OUTDOORS First of all, a belated Merry Christmas to you from all of us here at the North Platte Telegraph. I hope you had a great Christmas and maybe you even had an item or two under the tree from my Christmas Wish List! It is no secret to anyone who reads my columns: I am a student of weaponry. I am particularly interested in the history of different guns and where they fit into the history of our country.

The M1 Garand is a great example. It has been called America's rifle. It is one of the most iconic rifles ever created.

The rifle was designed by Canadian-American John Garand who happened to work for Springfield Armory. The M1 Garand service rifle was chambered for the venerable .30-06, which was adopted by the U.

S. military in 1906. The cartridge was known as the U.

S. government .30 caliber, adopted in 1906.

The contraction of that information became known as the .30-06. The M1 rifle replaced the Model 1903 Springfield bolt action and was adopted for military service in 1936 as the standard infantry rifle.

It became the standard battle rifle issued to millions of U.S. troops in World War II and Korea.

There are still a few patriots around who carried this rifle into combat. God bless them! I especially think about the veterans who carried M1 rifles in Europe during Christmas 1944. It was the Battle of the Bulge, a German counteroff ensive, and even snow and cold could not stop the U.

S. Army in part to the M1 rifle. The M1 served our troops well! During WWII, Lt.

Gen. Ge.