364 Reviews. | April, 
of Sir William Armstrong have rendered any considerable improve- 
ment in our offensive arms a matter of great difficulty. For although 
Sir William has resigned his appointment, and therefore leaves the 
Government free to deal with whom it likes, our author tells us that 
the outlay which has already been incurred “ operates practically as a 
bond by which, under a penalty of two millions and-a-half sterling, 
the country is deterred from attempting any change.” * 
Before finally passing away from the quesiion of the “contest,” 
we will say that it leaves this impression upon the mind of a dis- 
interested reader. One cannot help regretting that Sir William did 
not act more consistently after he had “ made a gift” of his invention 
“to her Majesty and her successors without any pecuniary or other 
valuable consideration ;” or that, instead of laying himself open to the 
imputation of having given his gun for a purpose, he did not require 
50,0001. or 100,000/. for so great and valuable a safeguard to his 
country. But, on the other hand, when we are told that a man of 
known repute, who had been in constant communication with the 
Government, is suddenly thrust aside when his services are most 
needed and on a pressing emergency, and another comparatively un- 
known is preferred before him for a duty of immense responsibility, 
we cannot but feel that there must have been some shortcoming, some 
want of energy and promptitude, which caused his rival to be taken 
by the hand. Whether or not we have formed this opinion without a 
sufficient basis, our readers will have an opportunity of judging when 
we come to speak of more recent experiences than those referred to 
in the volume before us. 
The Armstrong gun has been a very dear experiment, but it was 
rendered much more costly by the dispatch that was requisite in order 
to atone for the previous apathy of the Government; and it is im- 
possible to say what dangers have been averted from our shores 
through the energy and promptitude of the man to whom the task of 
strengthening our means of defence was confided. Let us, therefore, 
not spurn the bridge that has carried us safely over our difficulties. 
In speaking of the “ Iron Navy” in the remaining portions of his 
work, the author tells us of the early failures of the most powerful 
guns to project a missile through the plated sides of a man-of-war. 
He refers to the valuable services of the Iron-plate committee, of 
whom one of the ablest and most useful members is Dr. William 
Fairbairn, of Manchester, and‘to the results attained through the 
experiments of that committee, the progress of the offensive and de- 
fensive art being traced to the time of his going to press. 
Finally, he closes a work which, in spite of its serious defects, is 
destined to take its place amongst our standard books of reference in 
this branch of science (its tone and method frequently reminding us 
of the labours of the late respected minister of war, Sir George Lewis), 
with an admirable and scholarlike peroration, wherein he recommends 
the admittance of all deserving inventors into the ranks of competitors 
* How much more is this, we would ask the author, than it cost us to prepare 
for the deicnce of Canada during the ‘Trent’ affair. 
