MILITARY ENGINES. 117 



with a butt behind, by which it was laid to the shoulder, and in front an 

 ofF-set, by which it could be caught against the wall or a post, so as to 

 break the recoil. The touch-hole was at the side, instead of above as 

 before, and to secure the priming from falling off the pan was placed below 

 it. The firing was effected by means of a match. As, however, proper 

 supports were not always to be found, and it was desired to render the gun 

 still more portable and effective for field service, the stock was made yet 

 lighter {fig. 8), the butt more suitably formed, and the ramrod inserted in 

 the stock. The point of support for this still very heavy weapon, was fur- 

 nished by a fork at the end of a staff shod with iron, which the musketeer, 

 for these weapons were called muskets, always carried with him and set up 

 in the earth whenever he wished to use his piece. The touch-hole and 

 pan were on the left side, so that the musketeer, while he held the weapon 

 in its rest against the shoulder with the right hand, could fire it with the. 

 match held in his left. The next improvement was the invention of the 

 lock. The musket had been so much lightened that the musketeer could 

 use it, held in both hands, without the prop or rest {fig. 10) ; but as he could 

 not manage the match with his left hand, since that was required in taking 

 aim, it became necessary to attach it to the piece itself For this purpose 

 the touch-hole was brought once more to the right hand side, and a match 

 so placed near it, that with the right hand it could be conveniently pressed 

 down into the pan. The most ancient match-lock is represented {pi. 34, 

 fig. 11). The match-holder turned upon a pin in the lock-plate, and had 

 below a prolongation which formed the trigger, and which when pressed 

 downwards by the thumb of the right hand brought the match into the 

 priming. A small spring pressed the match back again when the priming 

 was kindled. Afterwards the lock was differently formed {fig. 12), a simple 

 slide being introduced, which caught on an off-set on the match-holder and 

 moved it so as to bring the match into the priming or push it back. Mean- 

 while the match was perceived to be very imperfectly adapted to the pur- 

 pose for which it was here employed, for if it was not withdrawn quick 

 enough after firing, or if its position was not exactly right, the blast of the 

 priming, with that from the touch-hole, would blow off the coal and thus 

 extinguish the match. This difficulty led to the invention of the fire-lock. 

 The first attempt of this kind was the Avheel-lock {fig. 13), which was sug- 

 gested by the fact that flint and steel struck rapidly and forcibly together 

 would give out sparks capable of igniting gunpowder. A steel disk was 

 added to the lock, which was connected with a spring in such a manner, 

 that when the spring was set and the trigger pressed the disk made a sud- 

 den and rapid revolution ; a flint was now applied by means of an addition 

 for that purpose, the cock, so that it could be pressed against the steel disk 

 at pleasure. The moment the lock was set in action the flint struck off 

 small fragments from the iron disk, which, being heated red-hot by the fric- 

 tion, fell into the priming and kindled it. An improvement on this lock 

 was made {fig. 14) by not connecting the disk immediately with the spring, 

 but by means of a chain, so that the spring could open further, and the disk 

 performing a whole instead of half a revolution, was thus longer in contact 



ICONOGrwAPHIC ENCYCLOPEDIA. — VOL. III. 38 593 



