SCIENTIFIC MATTERS. 1 95 



more wonderful than atmospheric air been produced. 

 Its action on the velocity of projectiles is of so exten- 

 sive a nature that, without clearly understanding that 

 action, the science of gunnery never can be thoroughly 

 acquired. The resistance of the atmosphere is in pro- 

 portion to the velocity of the attempt to displace it ; 

 the higher that velocity becomes, the greater the re- 

 sistance." 



There are many things in nature and science that 

 act contrary to our preconcived ideas, as in the case 

 of the bullet increasing its velocity after leaving the 

 gun, up to 190 yards. It would be easy to extend 

 this subject, and fill many more pages with analo- 

 gous experiments. But I will not weary the reader 

 with a multiplicity of them, and will give only one 

 more well-known fact connected with the gun", show- 

 ing the law of force, and the resistance of the air. 



Take an old-fashioned American cent and fasten it 

 against a heavy plank or wall, and no shot-gun ever 

 made has sufficient force to drive shot through it in 

 that position ; but hang the cent in the air by a string 

 at the distance of eight or ten paces from the muzzle 

 of a gun loaded with a large charge of powder, say 

 five or six drachms, and one layer of large shot, and 

 the latter can be driven fairly through the cent, mak- 

 ing holes in it like those in a pepper-box. It was also 

 observed, during our recent war, that the plating of 

 our iron-clads, no matter how thick, could be easily 

 broken or pierced by the balls from the rifle-guns, 

 while much thinner iron abutted on wood resisted 

 them. 



