1 82 Experiments with Cannon, &c. 



But my attempts to improve artillery were not confined 

 to the form of the gun, and its carriage ; the change 

 that might be made, with advantage, in the material em- 

 ployed in constructing cannon for the land service, was 

 likewise a subject of experiment which engaged my at- 

 tention. 



Happening to be present many years before, when the 

 late Admiral Darby, in a large company of Admirals 

 and Captains of the navy, expressed his great satisfaction 

 at having at length succeeded in his attempts to get rid of 

 the brass guns, which, for many years after iron ordnance 

 had been generally substituted for brass, in the navy, 

 the Britannia (the Admiral's ship) had continued to 

 carry, on her lower gun-deck : the conversation to which 

 this incident gave rise, concerning the relative merit of 

 iron and brass guns, made a lasting impression on my 

 mind ; and as soon as it was in my power, I did not 

 neglect to make such experiments as I conceived would 

 be sufficient to determine a question that appeared to me 

 to be of very great magnitude indeed. 



I had conceived an idea that IRON ordnance might, 

 with much advantage, be substituted instead of BRASS, 

 for field artillery, and in general for all kinds of artil- 

 lery. 



I made some experiments with a view to the ascer- 

 taining of that fact, during the time I served with my 

 regiment in the American war, but these were upon too 

 confined a scale to be decisive ; as far, however, as they 

 went, they tended to confirm the favourable opinion 1 

 had conceived of the usefulness of iron guns in the 

 land service. The Hon. Admiral Digby, having been 

 so kind, at my solicitation, as to lend me two twelve 

 -pounder carronades, I mounted them as howitzers, and 



