. The birds of Shakespeare; critically examined, explained, and illustrated. Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616; Birds. BIRDING-PIECES. 165 detection; and the wheel-lock was an article too expensive for them to purchase, as well as being liable to get out of order ; so this lock was devised, and was suggested, no doubt, by the wheel-lock. It consisted in the substitution of flint for pyrites, and a furrowed plate of steel in lieu of the wheel. When the trigger was pulled, it brought this jagged piece of steel in collision with the flint, which threw down its shower of sparks into the open pan, an
. The birds of Shakespeare; critically examined, explained, and illustrated. Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616; Birds. BIRDING-PIECES. 165 detection; and the wheel-lock was an article too expensive for them to purchase, as well as being liable to get out of order ; so this lock was devised, and was suggested, no doubt, by the wheel-lock. It consisted in the substitution of flint for pyrites, and a furrowed plate of steel in lieu of the wheel. When the trigger was pulled, it brought this jagged piece of steel in collision with the flint, which threw down its shower of sparks into the open pan, and lighted the priming. This improvement apparently took place about the close of the sixteenth century. There is a very early " snap-hance" in the Tower Collection, numbered \^. It is a " birding-piece" of Prince Charles, afterwards King Charles I., date 1614, and furnishes a good illustration of the form of gun in use in Shakespeare's day. It is engraved both on lock and barrel. The butt is remarkably thin ; the length of the. whole arm is four feet two inches, and was consequently. Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - coloration and appearance of these illustrations may not perfectly resemble the original Harting, James Edmund, 1841-1928. London, John Van Voorst
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1870, booksubjectbirds, booksubjectsha
