Experiments upon Gunpowder. 93 



ed by means of gunpowder, by confining a small quan- 

 tity of water in some very thin substance, and surround- 

 ing and inclosing it with powder, and afterwards setting 

 fire to the charge. The method I took to do this was as 

 follows. Having procured a number of air-bladders of 

 very small fishes, I put different quantities of water into 

 them, from the size 'of a small pea to that of a small 

 pistol bullet, and tying them up close, with some very 

 fine thread, I hung up these little globules in the open 

 air till they were quite dry on the outside. I then 

 provided a number of cartridges, made of fine paper, 

 and filled them with a known quantity of powder, equal 

 to the customary charge for a common horseman's pis- 

 tol, and having loaded such a pistol with one of them, 

 and a fit bullet, I laid it down upon the ground, and di- 

 recting it against an oaken plank, that was placed about 

 six feet from the muzzle, I fired it off by a train, and 

 carefully observed the recoil, and also the penetration of 

 the bullet. I then took several of the filled cartridges 

 that remained, and pouring out part of the powder, I put 

 one or more of the little bladders filled with water in the 

 center of the cartridge, and afterwards, pouring back the 

 remaining part of the charge, confined the water in the 

 midst of the powder. 



With these cartridges and a fit bullet, the pistol was 

 successively loaded, and being placed on the ground as 

 before, and fired by a train, the recoil and the penetra- 

 tion of the bullets were observed, and I constantly found 

 that the force of the charge was very sensibly diminished 

 by the addition of the globule of water, and the larger the 

 quantity of water was that was thus confined, the less 

 was the effect of the charge ; neither the recoil of the 

 pistol, nor the penetration of the bullet, being near 



