Why, a man might as well take the rudder off a ship because he could not steer, and then abuse the vessel for not keeping her course! My idea of guns and rifles is this, that the former should be used for what their makers intended them, viz., shot-shooting, and that no ball should be fired from any but the rifle.

Of course it is just as easy and as certain to kill an elephant with a smooth-bore as with a rifle, as he is seldom fired at until within ten or twelve paces; but a man, when armed for wild sport, should be provided with a weapon which is fit for any kind of ball-shooting at any reasonable range, and his battery should be perfect for the distance at which he is supposed to aim.
I have never seen any rifles which combine the requisites for Ceylon shooting to such a degree as my four double-barreled No.

10, which I had made to order.

Then some persons exclaim against their weight, which is fifteen pounds per gun.

But a word upon that subject.
No person who understands anything about a rifle would select a light gun with a large bore, any more than he would have a heavy carriage for a small horse.