J.R. Riling, military-arms expert

JOSEPH Raymond Riling was a nationally recognized authority on military arms, a member of the National Rifle Association and a dealer in books on military weapons, but he recoiled at the thought of shooting anything.

Talking once about deer hunting, he asked, "How could anyone shoot an animal?"

He was almost as reluctant to kill fish. A devoted fisherman (he even took his wife fishing on their honeymoon), he would release what he caught, including big- game fish he caught in the ocean.

"He was a conservationist even before the word was in the dictionary," said his son Jeffrey D. Riling.

Joe Riling, publisher, author, historian, outdoorsman, Navy veteran of World War II and a man whose many talents included playing the drums, painting and carving ducks, died Friday. He was 84 and lived in North Wales, Montgomery County.

He sold rugs for about 20 years before taking over Ray Riling Arms Books Co., of Philadelphia, a mail-order company specializing in military subjects founded by his father, Raymond.

Joe was the author of two highly regarded books: "Art and Science of War in America: Bibliography of American Military Imprints 1690-1800," and "Baron von Steuben and His Regulations."

He had a rich sense of humor and he and his identical twin brother, Raymond Joseph Riling, had a lot of fun fooling people who couldn't tell them apart.

Joe would tease his wife by asking, "Are you sure that was me who walked you down the aisle?"

When they were students at Germantown High School, he and his brother parted their hair on different sides so people could identify them. However, they got a kick out of switching their parts and confusing their classmates.

Joe kept his 17-foot fishing boat, Six Pack II, at a dock in Tuckerton, N.J. When he would come in from a day's fishing, friends would call to him, "Joe, what did you catch?"

Joe, of course, was always friendly. But one day, Ray, who had a different idea of what is funny, took the boat out and when he got the same question on his return, he made an obscene gesture.

Joe couldn't understand why his dockmates stopped speaking to him. That is, until the misunderstanding was resolved.

One of Joe's hobbies was playing the drums. One day, he went to the Steel Pier in Atlantic City to watch a big band play. The band's drummer was absent, and Joe filled in for him.

As a result, he got his union card from Musicians' Union Local 77.

Joe also carved decoy ducks. Once, during a decoy show, a man offered to sell Joe a bag of decoys for $200. Joe was reluctant, but he finally agreed to buy them.

"We were in the house and Dad was looking through the bag," Jeffrey said, "when suddenly I heard a cry, 'Oh, my God! This is a Blair!' "

It turned out one of the ducks had been made by a famous 19th century carver named John Blair Sr. Joe sold the duck for $16,000, and heard later that it went for $40,000 at an auction.

Joe was born in Philadelphia to Raymond Riling and the former Ada Wilkinson. After graduating from Germantown High, he attended Peirce College.

He served in the Navy in the South Pacific as a radio officer aboard LST 853, called the "Kane County," ferrying troops and equipment in the island-hopping campaign.

Joe and the former Margaret Jane Wenz were married in 1950 and lived in Wyncote. They honeymooned in Cape Hatteras, N.C., where Margaret learned of her husband's passion for fishing.

Besides his wife, son and brother, he is survived by five other sons, Joseph Jr., Lawrence, Thomas, James and Michael.

Services: Were yesterday. Burial was in Holy Cross Cemetery, Yeadon. *