Remington Society Review

The Remington Bookshelf:  A review of books currently in print, out of print or just plain old, that are of interest to collectors of Remington firearms products.

THE U.S. ENFIELD BAYONET, P1913, M1917, M1917(VIETNAM), by Daniel Jay Morrison. Demarest, NJ: Breed’s Hill Publishing Co., 2017. ISSN  978-0-692-01878-1. Hardcover, 440 pages, size 8.5 x 11 inches. Newly published.

    This monumental work could also be titled “the encyclopedia of the Pattern 1913/Model 1917 rifle and its bayonet,” so complete is its content. The author has omitted no detail in describing the origin, design, manufacture, use or issue, identification markings, etc., of this venerable rifle and bayonet of World War I and subsequent 20th Century wars. As the book’s title indicates, the bayonet variations are the focus of the book, but the author also tells the tale of the associated rifles and shotguns. Did you know that larger numbers of the M1917 rifle and its bayonet were in U.S. inventory than the Springfield M1903 rifle combination until the advent of WW2?
    The author’s depth of research is indicated by both the copious sources, footnoted in the back, and by the extensive list of experts who contributed (who are listed in the Acknowledgements). Complementing this documentation are the dozens of photographs of soldiers actually holding the weapons described in the accompanying text.
    The beginning pages — the “Introduction” and the “Terminology and Usage” — set the stage for what follows. The book is then divided into two parts.
    Part One describes the development, production and war use of the rifles and bayonets. Chapter 1 gives a short history of the design and development of the rifle, and the history of its manufacture in the U.S. — in which the Remington Arms Co. played a large part. Chapter 2 covers the design and development of the bayonet. The following Chapters 3 through 12 give an exhausting history of the issue and use of the bayonets from WW1 through the Vietnam War.
    Part Two, “For the Collector,” has an introductory chapter (13) on collecting, then a chapter (14) on bayonet markings (extensively listed), a chapter (15) on scabbards, followed by four chapters with miscellaneous information on accessories, etc., including a chapter on fakes and reproductions.
    The text is well and clearly written, and is accompanied by numerous charts, tables and line drawings to better illustrate the information being discussed. The book is printed on heavy, glossy paper which permits clear black and white photographs — of the artifacts and the soldiers — to be crisply reproduced. The large format of the book allows many photographs to be reproduced in sufficient size to show detail. The heavy, glossy cover and equally heavy dust jacket will make for an enduring book.
    Well written and profusely illustrated, this book will live as the ultimate history of these important firearms and bayonets, enduring designs which saw use in several wars throughout the 20th Century. With this book, RSA member readers will come to better appreciate the role that Remington played in their manufacture.