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Some Model 1888 rifles were altered to take the new ammo and clips, they were altered by reaming the chamber neck and part of the leade,
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I have seen information stating that the 98 rifles were not actually rebarreled, but simply modified this way, by reaming the throat. No idea if it is correct, or not, but it would have been much cheaper than replacing the entire barrel, and it would have worked just fine.
One thing that I've consistently seen in all reports is that all the rifles in service when the new .323" bullet was adopted WERE modified to safely shoot it. Some say rebarreled, others say barrels reamed. Reality is probably a bit of both.