Man Magnum Mar/April 2025

IT SEEMS there has long been interest in the way that hunting and shooting terminology has entered the English language. A wonderful book I am fortunate to own is The Language of Sport by CE Hare, published in 1939. It gives English hunting and angling terminology from the Middle Ages to the 20th century, and I find its contents fascinating. It has a brief introduction by Rev WB Daniel simply stating, “There was a peculiar kind of Language invented by Sportsmen of the Middle Ages, which it was necessary for them to be acquainted with.”It opens with a series of quotes; one by Xenophon (430 – 354 BC) the military leader, philosopher and historian of ancient Greece: “The first pursuit that a young man just out of boyhood should take…

Double Terai Hats I refer to Gregor Woods’s piece on Double Terai hats and the Trader Horn movie poster which illustrated it. The reason Gregor has found only one or two references to Double Terai hats in Indian hunting literature is that this was an item of military headgear – not a hunting hat. As I understand it, a Double Terai hat consisted of two ordinary felt bush hats stitched together (and probably starched) to provide stiffness. They were issued to the Gurkha regiments of the old Indian Army and, I believe, are still issued to the Gurkha regiments transferred to the British service. I would expect that they are also still issued to the Gurkha regiments of the modern Indian Army. Certainly, the Gurkha regiments of the Indian Army…

ONE young hunter at the lodge had brought his girlfriend with him, but I’d noticed that she never accompanied him in the veld. In fact, she never left the building and spent her days reading novels. Her boyfriend, Jason, was a keen hunter and enjoyed discussing hunting with the rest of us around the lapa fire, but Pam never joined in, though she was friendly enough towards us. On the third evening, a hunter named Dirk, who’d been manifesting a somewhat arrogant and opinionated attitude, asked her why she didn’t join Jason in the veld. She smiled but shook her head, “I don’t approve of hunting.” “Then why did you come to a hunting lodge?” frowned Dirk. “Because Jason likes hunting, and I want to be with him.” Sensing that…

IT IS definitely a challenge, and sometimes a tall order, to compete, let alone stand out in the polymer full size semi-auto handgun market – especially when competing with manufacturers of polymer framed pistols that have dominated the market for so many years. Well, it looks like Springfield Armory is up to that challenge. In 2019 we saw the micro-compact Hellcat introduced into the polymer striker-fired market. Despite its small size, the Hellcat with its 11 + 1 capacity was really well received and today is a very popular choice for concealed carry. Then came the Echelon in various models with different barrel lengths and magazine capacities. But, if you want to be a player in the duty pistol or competition market, you need to up your game and…

HUNTING season is upon us, the mornings are crisp and the evenings are getting cooler. If you haven’t started your annual hunting preparation yet, do so without further delay. In the 2023 March/April edition of Magnum I wrote an article that covered numerous things hunters need to take into account when preparing for the hunting season. Here are some more tips that you might find useful. Let’s start with your rifle. If you haven’t used it regularly during the off-season, now is the time for a thorough check-up. Any cracks in the stocks or maybe a rusty spot here and there on the steel? Are the guard screws still tight? A while back I had a surprise with my BRNO .22 Hornet. During a plinking session at gongs at 100m…

THE first ever Paul Kruger Hunting Stake, where the handler and dog teams do their own hunting and shooting, was launched in September 2024 on the Springbok Flats – another first for the Tvl HPR Field Trial Club. While there are similar trials elsewhere, this is the first trial developed by hunters for South African conditions. Owner and dog were judged as a team, and each team was allowed 30 minutes hunting time plus a water retrieve. Two teams worked in pairs as though hunting together, and points were awarded for all positive work such as pointing, backing, retrieving, working rate, gun safety, hunting manners, shooting skill, etc. Points were deducted for all negative acts such as chasing, biting, missing the bird or stealing the bird. The top scoring team…