(left to right) 270-Gr. .375 Ruger, 270-Gr. .375 H&H, 270-Gr. .375 RUM, 300-Gr. .375 Ruger

By now, many of you are aware that Hornady and Sturm, Ruger recently introduced another new cartridge--the .375 Ruger. Chambered in Ruger's new Hawkeye bolt action, the design objective was to match or exceed the proven performance of the venerable .375 H&H Magnum but in a standard .30-06-length action. Although it is intended for hunting dangerous game, such as Alaskan brown bear and African Cape buffalo, the new round's moniker curiously omits the signature term "magnum." Also missing is the ubiquitous belted case typically associated with this type of cartridge.

British armsmaker Holland & Holland designed the first belted cartridge more than a century ago. The .375 H&H Magnum (introduced in 1912) was one of the original loadings having this distinct feature, which, until recently, was synonymous with magnum-rifle performance. Over the years, the .375 H&H has gained the enviable and well-deserved reputation for reliably dispatching animals that can bite back.

Western Cartridge Co. began loading .375 H&H ammo in 1925--a decade before Winchester's Model 70 became the first domestic rifle chambered for the cartridge. Most of the myriad commercial belted magnum and wildcat cartridges subsequently developed for American sportsmen were based on the .375 H&H and its 30-caliber sibling, the .300 H&H Magnum.

Roy Weatherby got things rolling during World War II by extensively modifying the .300 H&H into the 7mm Weatherby. He quickly followed with similar .257-, .270-, .30-, and .375-caliber rounds. These hard-hitting Weatherby Magnum cartridges became the cornerstone of his very successful company.

Like the wildcat .30 Newton, the new .375 Ruger utilizes a beltless case with a larger capacity and a length that fits standard .30-06 actions.

Soon, P. O. Ackley and others jumped in and necked the H&H cases up and down, shortened, and improved them into dozens of other wildcat rifle loadings. Weatherby upped the ante a few years later with a new .375-caliber loading based on a belted and reformed version of the even larger .416 Rigby case. The .378 Weatherby Magnum delivered approximately 15 percent more punch than the earlier .375 Weatherby cartridge.

During the mid to late 1950s, Winchester issued a trio of new short magnum cartridges: the .458 Winchester Magnum "African," the .338 Winchester Magnum "Alaskan," and the .264 Winchester Magnum "Westerner." Common traits included a belted case and an overall cartridge length compatible with a standard long action. The intent was to deliver maximum performance in a nonmagnum-length action. Not to be outdone, Weatherby reclaimed top billing with the .460 and .340 Magnums.

In the early 1960s, Remington and Winchester introduced two standard long-action short magnums--the 7mm Remington Magnum and the .300 Winchester Magnum. Remington followed up a couple of years later with two short-action magnums--.350 and 6.5mm Remington Magnums. Of all of these early short and even shorter commercial magnum rifle loadings, only the 7mm Remington Magnum and the .300, .338, and .458 Winchester Magnums have achieved general acceptance. The rest are already or fast becoming also-rans on any current popular cartridge list.