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April 2004
What could be a more fitting way to start out my April pictures than with five of the super elusive 'Southern' Game Loads, a veritable Royal Flush in the shotshell collecting field. Produced in extremely limited numbers, these shells were intended for use on those critters that are considered to be game animals (and for which old family recipes tend to be coveted) only south of the Mason-Dixon line. The popularity of these shells far exceeded the manufacturer's expectations, to the extent that they are almost unheard of today. As a result, most seasoned shotshell collectors have doubted their existence for years, brushing off any mention of the shells as folklore and urban legend. This picture should cast any and all doubt aside, providing the serious Game Load collector who has managed to hang onto his sense of humor with five more holes to fill in his collection. Who says there aren't any good ones left out there? The 'rest of the story'. To avoid causing any confusion among collectors, I need to say at this point that these shells are a product of my overactive imagination - an April Fools grouping of Game Loads that never existed. But you have to admit that the story seems plausible, and the shells do look pretty convincing.
A great Phoenix box.....
On to more serious stuff. Here's a great old box of .38 long rimfire cartridges made by the Phoenix Metallic Cartridge Company, sometime between about 1877 and 1891. The cartridges have a fairly distinctive flat nose, two groove bullet, and a raised 'P' headstamp. While this box is in fairly rough condition, it should be noted that these boxes are pretty uncommon, and are seldom found not showing a good amount of wear.
One man's trash is another man's treasure....
I have several extras of the Nebraska shells if anyone has any that they wish to trade from other areas of the country.
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put an end
to this practice, the Secretary of War ordered that officers exercise 'great
care' to prevent Indians from procuring any empty cartridge cases that were
thrown away. This was General Order No. 13, issued February 16th, 1876, and
reproduced here. Apparently, one method adopted by the troops in the field
was to flatten the empty shells, perhaps with the butts of their
rifles, and then bury them all together in a single hole. Consequently,
rather than being found individually, these cartridge cases are usually found
in bunches. A lady recently sent me the picture of the
cartridge case
shown here, which was found near Rath City, Texas, a ghost town in the western
part of the state. From 1876 through 1879, this area was a center
for buffalo hunting, and she thought this cartridge case may have been used
by one of those hunters. Those who hunted for their livings tended to be
a frugal lot, who saved and reloaded their cartridge cases. This is
an externally primed case, and was intended to be loaded a number of times,
so it is not likely that a buffalo hunter would have thrown it away after
it was fired. The fact that the case has been flattened, and then had the
mouth folded over would indicate that the person who fired it was intent
on ensuring that it would no longer be serviceable. For this reason,
I believe this cartridge case was used by a soldier who was cognizant of
General Order No. 13 and fully understood its intent.