Inside Heixinggen Arsenal in Berlin.
The factory director, Mein, was demonstrating the performance of two rifles to Ernst, with the Dreyse Rifle of the Prussian Army and the Chassepot Rifle captured from the battlefield laid out on the table.
Mein picked up the Chassepot Rifle and explained to Ernst: "The Chassepot Rifle used by the French borrows many successful practices from the Dreyse Rifle. It's also a bolt-action, needle-firing, paper cartridge system, but it's slightly superior. For instance, the locking system; the Dreyse Rifle has an issue with being unsealed and leaking gas, which greatly affects the powder's efficacy and, consequently, the bullet's initial velocity."
