A neat old rifle, and would have been an expensive one when new.

What was the story on the dates and could we see a photo of the carving? Off hand I'd guess it was the birth dates of the owner's children, but for such a rifle to be defaced in such a way when still so new is a bit surprising.

Someone has tried to remove the barrel as you can see by the vice scars. Fortunately they gave up. Looks like the guard screw lug suffered a bit of damage in that attempt as well

The serial number on the magazine suggests this was made by the original patent holder or licensee and very early on too, with a serial number like 120.

Anything in the butt trap?