BY G. A. MORELL, ESQ., C.E. 257 



100 pounder Parrott rifled guns, with two 80 pounder Whitworths. 

 From General GHllmore's Report it appears that a breach 80 

 yards long by 12 feet deep was made from August 17th to 

 August 23rd, 1863, (six days) by 5009 projectiles thrown from 

 the 17 guns forming the 7 batteries, at an average range of 

 3881 yards ; not over one half of the projectiles fired struck the 

 masonry, and only 1668 helped to form the breach. More than 

 two years before, in April, 1861, we find again from the official 

 reports of General Gillmore, that Fort Pulaski surrendered in 

 less than 48 hours ! This Fort was a pentagonal brickwork case- 

 mated on all sides, the walls being 7| feet thick and 25 feet high, 

 with one tier of guns in embrasures and one tier " en barbette." 

 It contained 48 guns, 20 of which bore on the attacking batteries ; 

 these were five 10 in. and five 8 in. Columbiads, four 32 

 pounders (smooth bore), one 24 pounder Blakely rifled gun, 

 and two 12 in., and three 10 in. sea coast mortars. The 

 breaching guns which did the work were four 8 in. and 10 in. 

 Columbiads for shot and shell, two 84 pounders, two 64 pounders, 

 and one 48 pounder, rifled with flat grooves from old unhooped 

 42, 32, and 24 pounders, to fire James' shot and shell, and also 

 five 30 pounder Parrott rifled guns. The range from 1650 to 3100 

 yards, and the number of shots fired in three half-days 3543. 



The experiments of 1860 and 1861, proved the uselessness 

 of masonry to resist the attack of rifled ordnance, and we find 

 from the Report of the Ordnance Committee on Breaching experi- 

 ments against Martello Towers (dated January 25th, 1861), that 

 brick towers 40 feet diameter at top, 46 feet at base, and 36 feet 

 high, with a least thickness of 7 feet 3 inches at foot, and 5 feet 

 6 inches at the springing of the arches, can be practically 

 demolished by very few shots; the 158 Armstrong projectiles, 

 which took effect against Tower No. 71, fired from one 80 

 pounder, one 40 pounder, and one 7 in. howitzer (Armstrong), 

 having removed 2168 cubic feet of masonry at a range of 1032 

 yards, or 13.72 cubic feet per shot. 



But the most convincing experiments were made in October, 

 1864, in the Bexhill bombardment, to test the comparative 

 power of the 70 pounder Armstrong shunt gun, and 70 pounder 

 Whit worth. Both the shunt and Whit worth guns passed their 

 solid shot through the 7 feet brickwork, and their shells 



