slide and bed arrangement of the British “short” rifle. The special feature of the Belgian Mauser is a thin steel casing for the barrel, which is supposed to act as a hand-guard or cooler and to free the barrel from disturbing influences due to its connexion with the fore-end; but it is expensive, and if strong adds unduly to the weight of the weapon. The older German magazine rifle, pattern 1888, had a barrel casing, but this was given up when the new 1898 pattern was introduced. The bayonets of the Belgian and Spanish patterns are very short knives.
Fig. 9.—Belgian Mauser. (Text Book of Small Arms,
by permission.)
Fig. 9a.—Spanish Mauser. (Text Book of Small Arms,
by permission.)
Fig. 10.—German Mauser, 1898. (Text Book of Small Arms,
by permission.)
Fig. 11.—Austrian Mannlicher, 1895. (Text Book of Small Arms,
by permission.)
Fig. 12.—Mannlicher, 1890.
The Mannlicher rifle, which is extensively used for sporting and target work, has been adopted for military purposes by various states, notably Austria-Hungary. Both the 1890 and 1895 patterns of Austrian Mannlicher have “straight-pull” bolts; that is, bolts which are not turned for locking. The bolts are in two parts, which “telescope” into each other. In the 1890 pattern (see fig. 12), when the bolt I is home against the cartridge and the “lever cylinder” I′, which carries the bolt knob, is further pushed forward, the hinged block R is caused to drop in front of the resistance-piece Q, and so locks the bolt I against the cartridge. In the 1895 pattern (see fig. 13). the final pushing forward of the lever cylinder causes the head of the bolt I to turn and projections on its head to lock into recesses SS just in rear of the breech. The turning is due to helical feathers (20) on the inside. of the lever cylinder I′ working in grooves in the rear of the bolt I. The 1890 pattern has a double pull-off. It will be seen from the figure that as the trigger is pulled the bearing is taken first at (8) and then at (9). This gives, owing to the change of leverage, power at the commencement and rapidity at the end of the pull. The weapon is at clip loader. The Dutch, Rumanian and other Mannlichers have not straight-pull bolts, but the usual turn-over levers and locking-lugs.
Fig. 13.—Mannlicher, 1895.
Fig. 14.—Austrian Mannlicher Carbine. (Text Book of Small Arms,
by permission.)
France.—The breech mechanism of this rifle (see fig. 15) calls for no special remark. Its bolt is very similar to that of the British rifle. Its special peculiarity is the once popular tube magazine under the fore-end. This box magazine. It is more has many defects as compared with the cumbrous for the same number of cartridges; its feed and cut-off mechanism is very complicated; the balance of the rifle is altered as the magazine empties; the placing of the cartridges base to point, even when the bullet has a flat point, is not unattended with danger, especially when the magazine is full and the spiral spring strongly compressed; lastly, loading by any form of charger is practically impossible.
Fig. 16.—Lebel Rifle.
United States.—Up to 1904 the U.S. army had the Krag-Jörgensen rifle, in which, as shown in fig. 17, the magazine was placed horizontally under the breech action. At this time most of the second line troops had still the old-fashioned (black powder) Springfield rifle, a single loader with a hinged block similar to the rifles of the “sixties” in Europe, such as the Snider, the Tabatiere and the Werndl.[1] Since 1904, however, the regular army has been re-armed with a short rilie (fig. 18) which in its action has a general resemblance to a Mauser. As at first issued, the new Springfield had a rod bayonet which, when not in use, lay within the fore-end of the stock, and when required was run forward and fastened by a catch. This novelty was, however, soon discarded in favour of a sword bayonet 16 in long. The United States navy had until about 1900 the
Lee “straight-pull” rifle. The Russian “3-line” and the Japanese- ↑ The Springfield was, however, a much improved model of this kind of weapon, dating from 1884 only.
