172 RESULTS OP A SERIES OF EXPERIMENTS, ETC. 



From these results it is inferred that the greatest internal pressure is on that part of 

 the gun occupied by the powder, and as a fact in accordance with this inference, it may 

 be mentioned that in all cases of the bursting of a gun, the fracture was confined to the 

 part between the bottom of the bore and the position of the outer side of the last ball. 

 The solid britch end was always broken short off at the bottom of the bore, and presented 

 in every instance a remarkable similarity of appearance. Looking in the direction of the 

 axis of the bore, the surface of fracture of the solid end was seen divided into three 

 nearly equal sections, by three ridges nearly in the direction of the radii, with concave 

 surfaces between them. From an examination of all the fragments, the fact appeared to 

 be established that the fracture always began in three lines near the britch, but that, on 

 advancing towards the muzzle, it frequently wedged out into four, and sometimes more, 

 lines. 



A number of other questions have occupied the attention of the author of these expe- 

 riments, and the other results of his investigations may, perhaps, be hereafter presented 

 to the society, should the present article be deemed of sufficient interest to warrant 

 another communication of a similar character. 



