BOM 



BOLWYCK, a town of Norway, 40 miles W. of 

 Tonfberg. 



BOLZANI, Urbavo Valeriano, in Biography, one 

 of the revivers of literature in the ijth century, was born at 

 Belluno about the year 1440. Having entered, when young, 

 into the order of the Minorites, he travelled through Egypt, 

 Paleftine, Syria, Arabia, Greece, and Thrace, obierving 

 whatever was curious either in nature or art. In the courfe 

 of his perambulations, lie twice afcended the fummit of 

 ^tna, and furveyed its crater. As a ftri£t obferver of his 

 vows, he declined acceptin^j the honours and dignities 

 which were offered him. His fixed abode was at Venice, 

 where he taught the Greeii language, and, among other 

 fcholars, inftnifted the learned Gean-Antoiiio Flaminio, and 

 John d'Medici, afterwards pope Leo X. He was the firil 

 who facilitated tlie attainment of the Greek, by compofing 

 a grammar in that language ; of which the firll edition was 

 printed in 1497, and a fecond, much enlarged, in 1512. He 

 died in i ';24. 



BOLZANO, or BoLZEN, in Geography, a town of Ger- 

 many, in the Tyro!, feated on the river Eyfac, near its con- 

 fluence with the.Adige, famous for its four annual taiis, each 

 of which continues a fornight, which are much reforted to 

 by Italian and German merchants; 6 leagues S. W. of 

 Brixen, and 9 N. of Trent. It was taken by the French in 

 March, 1797. N. lat. 46° 2S'. E. long. 11" 14'. 



Bolzano, a town of Italy, in the Viccntin, belonging, to 

 the (late of Venice, 2 leagues E. of Vicenza. 



BOM, in Zo'Jogy, the name of an American ferpent of 

 the Boa genus, called likewife home, and boma. It is faid 

 to grow to a vaft fize, and to be perfeftly harmlefs ; but the 

 latter affertion is improbable ; it is not certainly of the 

 poiionous race of ferpents. This is called the bom, becaufe 

 it emits a remarkable noife refembling the found of that 

 word, when pronounced with a deep hollow voice. 



BOMAL, or BoHEMAL, in Geography, a town of Ger- 

 many, in the duchy of Luxemberg, leated on the Ourte, 

 7 miles S. W. of Spa, and 53 N. W. of Luxemberg. 



BOMANGOY, a town of Africa, in the kingdom of 

 Angoy, or Gov (which fee), fituate on the north bank of 

 the river Zaire. 8. lat. 5° 56'. W. long. 13°. 



BOMARZO, a town of Italy, in the ecclefiaftical (late, 

 and patrimony of St. Peter, once epifcopal ; 14 miles from 

 Civita Caftellana. 



BOMB, in the Military Art, a hollow iron-ball, or (hell, 

 furnifhed with a vent, by which it is filled with gun-powder, 

 and which is fitted with a fufee, or hollow plug, by which 

 !t gives fire, when thrown out of a mortar. 



In the Englifh artillery, bombs are now commonly tailed 

 ihells. 



The word bomb comes from the Latin lomlus, crepitus, 

 orjjlilus ani : by rcafonofthe noife it makes. 



The m.ethod of preparing a bomb is as follows : a hol- 

 low iron globe A B f Plate Gunnery), is call pretty 

 thick, having a round aperture A, by which it may be 

 filled and lighted ; and circular anf<c C, D, of hammered 

 iron fixed in the mould when they are caft, for the com- 

 modious putting it into the mortar, as well as for carrying it 

 from one place to another. In France, the handles are caft. 

 iron : but they are thus rendered more clumfy, and liable to 

 break fooner than the. others. 



It has been ufual to make the lower part of the bomb the 

 thickeft, that it mav fall on that fide, and never on the fufee, 

 and that it may alfo better refift the (hock, or impreflion 

 of the powder by which it is diliharged from the mortar ; 

 but Mr. MuUer thinks that neither of thefe confiderations is 



Vol. IV. 



BOM 



of any great importance, and recommends rather to mate 

 them every where equally thick, becaufe they would thcs 

 burfl into a greater number of pieces. Artillery, p. 151. m 

 his Syftera, &c. vol. v. 



After the (hells have been ganged and ex.imined as to 

 their dimenfions and weight, they muft be well fearched 

 within and without by means of a copper gra'.er, to afcertain 

 whether there be any holes or ca^aties in them ; and the 

 iron pin or fpike at the bottom of the infide, which fupports 

 the corp when they are call, Ihould be beat down or broken 

 off. They are then to be hammered all over, to ku'jck off" 

 the fcales, and difcover flaws ; ar.d no ho!?, in the large 

 fliells, is allowed, of more tl:an J of an mch deep. An 

 empty fufee is then driven into the fufee Irolc ; and the 

 (hell is fufpended in a tub of water, fo that the water may 

 cover it, without running into the fufee ; in this fituation 

 the nofe of a pair of bellows is introduced into the fufee 

 hole, and feveral ftrong puffs given with tl:e bellows ; and 

 if no bubbles rife in the water, it is concluded that there 

 are no holes in the (liell, but that it is founid and ht for 

 fcrvice. 



When the (hell has been thus proved, and is found to be 

 dry within, gun-powder is introduced into its cavity, by 

 means of a funnel ; but it is not quite filled. ArtiUerills, 

 though they agree that (liells fhonld not be quite full, have 

 not afceriained the precife quantity uliich would ferve for 

 their burlling into the greatell number of pieces. Cap« 

 tain Dcfaguilliers, after having made feveral experiments, 

 apprehends, that the moll proper quantity of powder is two 

 thirds of the weight which would fill the cavity. A little 

 fpace or liberty is left, that when a fufee or wooden tube a, 

 e, of the figure of a truncated cone, is driven through the 

 aperture, the powder may not be bruifcd. This fufee is 

 preffed in at firft by the hand as far as it will go, and then 

 drove with a mallet as hard as poffible, taking care, however, 

 not to fpHt it ; for if the lealt crack were in it, the com- 

 pofition would give fire to the powder, and the fhell would 

 burft either in the mortar, or in the air, and thus do no 

 execution. For the method of preparing and filling the 

 fufee, fee Fusee. 



This fufee is fct on fire, and burns flowly till it reaches the 

 gun-powder, which goes off at once, burfting the fliell ta 

 pieces with incredible violence ; whence the ufe of bombs in 

 bcfieging towns. Special care, however, muft be taken, 

 that the fufee be fo proportioned, as that the gun-powder 

 do not take fire before the (hell arrives at the dellined place ; 

 to prevent which, the fufee is frequently wound round with 

 a wet clammy thread. 



The fufees are driven into the (hell, fo as that only about 

 an inch and a half come out beyond the fufee-hole ; and 

 then the (hell is faid to be fixed. They are charged long 

 before there is occafion to ufe them ; and in order to fecure 

 the compofition with which they are filled, the two ends 

 are covered with a mixture of two parts of pitch, one of 

 rofln, and three of bees-wax, which will guard the com- 

 pofition within from the accefs of air ; and it will thus 

 keep as long as you pleafe. When the fufee is to be put 

 into the (liell, the little end is opened or cut off; but the 

 great end is never opened till the mortar is to be fired. 

 Bombs or /hells are made ot different magnitudes, from that 

 of 17 or 18 inches diameter downwards ; the very large ones 

 are not ufed by the Enghfh, that of 13 inches diameter 

 being the largefl fize now employed by them. The follow, 

 ing table (hews the weight, dimeufions, &c. of Engliih and 

 French (htils. 



5A 



SHELLS 



