.TIIE SUXDAT OREGOXIAN. TORTIiAND. JtfLY 23, 1911.
M . . r I
WITH the new high-power ser
vice rifle used now by the
Regular Army and National
Guard the problem of shooting
straight has become a complex
one The:man;with a vise-likegrip,
perfect eyes and cool nerves often un
able to hit target-that his physical
inferioicalmly riddles at 1000 yds.
Instructing Oregon National Guards
men in Modern Shooting Methods
WITH the high power rlrlea and
ammunition that have been de
veloped In recent years for mod
sra warfare the problem of accuracy In
shooting has becoma an Intricate one.
5t la no longer a question of firm holding
and steady nerves. There haa come to
"be greater requirements than a mere
knack for shooting straight. The rifle
man who distinguish? a himself on the
"rifle range must rover a broad field of
pex-lal study and prarttre. these days.
Not long aro the training of troops In
ammcjr was a simple task. The man
rwitti a vise-like grip, a good eye and
steady nerves usually g"t away with the
honors In competitive meets. Now the
cu of the greatest physical possibili
ties Is apt to finish at the tall of the
procession. The spectacle of a diminu
tive man of etu .ouametn. eye glasses
and frail physique surp.-isslng his more
ambust companions on the target ranee
Is a common one.
Put man In the field yards from
a target, the center of wtilrh Is a Mark
cirri M Inches In diameter, and his
chanrea of hitting It are very small
vnlesa he has had a lot of preliminary
'instruction and la ahle to do consMer
wbla Independent thinking for himself.
ven though he raise his sight accu
rately and hold with. nice precision, the
hancea are that the bullet lie drives
"will bo wide of the whole tnrget uf
hlcb the black circle Is the center.
Kf fect of the Klrments.
For In covering such a distance the
tiny, swiftly-sent missile Is subject to
many conditions. Heat, humidity, light.
4ay of the Intervening ground and move
oient of the atmosphere ail play Import
ant parte. The successful marksman
must know of all these obstacles and
be able to gauge them properly. He
must know Just how much extra eleva
tion to take on or leave off for heat and
light, and bow much windage to allow
for the wind which may be blowing from
mi most any direction. For example. r .
.ha wind la blowing from the targets
he adds a small degree of elevation,
"while If there la an accelerating wind,
tending to add tmpetua to the flight of
ha builet. he drops Ms elevation. Just
liow much allowance to make for each
passing change of wind 'la one of the
many problema that must be met.
The same problema obtain at the other
long ranges, becoming simpler only after
the SdO-yard point has been reached. Even
wt ta yards off-hand shooting, light and
heat affect 'he flight of the high-power
bullet, although here It la more a matter
of steady holding, and every passing
cloud and change of breese does not
have to be taken so clearly Into ac
count. Lone courses of special Instruction
have accordingly been established by
the War Department for the Regular
Army and National Guard, while the
f-avy Department haa similar courses
for blue Jackets, marines and all offi
cers and men of the Navy who might
have occasion to use the rifle In wur
fare. These Instruction course are
be coming more complicated and exact
ing each year, and every Inducement
Is being offered to men who reach the
ability to make high scores. In the
regular service additional pay Is given
to sharpshooters and ex?rt riflemen.
To promote rifle accuracy In the Na
Compensation
yaial f rrereediag Cbapter.
Kenater Antbaar ihI and his wife. Ju
liet. ( Oblot are prominent In Washing
ton. Ik C. society at a time supposed ta
Include president Roosevelt's Admlnlttra
Itop.. end the story opens with their B"tng
1- tho eemtnc-ottt party of Miss Kithtwn
Wtrrti a yousg trl whom they had met
years previously, other sueats at the party
are Venator Itarwood. Carter llawsnl. the
evenator-s aephew. and Lucile rase., a
frlead of tb Henalnrs. T"l Neleon Hsr
wood pare marked attention to Kathleen,
a fart that la noted by Major Warrens, the,
yeint Mfl faih.r. A dehale Is depleted
In the t'nlled states Henate. where Xena
Inr Steele delivers a epeerb In favor of
railroad reanlatkon. senator lUrwood, who
l In the employ of the "Interests." oppoees
Steele. Chrtetmas ev-o In Waehlncton. P.
. ki pit-tared and Mrs. (iteele bun a doll
for a rruif little slrL The Steele !
a New Tear party at their eamp. and some
ef the guests Indalse In elev-r vaadevtlle.
among them being Kathleen Warrens, who.
to the d let reee of her married slater. lor
othea. gives a apanleh -lenre In eoetume.
aenator Steele srooe Indifferent to bis wife,
ahd snapoct H Is rranr la loe with
Kataieoa. Mrs. Iae arrlres. becomes
suspicious ef the reiatiors existing betweea
gteeia and Kathleen and Is saved by the
latter from Delnc barfly burned when bee
d reee catehea fl re. aeaor te I .a V ca a
firetga diplomat, become lntertc4 In
Kathieaa and take her and ether members
of the party for a ws:k through the snow
to Paid Maantala. They becom toet. and
etteel aad Carter erganla a searching
parlj.
CHAPTER VII.-Concluded.
But Steele shook his head. ".No! They
haven't gono back, and I'm 'going to
fnd them. Ton stay right here by this
tree, and 111 puah on to that other cor
ner of the forest and civ a few shouts.
Then If they don't answer. I win come
back here and we ran decide on ti.a
rest move. He strode off with his
lantern, forgetting that his feet were
I.eavy with cold or that his fingers
a-ere toe numb to bead round the lan
tern handle. Round and round In front
of hla f.aahed those two names, stop,
ping only spasmodically. Ilka flgurea
lata. avrvuic tie w&eel. to torture him wita
tional ".uard of tha country the Gov
ernment pays for the sending of teams
of 1 men from each slate to the Na
tional rlflo meet held earh year at
Tamp Perry. O . on the south shore of
Lake Erie. Tliesn teams are taken In
special Pullman cam with all their ex
penses and full paid. In addition the
Government furnlshea ammunition In
endless quantltlea for range practice,
which Is kept up on loco rifle ranges
from May to October. Ptirlng the
Winter months gallery practice In bar
racks and armories is kept up. Thus
everybody In the military service of
the country is kept shooting at regu
lar Intervals the year around. Millions
of rounds of ammunition are used each
year In order that the ability to drive
bullets through the brains or bowel
of fellow human h-ings may be main
tained a high standard.
As tinted In the small arms firing
regulations. It Is- the Infantry that
must always be the most Important
f tor In, an engngement of all arma.
Iiy Infantry fire will the result of most
bsttles bo determined. "
And as the effect of Infantry fire de
pends upon the number of hits made,
rather than upon the number of shots
fired. It follows that soldiers who can
not hit what they shout at on the field
of battle are of little value.
In the Oregon National Ounrd ex
traordinary efficiency Is marked In the
rar.ee work. Not only Is the Oregon
Guard able to win a classification from
the War Iepartment as on of the best
organizations In the country from tha
standpoint of marksmanship, but the
picked teams sent each year to the
National matches have won high hon
ors. Knr several years past the Oregon
tram haa been In Class A. compoaed.
of the lending li rifle teams of the
I'nlted Ftates. regular service Included
In the list. At this time a score of the
best riflemen of the state sen-Ice are
at the Clarkari.is Station rifle range
engaged In practice preparatory to
starting Kast the early part of August
to enter the National matches.
Many Itcwanl for Marksinrn.
To the man who develops proficiency
In shooting straight there are many
special awards. Not only does ha get
rash awards, medala and trophies, but
he gora to state and National matches
at the Government's expense. If he
haa a special aptitude there Is a chance
for hlra on the National team, which
goea abroad each year for the Interna
tional matches. It Is a game In which
no favorites are played. The humblest
recruit In the rear rank may leap Into
National prominence aa a rifleman and
have a doxen military organisations
clamoring for his aervlcea If he can
perform the magical feat of shooting;
straight.
Aa Indicating how little a clear eye
and steady nerve, unsupported by
training really count. It la recalled by
local riflemen how the .Arizona and
New Mexico rifle teams made their Ini
tial appearance at a National compe
tition several years ago. The teams
were made up of crack shots from the
ranges cowboys, deputy sheriffs, fron
tiersmen and men generally handy
with firearms.
These men got along admirably In
the off-hand shooting events at 200
yards and even did fairly well In the
rapid firing at 20 yards. But when
their sinister characters Kathleen and
Pe la Vega Kathleen and Do la Vfti
and Kath
What waa that? A woman's voice!
I'nsteadlly he called, and bis heart
stood still while he waited. Tes. It was
her voice, faint but but hers! He
crashed deeper Into the woods, railing
to her aa reassuringly aa his throat
would let him. that he waa there, that
he waa coming to her Just a few min
utes more! And at last he found them,
huddled In opposite corners of a little
hut. built by the foresters In the Sum
mer. le la Vega waa chattering' with
the cold, and whlnlngly begged tor
brandy the moment Steele came in
sight; but Kathleen only looked at him
with dumb, hurt eyes. Setting down
hla lantern, he felt for his task and
pressed It to her lips; then he poured
out a small cupful of Qe liquor and
handed It contemptuously to the Vene
suelan. ,
Carry the light." he ordered, nod
ding curtly towards the cringing man,
all of whose suavity had perished In
the freezing night- "There la no use
In your trying to walk." he added to
Kathleen, who was attempting to take
a few uncertain step, "you will have
to let me carry you." And he picked
her up In his arma and started off after
IV la Vega, hla mouth grim with ex
pression. Kor some minutes more Kathleen
was unable to speak a word, then she
whispered brokenly. "Oh. If you
hadn't come" and :eele felt her tear
on his hand.
The blood pounded Into hi eyes.
"Was It the cold?" ha asked In a low.
restrained voice, "or or worse?"
"W'orsa." He could hardly hear her
answer. "If If you had not come Just
when you did! But. I prayed that you
would come I was sure that you v-juld
my dearest friend."
His arma held her closer, and they
went on several yards In alienee until
they came to th.a tree where Bruce, sod
7 : vr;
a. V ar J, 1 . V-. 1 iV 1 ' 3
jccjz.cs " jesfaoTwa core "
ntlHHI.. MMII'L"" lu'"'l w
r
1
'. k-; 1. -
- A NoCfcl of W$st?i pton
7K Anbe tVsrvicK(Miis Ruth (Version.)
Carter stood waiting. It was a queer
little .procession that wound back to
tho camp; first Melmouth and De la
Vega, carrying the lanterns, then
Steele with Kathleen In his arms, and
finally Carter, whose fine thin face
looked strained and 111. They pushed
through the snow steadily-for half an
hour.
"Am I not too heavy?" Kathleen
asked once.
"You heavy!" he laughed down at her
tenderly. "You child!" His strength
gave her strange comfort, and she
sighed contentedly.
"Wasn't It odd that of all the world
I should think or you." she aaid sud
denly, "and that I should be so aure
you would find me In time?"
'Was It odd?" his eyes met hers,
worshipping her Innocence. "I don't
think so: because once when I needed
help very badly, you came In time to
give It- and those accounts always bal
ance themselves In the long run."
"I came " she began, puzzled.-
"Yes. quite unconsciously you helped
me out Just when I needed you most
when life had come to a standstill for
me so you aee It was only natural that
you should call on me to repay a frac
tion of the debt."
Kathleen nodded. "I see. Of course.
That is all life is. anyway, a continual
borrowing and paying back. Isn't it?
Do you know," she went on directly,
looking up at him with frank, uncon
scious eyes. "It may seem very pre
sumptuous, but I feel that we are such
close friends that even though you are
older and all. I can't after tonight
call you Senator Steele any more." Ills
throat seemed to suffocate the breath
back Into his lungs a she went on.
"When I called to you in my heart In
the forest. I called you Anthony do
you mind?"
Tt passion, in. hie eyea waa dynamic.
1
'
AH
i ' fir V '
.r
4 W:V
V -
could she have seen It; but be an
swered quite quietly.
"I am glad you called me that, little
friend, and I certalnjy don't mind. I. "
he stopped abruptly. The lights of the
camp had come into sight and with
them the enforced returning to imper
sonalities. But she made it hard for him. Com
ing back to a home, and lights, and
people, seemed to Impress her more se
riously with the full significance of the
thing she had escaped, and she clung to
him with almost hysterical gratitude.
"I couldn't see them all tonight." she
pleaded. "Just tell them we lost our
way at least I did."
"I'll tell them." he promised shortly,
as he put her down at last.
"And Anthony I can never, never
thank you I you know all I mean to
say." she stopped unsteadily.
"I know," he said, gripping her
hands. "But there Is no need to say
It. little friend, because I would come
and find you. If you called to me from
the end of the world!" -
He saw her up to her room, and then,
without daring to look at her. he hur
ried away, saying that he would Bend
a maid and Juliet.
In the living-room he found the lit
tle group of watchers gathered about
De la Vega, who, iiowever, did not seem
to be particularly talkative. "We lose
our way," was all he had to offer, and
he was only too eager to get into a
sleigh and be driven home with Mrs.
Page the latter in a very bad temper
because no one had paid the sllg!est
attention to her for hours. Even In
her Irritability, however, she noticed
that none of the men shook hands with
the Venezuelan, and that Steele did not
speak to him at all. Anthony had
gone at onre to Juliet, asking her to
run up to Kathleen he used the Chris
tian name quite unconsciously "and
keep Mrs. Merrill away." he added; "I
don't thlnlt sho could, stand ner wall
t :tsv -..f will .S , - n - - w . 'iW s
I ' " m
fam"'! T " ''asy.gygByWaryjs.xMl
-. - A, - vf , . .k -c ry v f'-ifv---.-- ;f -i' - s-' - - yfe.-- g .
"
Lr-.
ing, after all she has been through to
night."
"Wag It very horrible for her, Tony?"
asked Juliet, e
"Yes," said steel tersely; "It was."
The clear white of his wife's face
colored deeply, and she went swiftly
upstairs. Kathleen did not offer any
details of the episode, which left Juliet
so much the wiser as to what the girl
had suffered. She helped the maid to
put Kathleen to bed. and sat by her
until late, looking down at the flushed
young face with an Infinite compas
sion In her faithful eyes.
For a long time the girl was fever
ish and every now and than ' would
seize Juliet's hands, in frantic recol
lection of the afternoon. But towards
morning she grew drowsy and relaxed
her hold on the cool fingers. She had
that delicious sense of floating off
Into -space, held by some one big and
strong and tender. She forgot De la
Vega, she forgot how cold it was, she
forgot Dad and Aunt Ann and all he"r
world: she forgot even that she was
Kathleen Warren She only reached
up her arms with sleepy yearning and
drew them down again to her heart,
dreamily conscious of a man's gray eyes
gazing Into hers, and of being held
quietly against his big, protecting body.
She could not remember who he was:
she only knew that he had come and
found her where was that? Ah, at
the end of the world! "With an ador
able smile curving her mouth, she
pressed her head deeper Into the hol
low of his arm, and fell asleep.
CHAPTER VIII
"Women go further in love than most men.
but men go further in friendship than
women." La Bruyere.
THE return to Washington was an
unmixed relief to the party at the
camp.
To Steele the last three months of
that session, during which Kathleen ,
fr .T 'i' .-je .atTi
5 " f .
Accuracy in Rifle Fire
Reduced to an Exact Science
by Military Experts
"
'szgZJ e
STATE CQMttTJTSOJV i,, J , -
they got back to 600 and 1000 yards and
attempted to make skirmish runs tliey
were unable to get on the targets
and finished the competition at the
tail end of the procession. It was a
rude awajening 4 these "crack shots"
from the hills and plains. Of the vary
ing effects of the elements on the
flight of a bullet they knew nothing. .
In teaching the modern soldier to
shoot the instructors begin the week
he enters the ranks and impart to him
a thorough understanding -of the
nomenclature of the rifle. He Is also
told of the general principles govern
ing the motion of projectiles. After
that he is put through a long period
of tripod sighting drills, in order that
he may learn to properly hold his
weapon. For instance, should he un
wittingly turn or cant his piece to
right or left the course of the bullet
would be altogether changed and ac
curacy could not be" arrived at. After
being further instructed holding, aim
ing and handling the trigger he is let
Into the indoors gallery, where he ex
periments with .23 caliber' ammuni
tion. t
Developing Good Shots.
In the course of six months or a
year he is taken onto the rifle range.
Ususally in his first 10 shots here he
makes say 10 points out of 50. And
the same man after a few months of
practice may be able to register 35,
40, 45 or even 46. 47 and occasionally
60 points out of 50 points possible. The
relative value of a man who is trained
on the range and one who is not is ob
vious, therefore.
In modern warfare the fighting is
largely at long ranges, at least the
preliminary stages of combat are at
1000 yards ,and upwards. The ten
dency of untrained men in action is to
fire low. The mere blazing away and
burning up of ammunition in action
i herd come to influence him. asserted
themselves forever on his memory in
the painful capitals of Reconstruction.
It was only with slow, difficult grad
ing that he was able to get from his
ingrown artificialities down to the
working level of his new purpose.
Trying to base the outlet of his forces
on Kathleen's ideal of what he "owed
the rest" he came into possession of
a new ideal of his own, the mere fact
of which thrilled his energy from its
coma Into Inspiration. He plunged
into work with a feverish eagerness.
Interesting himself in many things
outside of ' legislative reform; going
South to speak before workingmen's
clubs and North to inspect personally
certain factories charged with illegal
employment of -hlld-labor. All' Win
ter he slaved with the persistence of an
enthusiast, finding that he could work
off any amount of discouragement and
baffled desire by simply going at it
deeper and with unconditional convic
tion. And," greatly to his credit, since
he was by nature an egoist, Steele
steadily refused to turn the Influence
which came to him through his new
semi-socialistic activity into a means
towards self-advancement. He was not
a poser, he did not strut about pro
claiming the brotherhood of man,
with one eye always on the
aggrandisement of his own rep
utation; nor did he set himself up as a
petty political, demagogue for the wor
ship of a lazy set of fanatical paupers.
But with absolute singleness of pur
pose he did try to pay back what he
had ' taken, without an idea of reci
procity, throughout all his career. And
tha) only selfish intention underlying all
this was his struggle to forget Kath
leen. -
He saw her very seldom since they
had been on the mountain together.
She was busy with balls and receptions
and house-parties all the conventional
debutante frivolities and ,they met
T'
achieves little more than the Chinese
practice of using hideous masks to
scare the enemy, military experts
aver. But the riflemen who can de
liberately and accurately estimate the
range and then gauge prevailing
weather conditions so as to send bul
lets into the ranks of a distant enemy
are the ones who decide battles. In
the modern extended order fighting
formations the only way to stop an ad
vancing skirmish line is to pick off tha
individual units.
Intricacies of Skirmish Fire.
Skirmish firing is the most difficult
of all. In this class of fire the rifle
man advances down the range on a
small silhouette representing the head
and shoulders of a man. Here the
highest order of training and intelli
gence counts for the range changes
with each volley and the marksmen
must rapidly gauge the changed con
dition of the various ranges. Peep
sights may not be used under the new
regulations and judgment must be
used in the highest degree. The test
is one that sums up all the abilities of
the rifleman and extraordinary scores
are few. Yet in the recent state rifle
competition at Clackamas Station a
Portland National Guardsman, Ser
geant O. A. Stevens, scored 96 points
out of 100 possible in a skirmish run,
a feat for which he was awarded a
gold medal by the state. It Is one of
the best scores that has been made In
the United States within the past year.
With the splendid new range at
Clackamas (it is the best equipped
range in the West) the Oregon guards
men are redoubling their efforts
towards attaining the highest possible
efficience and there is a fixed ambition
to develop not only a high figure of
merit in the entire guard but to send
East ultimately a team that will bring
back one of the famous National tro
phies. only at the larger affairs where for
mality brought the ;ounger and the
diplomatic sets together. On one of
these occasions Steele had noticed that
she barely recognized Garcias de la
Vega when he spoke to her, and that
the sight of the man still brought a
film of terror across her eyes. It
seemed centuries and centuries to An
thony since he had carried her home
through the snow that evening. Think
ing of it as he did night after night
when his weary brain refused to coin
more, he almost came to thank the
hated Venezuelan for allowing him that
one memory to dream upon. Yet he
ground his teeth in a never-lessening
storm of rebellion when he remem
bered the crushed passivity that had
dulled Kathleen's eyes the day after
the episode.
He had suggested that it would do
her good to go with him and drive
Melmouth to his train, and she had as
sented with a lethargic obedience that
brought a quick ache to his throat.
Only at the station did she seem to
rouse her usual enthusiasm: she re
sponded heartily when Bruce told her
he was going back to New York and
really meant to work.
"And I may come to see you some
times?" he asked.
"Indeed yes, I hope you will, sne
answered with warm cordiality. But
on the way home, sitting with An
thony, she relapsed Into her former
numb silence, until he found it un
bearable. Finally she had" reached for his hand
under the fur robe and clung to it,
"I'm so alone," she cried, with tears in
her voice? "oh, Anthony, I want my
mother!"
And he had fixed his eyes ahead
and gripped her hand with cruel inten
sity. "Perhaps Miss Ann could help
you," he suggested. ,
(To Be Continued"
4