THE FOWLING-PIECE. 



here meant to be understood, that a long barrel, with 

 a proportionate calibre, will not throw the shot farther 

 than a short one; on the contrary, it is very obvious, 

 that if a long barrel has a bore in proportion, and 

 consequently takes a greater charge, that it must carry 

 farther. 



The elastic fluid, produced by the firing of gun- 

 powder, is found, by experiment, to occupy, when 

 cooled to the temperature of the atmosphere, a space 

 two hundred and forty four times greater than that 

 taken up by the powder from which it was obtained; 

 but from the great heat generated during the explo- 

 sion, this elastic fluid is rarefied to four times its for- 

 mer bulk. The expansive force of this fluid, there- 

 fore, is, at the moment of inflammation, 970 times 

 greater than that of common air, or (which is the 

 same) than the pressure of the atmosphere; or, sup- 

 posing the powder to have occupied the space of one 

 cubic inch, its expansive force, when fired, is equal 

 to that which would be exerted by D/G cubic inches 

 of common air compressed into the space o\ one inch. 

 As the velocity with which the flame ot gunpowder 

 expands, when uncompressed, is much greater than 

 that with which the ball or shot moves forward, the 

 flame must continue to press upon the ball, and add 

 to its velocity, until it quits the mouth of the piece. 

 This pressure, however, ceases entirely when it leaves 

 the muzzle, in consequence of the flame being then 

 allowed to expand itself laterally, Hence it would 

 seem, that if two pieces of the same bore, but of two 



