18 Dr. Mac Culloch on the 



more like the description of the stream of fire from a rocket; 

 while the noise like thunder, which attended its passage, agrees 

 well with the latter machine, but not at all with a carcass, 

 which only makes a gentle whistling as it passes through the 

 air. Thus it may be supposed that it must have been a rocket; 

 an opinion, perhaps, supported by the early knowledge, for- 

 merly discussed, of this projectile, in India, whence, as I have 

 already attempted to shew, the Arabians derived this invention, 

 among much more of their knowledge. 



The only objection to this notion, is the fact of its having 

 been projected from some machine, as just mentioned. But 

 this may be obviated by supposing that it was a firework of this 

 nature, without a bore, and therefore incapable of flying by its 

 own recoil : in short, a huge squib. Such a firework as this 

 would produce all the appearances described; the long tail of 

 fire, the noise, and the light; and it would require a projectile 

 force, which might have been given both by mechanical and 

 chemical artillery, by the balista, and by the petrary or mortar. 

 This opinion is further confirmed by the description of the 

 rocket in Marcus Grsecus, which seems also to have been a 

 military firework. There are no directions for boring it : 

 whereas, had that been practised, it was scarcely possible he 

 should have omitted to mention it, minute as he is in all his 

 description of the composition, and of the two cases, the " vo- 

 latile" one and the " tonitrum faciens." Indeed, he positively 

 directs the rocket-case to be completely filled and well rammed. 

 It is scarcely necessary to say, that an unbored rocket cannot 

 fly without a foreign projectile impulse. 



If I am thus right in supposing the Greek fire of Joinville to 

 have been a rocket of this imperfect kind, it is easy to explain 

 the resistance which it offered to any attempts to extinguish it. 

 Water has no effect, because the blast from the orifice prevents 

 it from entering ; for the vinegar and urine, the good monk 

 must be held responsible. It is pretty clear that his account of 

 this property in the Greek fire has been derived from these very 

 fireworks, and has, by the usual mistake, been assigned to the 

 whole race. 



