Many of the facets of detail are of particular interest. Almost every ray of the aura of sunlight can still be clearly seen; the North Pole is well marked with a vertical arrow; the Arctic Circle, Tropic of Capricorn, and the Equator are included on the half-globe, as are the meridians of longitude and the parallels of latitude; both North America and South America are shown, and that portion of North America east of the Mississippi basin is clearly denominated "UNITED STATES." An unusual feature of the design is the way the arrows are held in the eagle's left talon--some of the arrow heads point inward, some outward. What appears to have been a contemporary plume socket has been resoldered to the reverse. Although this plate is unmarked as to maker, another plate of a similar design but of silver-on-copper has the maker's mark "J. JOULLAIN, MAKER, N. YORK." Since two distinct but similar designs are known, and the finished product is found in both brass and silver-on-copper, it seems probable that this plate was produced by more than one maker, and for all arms of the service. It is therefore deemed a stock pattern. CAP PLATE, RIFLEMEN, C. 1825 _USNM 60267-M (S-K 25). Figure 116._ [Illustration: FIGURE 116] Almost immediately after the last Regular rifle regiment was disbanded in 1821, Militia riflemen adopted the large open horn with loops and tassels that the Regulars had worn from 1817 to 1821. The basic device was altered slightly by showing an eagle in flight and the horn suspended much lower on its cords. The illustrated brass plate is one of four die variants, and more than a dozen similar to it have been examined. It is significant that all are of brass, for these were made and worn during the period when the trimmings for infantry were silver or "white metal." This plate differs from the others examined in that it has 17 6-pointed stars along the upper and lower parts of the shield inside the border. The number of stars cannot be significant in dating for the plate was obviously made long after 1812 when the 18th state, Louisiana, was admitted to the Union. A plume socket affixed to the reverse appears to be original. Undoubtedly made as a stock pattern by several manufacturers, these plates continued in use for at least 15 years after they first appeared about 1825. Although _U.S. Military Magazine_ illustrates many large cap plates for the period 1839-1841, none has a shield outline. This may indicate a decline in the popularity of the design, but it must be remembered that Huddy and Duval presented the uniforms of only a small cross-section of the Militia of the period. CAP PLATE, RIFLEMEN, C. 1825 _USNM 60267-M (S-K 26). Figure 117._ [Illustration: FIGURE 117]