Both the militaries of the United States and the Russian Empire used lever-action guns often until the beginning of the 20th century. Even though lever action guns can fire much faster than bolt-action rifles (lever-actions can fire 2 rounds a second in skilled hands,) the bolt-action rifle was chosen to be the main gun for most infantry. This was because bolt-action rifles could easily be fired when soldiers are lying on the ground, but lever-actions cannot do so easily.