48 YEAR-BOOK OF FACTS. 



breech is a weak point: in all besides, the Whitworth gun las a 

 decided advantage. Homogeneous iron is better than welded iron 

 bars, and the even bore and solid shot are far better than the lead- 

 coated shot of Armstrong. Any enemy must possess Whitworth 

 guns of the exact calibre, to return any of his shot, as each solid 

 shot or shell fits to the l-50th of an inch. It requires a power of 

 many tons weight to force one of Armstrong's lead- coated shot 

 through from breech to muzzle ; but any child may easily push one 

 of the Whitworth shot through his guns, the fit is so true, even, and 

 easy. The Armstrong gun cannot be used as a muzzle-loader : the 

 Whitworth gun can be so used, if required. The Whitworth mate- 

 rial and form of bore and mode of rifling, with the Armstrong 

 breech and mode of sighting, would constitute a perfect weapon in 

 even' respect. With such guns Great Britain will fight her next 

 great battles, and woe be to whatever may be brought within the 

 range of such terrible weapons ; — wrought-iron plates, the thickest 

 and strongest which can be made for any vessel to cam*, as plate- 

 mail, will be punched and perforated as if only of the consistency of 

 cork. Shells and hollow shot of the most destructive character will 

 pierce ships and scatter annihilation around, either above or below 

 the water-line. No material will be able to resist the direct action 

 of such engines. A Whitworth ball will pass through 40 feet of 

 sand, and continue in a direct line at any angle through water. A 

 Whitworth rifle bullet has a range of 2000 yards, and spins on its 

 axis at a rate of 100,000 revolutions per minute. Rope mantlets, 

 sand-bags, or other known means of protection hitherto used, will be 

 of no avail against such a Bpinning, direct, and insinuating projec- 

 tile, tiunpowder cannot burst cither the Armstrong or the Whit- 

 worth guns ; this is about all which need be said on strength, and as 

 to range and accuracy, these have been proved. — Selected and 

 Abridged from the Builder. 



Sir William Armstrong has proved the deadly nature of his guns 

 and projectiles, but unfortunately his first success was secured at the 

 expense of an English soldier's life. Sir William, in giving an ac- 

 count of his shells, in May, 1859, represented that they could not 

 strike even a bag of shavings without exploding ; an unfortunate 

 soldier, who seems to have believed this statement, in meddling with 

 some of the shells fired at the old tower at Eastbourne, paid the 

 penalty of his credulity by losing his life. It appears that they can 

 strike, not only bags of shavings, but granite towers, without ex- 

 ploding. We now leave these competing cannon-makers for a third 

 inventor. 



Captain Blakeley has read to the British Association a paper on 

 Rilled Cannon, in which the writer pointed out that to make an effi- 

 cient rilled gun, no more was needed than to copy any good small rifle 

 in the number and shape of the grooves, degree of twist, and 



, provided one difficulty was overcome, via,, that of making 

 tie- barrel strong enough. Taking sir W. Armstrong's 80-pounder 

 as a standard) Captain Blakeley gave several, examples of large 



rifled c.iii n< in on the model of successful small ones, which had given 

 satisfactory results in every way, except that they had failed alter a 



