The Howa action (along with few other modern bolt actions) has the front action-screw going directly into the recoil lug. This was the common design in older bolt-actions, including the 98 Mauser, 1903 Springfield and many derivations, primarily because they were military actions, fitted into often hastily-produced wood stocks. The screw in the recoil lug drew the action firmly into the stock, reducing the tendency for the wood to split.
The downside was that many of those early actions were pretty flexible, especially the military 98. As a result, when the front action screw was tightened hard, it tended to bend the front of the action downward, which often resulted in the bolt's locking lugs not seating perfectly in the recesses in the receiver ring. This could result in relatively poor accuracy--especially when the rifle was "sporterized," common after WWII--the reason it became standard procedure to "glass-bed" the rear inch or two of the barrel, which prevented the action from bending downward.
All of this changed with the introduction of the Model 70 Winchester in the 1930s, which had the front action screw BEHIND the recoil lug. Consequently the action didn't bend when the screw was tightened--a design followed by most later bolt-actions, including the Remington 700.
The Howa action (and some semi-copies) is much stiffer than a military 98, or even a 1903 Springfield, but sometimes benefits from bedding the rear of the barrel. However, this often depends on the stiffness of the stock. Some injection-molded stocks aren't very stiff. Which is why I've sometimes had better luck bedding Howa-actioned rifles the old-fashioned way, with bedding compound under the rear of the barrel. Contrary to what many believe, this isn't to "support the barrel," but to support the action.
