  TARGET-SHOOTING In the development of firearms and ammunition, target-shooting has always occupied an important place. It is regularly and systematically practised in the army and navy, in order to maintain and improve the proficiency of the men as marksmen. Target-shooting, with many different styles of firearms, under prescribed rules and regulations, has also become extremely popular with civilians. Target-shooting was indulged in extensively with the rifle before it became popular with the pistol and revolver. The shorter barrel, and the greater difficulty in acquiring skill with the latter weapons, were doubtless responsible for the mistaken idea, long prevalent, that these arms were extremely inaccurate. When, however, a few individuals developed sufficient skill to obtain fine shooting, their performances were considered phenomenal. Among the first to obtain a high order of skill with the muzzle-loading pistol in the United States was Captain John Travers of Missouri. He was well known In 1865 Colonel William F. Cody, (Buffalo Bill) and Captain William P. Schaaf of St. Louis became prominent as pistol shots. The latter subsequently joined Captain Travers in a three years’ tour of the United States, giving exhibitions in nearly all the large cities. About 1880 Ira Anson Paine, a native of Massachusetts, attracted attention by his fine marksmanship with the pistol. In 1881 he went abroad, and for a number of years he traveled over the principal countries of Europe, giving public exhibitions of his skill with the pistol and revolver. While in Portugal in 1882 he was knighted by the King in the presence of a notable assemblage, and made a chevalier of an ancient military order. In his exhibitions Chevalier Paine used a Stevens Lord Model pistol and a Smith & Wesson revolver. His skill with these arms was so far in advance of his contemporaries that he was popularly supposed to accomplish many of his feats by trickery. The same year a similar match was announced at the fall meeting of the Massachusetts Rifle Association at Walnut Hill. Chevalier Paine was a competitor in this match, and made 50—49—49==148 in six entries. The next best three scores equalled 142. These matches proved so interesting and successful that target-shooting with the pistol and revolver became instantly popular all over the country. It was soon found that the arms possessed remarkable accuracy, and as the skill of the shooters improved the distance was increased to 50 yards retaining the same target. Fig. 67.—John A. DietzFig. 68.—E. E. PatridgeFig. 69.—Sergt. W. E. Petty Mr. A. C. Gould, editor of The Rifle, and Shooting and Fishing, was the first one to recognize the possibilities of the pistol and revolver,
This rivalry led to a long newspaper controversy, and culminated in the famous Paine-Bennett revolver match. The conditions were as follows: Stakes $1000.00; 100 shots per day for six consecutive days; Smith & Wesson In practising for this match Mr. F. E. Bennett, under the same conditions, made a score of 915. This record was not excelled until June 1, 1901, when C. S. Richmond of Savannah, Georgia, scored 918 points under substantially the same conditions. During the summer of 1890, Mr. William E. Carlin, assisted by Mr. Hubert Reynolds, made a very elaborate series of tests with the revolver and various kinds of ammunition, to ascertain the possibilities of the arms, the accuracy of the ammunition, the effect of fouling, etc. About 10,000 rounds were fired, Mr. Carlin used a butt-stock attachment, telescopic sight, and sand bag rest; and Mr. Reynolds verified The best groups were made with the .32-44 S. & W. Revolving rifle cartridge; a number of the 10-shot groups at 50 yards, measuring 1¼ inches to 1½ inches in diameter. Tests were also made at ranges of 100 and 200 yards. At 100 yards, groups of 10 shots were obtained with the .32-44, and the .44 caliber S. & W. Russian, varying from 3 inches to 4 inches in diameter. At 200 yards, the .44 S. & W. Russian gave the best results; a number of groups of 10 shots being obtained measuring 8 inches to 12 inches in diameter. These tests were considered most remarkable at that time, as such accuracy was not expected of barrels of only 6 inches and 8 inches in length. Prior to these tests, the possibilities of the pistol and revolver were judged solely by the shooting of a few expert shots, which of course included the personal dispersion error of the individuals. These tests furnished the first definite information as to the real capabilities of the revolver, and had a far-reaching and salutary influence on pistol and revolver shooting. They demonstrated to the marksmen and the manufacturers of the arms that A very interesting revolver match for a trophy offered by Mr. Walter Winans took place in 1892. Mr. Winans is a noted American revolver shot, residing in England, and the trophy—an American cowboy executed admirably in bronze—was modeled by him. The match was conducted by Forest and Stream. The trophy was won, after a spirited competition, by Doctor Louis Bell. Under the conditions of the match, the winner was to defend his title two years before the trophy became his property. The trophy was won successively by George E. Jantzer and Sergeant W. E. Petty. Sergeant Petty defended the trophy successfully for two years, and now holds it permanently. A record, or “best on record,” is the highest recognized score of any given number of shots fired under certain standard conditions, and with an arm complying with certain established rules. The records of pistol and revolver shooting in the United States were carefully established and compiled by Shooting and Fishing until the year 1903. Fig. 70.—J. E. GormanFig. 71.—R. H. SayreFig. 72.—A. F. Lane 100 Shots—
50 Shots—
Under the stimulating influence and encouragement of Shooting and Fishing, pistol and revolver shooting became a popular pastime and by 1900 numerous clubs had been organized throughout the country. Unfortunately, the marksmen of each locality made their own rules and adopted independent standards as to targets, weapons, etc. This resulted in endless confusion and dissatisfaction when matches between clubs were attempted. Rumors of a challenge from the revolver marksmen of France for an international contest were also rife at this time. There was, therefore, an urgent need for a national organization to A number of revolver enthusiasts met in Conlin’s shooting gallery, New York City, in February, 1900, and issued a call to the revolver shots of the country, inviting them to join in forming a national revolver association at a meeting called at Conlin’s gallery, March 5, 1900. Replies were received from thirteen states and thirty-five gentlemen responded in person to the invitation. The United States Revolver Association[12] was organized at that meeting. This association, with the support and coÖperation of all the leading shots of the country, immediately assumed national jurisdiction, formulated rules to govern pistol and revolver shooting, and inaugurated the annual championship matches. These are shot simultaneously in different parts of the United States, thus giving everybody an opportunity to enter the competitions. The influence of the association on pistol and revolver shooting has been very beneficial. It has established uniformity in arms, rules, etc., Fig. 73.—J. H. SnookFig. 74.—George ArmstrongFig. 75.—P. J. Dolfen The most important activity of the association in recent years has been the inauguration of the Indoor League Matches. Clubs in all parts of the United States enter into an agreement to shoot a match with each club in the League during the winter season. Medal prizes are awarded by the association according to the percentages of matches won to matches shot, similar to baseball leagues. The League has become exceedingly popular and twenty to thirty clubs participate in the contest annually. The League agreement varies somewhat from year to year. The 1914 agreement will be found in the Appendix. International Matches.—The U. S. Revolver Association also negotiates and conducts all the international matches. The first of these matches was between France and the United States and took place on June 16, 1900. This match attracted world-wide attention, and was won by the United States. The conditions of the match were as follows; Ten men on a side; the Americans to shoot at Greenville, N. J., and the Frenchmen in Paris. Results to be cabled. Following are the complete scores of the members of both teams on the two targets: French Team—
American Team—
The first match did not satisfy the revolver The conditions of the second match were the subject of considerable negotiation by correspondence and as finally agreed upon were as follows: Fifteen men on a side. Each man to shoot 60 shots in 10 strings of 6 shots each on the Standard American Target at 50 yards. Each side to appoint two umpires to witness the shooting of their opponents. Results to be cabled. The American marksmen assembled at the Walnut Hill range of the Massachusetts Rifle Association, near Boston, devoting three days to preliminary practice shooting and selecting the team. It was originally agreed upon that the match was to take place on June 30, 1903, and the American team shot their scores on that day. Owing to delays in transportation, the targets intended for the French team did not reach them promptly and their side of the French Team
American Team
The next international match participated in by the revolver shots of the United States was the Olympic Games Match at London, England on July 10 and 11, 1908. Preliminary and elimination trials were conducted under the auspices of the United States Revolver Association resulting in the selection of the following team: I. R. Calkins, Springfield, Mass.; C. S. Axtell, Springfield, Mass.; J. A. Dietz, New York, N. Y.; and J. E. Gorman, San Francisco, Cal.; R. H. Sayre, New York, N. Y., Captain. The conditions of the match were as follows: Any revolver or pistol with open sights; any ammunition; trigger pull unrestricted; distance, 50 yards; international target, 10 ring, 2 inches in diameter, rest of target divided by concentric rings one inch apart, bull’s-eye containing 10, 9, 8, and 7 rings; 60 shots in strings of 6 shots; 2 sighting shots allowed; position standing, right or left hand with arm extended; maximum number of entries from any country in individual contests, 12; maximum number of entries from any country in team contest, 1; teams to consist of four men each. The result of the match was as follows:
The next Olympic Contest was held at Stockholm, Sweden, in 1912. The American team consisted of A. P. Lane, New York, N. Y.; H. E. Sears, Boston, Mass.; P. J. Dolfen, Springfield, Mass.; and John A. Dietz, New York, N. Y.; R. H. Sayre, New York, N. Y., Captain. The match was shot on July 2nd, under practically the same conditions as the former Olympic Match and resulted as follows:
In the individual match which was shot on July 1st under the same conditions, and participated in by over fifty competitors of the different nations, Mr. Lane and Mr. Dolfen won first and second places with scores of 499 and 474 respectively. Mr. Sears won 7th place with a score of 459, and Mr. Dietz 9th place with a score of 454. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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