Smokeless Powder

As an admirer of the Springfield 1873 to 1892 trapdoor rifle, I must rush to its defense from the attack on it that accompanied the smokeless-powder piece (“The Tragedy of the Trapdoor Springfield,” by Roger Pinckney). Before its official adoption by the Army in 1873, this fine old rugged rifle was fieldtested and won out over all the leading firearms of the day. The military minds of the times were well aware of the repeating type of rifle and had several under test by the late 187Os but chose to stay with the single-shot type because it best suited the accepted military tactics then in use. However, it is certainly true that the manufacture and use of this arm as standard Army issue well after the introduction of the smokeless-powder high-power magazine rifle in 1886 was a serious error that could have had bad consequences if a major war had broken out.

F. Von Muller
Brooklyn, N.Y.