Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 18.djvu/292

SMALL ARMS. 246 SMALL ABMS. was the weapon used by the regular troops in the war with Spain, and was found to be all that was claimed for it. The Krag-Jijrgensen bullet had a weight of 220 grains, and a velocity of 2200 feet per second. It had an inside of tin and lead composition, and an outer jacket of cupro-nickel steel. Its weight without bayonet was 9.187 pounds, and its total length without bayonet 48.0 inches. The cartridges are put in on the right through a gate, lie side by side, and are pushed sideways across and up into the chamber by a follower. Partly entering the magazine, they are caught by the bolt coming forward, forced on an inclined path into the bore, and supported behind by the bolt, which is locked by lugs and the handle engaging in recesses when rotated. An example of the repeater is the Austrian Mannlicher, a bolt gun, into which is introduced Cvtojf Sidt ■plate ^ FoVovi«r. "' MagaxtBe-'- ifa^azine Spring, V. S. MAGAZINE RIFLE AND CARBISE, CAL. .30. The same cro.s8 section when all but the last cartridge has been fired; tlie magazine is *on' and the bolt opened. from above, through the receiver, a metal packet holding five cartridges. The packet forms an essential part of the mechanism until all its cartridges liave been used, when it falls out. There is no cut-off, as in the Krag-Jijrgensen, by ■which the magazine can be held in reserve; all Safety Lock rmng SaFeiYLock Spindle Thumb Piece/ s/ee,e ^^f" ^P""? firing P,n Sleeve Pin ^L. ,^ -r - ' '■ r-/-""-^'^ S/r,ker regiments, who were for the most part armed with the Springfield .45. The bore of the origi- nal Mauser as adopted for the Prussian military service was 11 millimeters (.43.3 inches) diame- ter, and was rified with four fiat grooves. The length of the barrel was 33.05 inche.s, and the total length 53.15 inches. During the last fift}' years of the nineteenth century, as we have seen, the muzzle-loader was superseded by a single-shot breech-loader, and this in turn by a magazine rifle, which latter weapon is being replaced in some armies by auto- matic rifles ejecting and loading bj' the energy of discharge. During this time there was a constant decrease in the calibre until 1895, when some reaction was felt. The average is now- about .30 inch, that of the United States gun. The wisdom of arming the soldier with an automatic magazine rifle is a subject of grave debate among military authorities. It is argued on the one hand that the percentage of hits with repeating fire weajjons indicates wasteful and badly directed fire, and such an arm is strongly subversive to good fire disci- pline, besides adding considerably to the ali-eady complex problem of ammunition suppl.y. On behalf of the automatic and magazine systems it is urged that the soldier is in a constant state of readiness, and that, notwithstanding its un- doubted tendenc,v to wastefulness, its faults are more than compensated for in critical moments when rapid-fire action is of vital importance. In 1903 the tendency was to reduce the length of the barrel and increase the strength of the charge ; to increase the magazine capacity, and, where such was not already employed, to replace the detachable magazine with a clip. In the United States the Springfield magazine rifle, model 1902, has been adopted as the military weapon. It differs from the weapon that is dis- P Parrel I' Stock r/oirP/ale fy='"'^^P"9 , ,^.ior Plate Catch y floor Plate Catch Sprinp 'Guard C D Guard Screw Bushing TJ. 8. BPBINGFIELD MAGAZINE RIFLE, MODEL 1902. LONGITUDINAL SECTION. five cartridges must be fired before any more can be put in. The Mauser rifle was a modification of the French Chassepot, constructed for the use of the military gas-check cartridge. It was first adopted by the Prussian Government as the successor of the needle gun, but it has been so frequently improved that in 1903 it still remained one of the most effective of modern military weapons. The Spanish troops were armed with the Mauser magazine rifle during the Spanish-American War, and derived from it a great advantage in effective rifle fire over the American volunteer placed in that it is centrall.y fed by clips, and the bolt has two lugs instead of one. The barrel has four grooves, and a calibre of 0.30. The bullet weighs 220 grains, and is fired by a pow- der charge of a little over 44.5 grains, giving a pressure of 4200 poimds per square inch and an initial velocity of 2300 feet, a velocity at 1000 yards of 958 feet, and a muzzle energy of 2581.6 foot pounds. The rifling in the barrel makes one turn in 8 inches. The magazine is charged from a clip, the cartridges being forced from it directly into the magazine by pressure of the thumb on the top of the cartridge. The clip is