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INTRODUCTION

For years this writer's aim was to visualize the armed Pennsylvanian of earlier days; how he wentforth to fiht his Indian foe! to slay the "ison! moose! el# and smaller ame! and on his

e$%editions to the fields of love& where his firearms and eded wea%ons oriinated To (reate the

livin man his arms must "e se(ured! and radually the %resent (olle(tion was assem"led )ndhe lived aain! dar#! rim! "earded! the s%irit of lofty %ines and hemlo(#s amon whi(h he s%ent

his days! always %lottin to #ill somethin *any of the arms! if they (ould s%ea#! what tales of

war! the (hase! and love adventure they (ould tell+ The Pennsylvania woodsman was filled withthe roman(e of slauhter! a heritae of minled Continental oriins! ,uuenot! -%anish!

Portuuese! -wiss! .aldensian! /evantine! with the strains of Ulster -(ot! )lsatian! Palatine!

,ollander and *oravian! (oolin (ross (urrents in his veins No wonder that the women of this

"lended ra(e were the most dar#ly "eautiful in the world! and a rou% of the (urious ededwea%ons they (arried to destroy men who annoyed them miht well "e the su"0e(t of another

se%arate (olle(tion 1ut the arms sta(#ed in silent %ano%ly! or the daers! dir#s and %owder

flas#s! would not suffi(e to ive the (olle(tion the answer to the 2uestions it involved )lon

with a rou% of darin )l%inists to 3Restless Oa#s4 (ame , 1eam Pi%er! of )ltoona! Pa! amodern master5of5arms who %atiently set to wor# to des(ri"e the (olle(tion from its oldest to its

newest e$am%les )s the results of his intellient enery and resear(h the followin (atalouehas "een %re%ared whi(h ives us the s#eleton fiure of the armed Pennsylvania mountain man!

from the frontier days until later and more %rosai( times ensued .hile many of the arms listed

are in im%erfe(t (ondition and some of the more im%ortant ones are la(#in! they ive the idea ofhis times Other %ie(es of later %eriods! and a few of forein use! are in(luded for %ur%oses of

(om%arison To these are added *r Pi%er's (ataloue of his own (olle(tion! all in %erfe(t order!

to show similar ty%es of wea%ons at their "est .hile! as stated! there are many s%e(imens

missin! these va(an(ies em%hasize the wide rane of wea%ons used "y the old5timePennsylvanians The fre2uent wars #e%t "rinin new ty%es of arms into the wilderness and new

ideas for wea%ons amon the woodsmen themselves! and this was most noteworthy after theCivil .ar! whi(h was also the end of the rand romanti( %eriod of the Pennsylvania wildernessThe mountaineer of Pennsylvania was of martial "lood! his an(estors had fouht in every state of

Continental 6uro%e 7 and the s(ien(e of armorer was his "irthriht David /ewis! the

89allo%in :a(#8 or hihwayman of Central Pennsylvania! used new Pistols every year! andwea%ons whi(h he is said to have (arried are as %lentiful as Ole 1ull's violins The frontiersmen

of 1ritish oriins always named their favorite rifles 8*y Friend!8 8*y 1rother!4 3-ure -hot!8

8Confiden(e!8 8Never Fail!8 8Carry *y .ish!8 8ill Deer!8 and 8ill 1u(#!8 and (herished them

almost as livin thins *any of them (am%ed out at the wayside unsho%s until a s%e(iallyordered wea%on was "eun and finished! so as to su%ervise every detail of its fa"ri(ation

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never leave it near a he(hs! lest she run her (old trem"lin "and alon the "arrel and forever

destroy its a((ura(y There were also s%ells or %ow5wowin to ma#e a un shoot %erfe(tly! and

these were %ut on "efore a foe was to "e removed! and more es%e(ially with the heavy rifles usedat shootin mat(hes Needles and %a%ers written full of in(antations were sli%%ed under the

"arrels where they 0oined the sto(#s to #ee% away the wit(hes The writer has seen Ro"ert

Covenhoven's rifle with thirteen not(hes on the under side of the sto(# ,is s(al%in5#nife hasseven not(hes! where this mer(iless s(al%5hunter enumerated his red vi(tims %rior to (olle(tin

the s(al% "ounty at ,arris' Ferry The Covenhoven rifle was latterly owned "y the old deer5

hunter *iller Day! of 6nlish Centre! /y(omin County! "ut is now in Philadel%hia! while the#nife is at the :ames = 1rown /i"rary! .illiams%ort! toether with his etland %istol )s

sym"ols of a "older and "roader day the firearms of "a(#woods Pennsylvania will always

e$er(ise a %e(uliar (harm! ty%ifyin as they do the %eriod of tra(#less forests! Indians! %anthers!

wolves! un"ridled roman(e )lso! that stranely %i(tures2ue %eriod of the Civil .ar! when theshar%5shootin Pennsylvania mountain "oys >and older ones? went forth to sni%; for did not :a#e

arstetter! of -uar =alley! Clinton County! enlist as @A when he was BA and (om%ass the death

of seven Confederate eneral offi(ers Not(hed onthe walnut sto(# of his favorite wea%on! the

wor# of ,enry 1arner! a wayside -uar =alley unsmith! were seven sets of minute (arvins inthe form of (ollar insinias in all the rades from a /ieutenant 9eneral to a /ieutenant Colonel

)nd when they led him haltered throuh the streets of Ri(hmond they la"eled him 8a wildan#ee from the North!8 "e(ause of his unshorn hair and "eard! whi(h he swore he would not (ut

until he had 8set :eff Davis (old8 It is a %ity that the s(ien(e of an(ient arms is not more %o%ular

in inland Pennsylvania! and that more of the (urious s%e(imens of arms have not "een retained!"ut were allowed to "e shi%%ed away to (olle(tors elsewhere "efore their lo(al value was

re(onized It is with a ho%e that it n stimulate other (olle(tors at home to assem"le an(ient

wea%ons "efore it is too late that t (ataloue has "een %u"lished It is as a frament! and not as a

(om%lete (olle(tion! "ut %uts "efore the reader the %i(ture of an arms lovin ra(e! in the loriousante5molly(oddle ae! whi(h was the olden ae of Pennsylvania manhood 1ut in truth there

has "een ve little! if any! de(line! when one thin#s of the valor of the "oys of the E th! the AGth

and other outfits where Pennsylvanians were most in eviden(e in the .orld .ar *any of thesehad o Civil .ar randfathers! who (ould tell of Frederi(#s"ur or Peters"ur! of how earlier the

"ar#ed s2uirrels on tall hardwood trees! or shot into the flo(#s of wild %ieons 8whi(h dar#ened

the sun8 in their reat flihts )nd to wel(ome in the 8a%ostoli( su((ession8 of arms new loversamon our "oys! even the least of them! the (olle(tion stands (ataloued! than#s to *r Pi%er's

%erseveran(e It is an invitation an a%%eal to (arry on all that is "oldest! "raves and "est of that

fearless (om%any that "ore their s%ears alon the dar# war%aths of o"s(urity! and sta(#ed them

on the (am%rounds of eternal niht

HENRY W. SHOEMAKER.

3Restless Oa#s!4

*(6lhattan! Pa! :uly @H! GEA