put out of action, and the piece used as a single-loader. Under these conditions the reserve remains untouched until the supreme moment of the attack, when a rapid stream of bullets can be poured out. Should the contents of the magazine not be sufficient, a fresh supply can be inserted in 8 sec. The motion for operating the breech-action is entirely rectilinear, as in the Mannlicher system. The bolt is simply pushed in and out, and is not rotated. The locking of the breech•plug is effected at its rear end, at a very considerable distance from the breech. The extractor does not rotate round the cartridge-rim. We learn from the official hand-book of the Swiss 31ili tary Department that the rifle will fire 20 aimed shots a minute when used as a single loader. With the magazine in action it will fire 30 aimed shots in the same time, and 40 shots with out aiming. The successive shots can be fired without removing the rifle from the shoulder. The weight is 9i lbs. The total length of the barrel is 30•i in.: the caliber, •295 in.; the number of grooves in the rifling is 3, and they make one turn in 10.6 in. The bullet is of hardened lead, in a steel envelope; its length is 1.13 in., its diameter •32 in., and its weight .0302 lb. The charge of smokeless powder is 31 grains. This gives an initial velocity of 1,968 ft. a second. A full description of the mechanism of this arm appears in Engineering, October 2, 1891.