Laidley’s Practice Musket

This gun is made out of an old smooth-bore musket, reamed out for a length of 11 inches, for the reception of a coil ribbon spring, on one end of which a closely-fitting piston is placed, having a stem of about 5 inches attached to its centre; a hole is bored through the breech-screw and a cut made on its under side to receive a spring; a circular disk with a flaring hole through its centre is secured in the barrel just in front of the end of the breech-screw; a short lever cro es the end of the barrel just in front of this disk, and is held in position by the spring already referred to; the hole in the cone is enlarged and receives a small spindle with a collar at its middle, which prevents it from coming out. About 12 inches from the breech a horizontal cut is made through the top of the barrel, leaving an opening of 2 inches in length; a cylindrical plug having a hole through its axis is inserted in the barrel at this place, and a handle screwed in. An inner barrel, having a bore of.22 inch and a length of 17 inches, its upper end counter-bored, is inserted in the barrel and secured by a screw; the length of the block is such as to close the space between the chambered rece and the end of the inner barrel. A hole is bored through the side of the stock to communicate with the hole through the breech-screw. A dart is fired from this musket, which when fired into the target is extracted with a claw-tool. The men in firing stand at a distance of 15 paces from the target; and two men use the gun, firing alternately. This is a very useful musket to practice the soldier in rifle-firing. The soldier can also be practiced at long ranges with this gun in the following manner: Place a target at 500 or 600 yards distant, or as far off as convenient, so that it can be seen through the open window; place a target (16 inches square, with a bull’s-eye of.75 inch) 15 paces from the firing-stand, at such a height that the distant target may be seen 4 or 5 inches below the middle of its lower edge; mark on the floor the position for the feet of the man when firing, raise the longer leaf of the sight, aim at the distant bull’s-eye, and fire; the shots will strike the near target if correctly placed, and the accuracy of aim will be shown by the score thus made. The height of the target may have to be adjusted after the first few shots.