Gun or Walking Stick?

I have a question. The Smith & Wesson 27-2 is pretty cool. And it seems like the model with the 8 3/8″ barrel always sells for less than the shorter-barreled models. I have never been tempted to buy a revolver with a barrel that long, because my guess is that the balance would be awful. And it would be awkward to carry and store.

So what I want to know is, what is a barrel that long good for? I think 4-5″ is perfect. You can carry guns that size if you have to, and they have a decent sight radius for accuracy, and they’re not hideously ugly, like snubnoses. I suppose you could say the longer guns are for hunting, but that doesn’t make sense, because you’d use a scope, which would work just as well on a 4″ gun.