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Waikato Times, Volume I, Issue 63, 24 September 1872, Page 2

There was a competitition at Wimbledon l on the IStli of July, which oasts- some light upon the problem of what might be done against an advancing army by British riflemen. One Private Gilkes, and three others, fired : the Soper rifle, for rapidity and accuracy together, against a squad using the Snider. Lying on his back, with his knees for a rest, the the accomplished Grilkes discharge no less than 97 rounds in two minutes and a half, which is about two shots every three seconds, scoring this prodigious swiftness notwithstanding, 13 bull's-eyes, 38 centres, and 44 outers, only two bullets in all missing the target. Here is a marksman who, in so brief a time, could apparently slay or wound at least fifty enemies out of "a hundred at grape-shot range, and certainly no milrallense could accomplish a similar result. Conceive what havoc might be wrought upon a foe by a body of 500 such men provided with the Soper or a similar piece, and hidden about in the abundant cover of English fields! They would sting an enemy to deatli with perpetual shots from invisible muzzles ; and, except upon such places as the South Downs in England, and some commons, nothing hostile could advance unless in skirmishing order, and' from cover to cover. Simply making a small arithmetical sum, we calculate that the 2,500 competitors for the Queen's prize could fire with such i a weapon as the Soper 175,000 shots in three minutes. Targets, of course, differ considerably from advancing enemies, and a great deal of that lead would be lost. But war has not yet witnessed such an effect as the " scoring part" of those 175,000 bullets could accomplish. A curious incident occurred to the steamer Boyne on her last voyage from Brazil. It appears when off | Cape Finisterre, May 16, the captain found her speed I suddenly diminished although her steam power was j kept up. After some time the diminished speed was I discovered to be owing to a huge whale which the I cutwater of the ship had' struck and penetrated in the centre and was driving along. The whale must have been floating dead or asleep when the ship struck it. The passengers wanted the monster to be hauled on board, but the captain could not afford the time to do so. He therefore backed the ship for some distance, and the leviathan sank. A newspaper publishes the following notice—" Married at Flhnstone,- by the Rev. Mr Windstone, Mr ?fehemiah Sandstone and Miss Wilhelmi Whetstone, both of Limestone." Look out for brimstone.