If I wanted an American stalking rifle; then why not chamber the darned thing in an American cartridge. The 348 Win would be a great round; but ammo and brass are expensive and sometimes hard to find easily. A rimmed cartridge that has not been mentioned in the 444 Marlin; more than adequate for any hog or deer (and other critters) that roam the hills, hollows, and swamps of the south. The power, range, and accuracy of this cartridge has been much improved recently by Hornady in the development of their Leverevolution ammo line that now allows for a 265 grain pointed bullet. Most of today's rimmed rounds were designed for lever rifles; and if you go that route, I'd strongly encourage you to consider the recently introduced 338 Marlin Express. Loaded with Hornady's 200 grain LE round, this cartridge is the ballistic equal to the 30/06 180 gain factory loading out to 400 yards; it is supremely accurate, has modest recoil, and will absolutely flatten a whitetail deer (the only large game animal I've shot with this round). I've also read a number of posts where individuals reported one-shot kills on bear, hogs, elk, moose, and buffalo with the 338ME cartridge.
