CANNON CANO. 



21 



supported the high tory side. The exceptions were, 

 the emancipation of the Catholics, and the recogni- 

 tion of the South American republics. The former 

 he advocated merely as a matter of expediency ; for 

 his support of the test and corporation acts showed 

 how limited his views were regarding religious tole- 

 ration. The latter was a showy parade, which 

 brought eclat, without endangering his position ; for 

 Spain was a mere cypher, and the recognition could 

 do no harm to any established privileges on this side 

 of tlie Atlantic. On the whole, Mr Canning can 

 only be characterized as a political adventurer, who 

 attached himself in all cases to the strongest party, 

 and whose rule of action throughout was self-aggran- 

 disement. When, indeed, he obtained the premier- 

 ship, his conduct gave indication of his being regu- 

 lated by more lofty principles, but death speedily 

 interfered with any expectations that were formed of 

 him in that position. 



CANNON ; a heavy metallic gun, which is moved 

 by the strength of men and horses. It is mounted 

 on a carriage, and iron (formerly stone or leaden) 

 balls are projected to a distance from it by the force 

 of gunpowder. The interior of the cannon is called 

 the bore. The solid piece of metal behind is named 

 the breech, and terminates in the button. The dol- 

 phins (so called because they used to be made in the 

 form of this animal) are the handles by which the 

 piece is mounted or dismounted. The aperture 

 through which the fire is introduced into the bore, to 

 ignite the charge, is called the vent or touch-hole, in 

 which a small tube, used to contain the priming, is 

 placed previous to firing. The supports, which are 

 denominated carriages, are mounted on trucks, as in 

 the case of ship-guns or garrison-guns, or on two 

 wheels, as in the case of field-pieces. When a field- 

 piece is to be moved, a two-wheeled frame is fixed to 

 the carriage, which is called a limber, and this pro- 

 cess is called to limber up. The charge, or cartridge, 

 is a bag filled with powder, carried near the cannon. 

 The cannon is fired by means of the match, which is 

 a lighted bunch of tow, wound round a small stick ; 

 or By a tube, filled with the priming-powder, from 

 which a piece is broken off every time, and forced 

 into a stick, to light the charge. On board most of 

 the British ships there are cannon fired by means of 

 locks. To perform the labour required in managing 

 cannon is called to serve the guns. Cannon were 

 formerly dignified with great names. Twelve, cast 

 by Louis XII., were called after the 12 peers of 

 France. Charles V. had 12, which he called the 

 Twelve apostles. One at Bois le Due is called the 

 Devil; a 60 pounder, at Dover castle, is named 

 Qtteen Elizabeth's pocket-pistol; an 80 pounder, at 

 Berlin, is called the Thunderer; another at Malaga, 

 the Terrible ; two 60 pounders at Bremen, the Mes~ 

 sengers of bad news. In the beginning of the 15th 

 century, names of this sort were abolished, and the 

 following came into general use : cannon royal, or 

 carthoun, carrying 48 pounds ; bastard cannon, or f 

 carthoun, 36 ; 5 carthoun, 24 ; whole culverins, 18 ; 

 demi-culverins, 9 ; falcon, 6 ; saker, lowest sort, 5 ; 

 ordinary, 6; largest sort, 8; basilisk, 48; serpen- 

 tine, 4 ; aspick, 2 ; dragon, 6 ; siren, 60 ; falconet, 

 3, 2, and 1 ; moyens, which carried a ball of 10 or 

 12 ounces : rabinets carried one of 16 ounces. Can- 

 nons are, at present, named, from the weight of the 

 balls which they carry, 6 pounders, 12 pounders, &c. 

 The length of the cannon is in proportion to the 

 caliber. Cannon took their name from the French 

 word canne (a reed). Before their invention, 

 machines were used for projecting missiles by me- 

 chanical force. These were imitated from the 

 Arabs, and called ingenia ; whence engineer. The 

 lirst cannon were made of wood, wrapped in numer- 



ous folds of linen, and well secured by iron hoops. 

 They were of a conical form, widest at the muzzle. 

 Afterwards, they received a cylindrical shape. At 

 length they were made of iron bars, firmly bound 

 together, like casks, by iron hoops. In the second 

 half of the 14th century, they were formed of an 

 alloy of copper and tin, and, in procesm of time, other 

 metals were added. Some attribute the invention of 

 cannon to the Chinese, and say that there are now 

 cannon in China, which were made in the 80th year 

 of the Christian era. From the Chinese the Saracens 

 probably learned to manufacture them, and Callini- 

 cus, a deserter from Heliopolis, in Phoenicia, made 

 them known, in 670 (676), to the Greek emperor 

 Constantinus Pogonatus. Bombards were brought 

 into use in France hi 1338, and, according to another 

 and more doubtful authority, Solomon, king of Hun- 

 gary, used them in 1073, at the siege of Belgrade. 

 From all these accounts, it appears that the true 

 epoch of the invention of cannon cannot be exactly 

 determined : it is certain, however, that they were 

 actually in use about the middle of the 14th century. 

 In 1370, the people of Augsburg used cast cannon. 

 In the beginning of the 15th century, nearly all the 

 countries of Europe, except Russia, where cannon 

 were first cast in 1475, were provided with them. 

 The lead cannon, which were invented and employed 

 by the Swedes, between 1620 and 1632, hi the 30 

 years' war, were lined with tubes of wood or copper, 

 and secured on the outside with iron rings. The art 

 of firing red-hot balls from cannon was invented by 

 major-general Weiler, of the electorate of Branden- 

 burg. In the commencement of the 16th century, 

 Maurice of Switzerland discovered a method of cast- 

 ing cannon whole, and boring them, so as to draw 

 out the interior in a single piece. Arms for expedi- 

 tious firing, loaded from behind, and having the 

 charge closed in with a wedge, were introduced by 

 Daniel Spekle (who died 1589) and Uftanus. Charles 

 Millon invented a kind of air cannon, 2 feet long, 3 

 inches diameter in the thickest part, 12 lines caliber, 

 charged with inflammable air, and fired with a Ley- 

 den jar, or a piece of cat-skin, by which 12 dis- 

 charges can be made in a minute. It stands on a 

 frame of glass-, and may be directed to any point. 

 In 1740, cannons were made of ice at St Petersburg, 

 and balls of many pounds weight were projected 

 without injuring the pieces. (See Steam-Gun, Gun- 

 Boat.) Cannon-clock is a contrivance invented by 

 one Rousseau, and placed hi the garden of thepalais 

 royal, and hi the Luxembourg at Paris. A burning- 

 glass is fixed over the vent of a cannon, so that the 

 sun's rays, at the moment of its passing the meridian, 

 are concentrated, by the glass, on the priming, and 

 the piece is fired. The burning-glass is regulated, 

 for this purpose, every month. For the use of 

 cannon in naval warfare, see Ship. 



CANO, ALONZO or ALEXIS; a painter, sculptor, 

 and architect. The variety and extent of his talents 

 made him the Michael Angelo of Spain, whom he 

 also resembled in his private character. He was 

 born in 1608, at Grenada, studied in Seville, with 

 Pacheco, and first made himself known by the statues 

 which he executed for the great church of Lebrija. 

 In his 24th year, he had acquired the fame of a great 

 artist, and was (1638) appointed painter to the King. 

 In this capacity, he executed several celebrated pic- 

 tures, and was at the summit of his prosperity, when 

 a dreadful event destroyed his happiness. His wife 

 was one day found murdered, and his house plun- 

 dered. Instead of a suspected Italian servant, who 

 had fled, Cano himself, convicted of a connexion with 

 another woman, was condemned by the judges as 

 guilty of the murder. He was put to the torture ; 

 but his right arm was spared, from respect for hia 



