10 
POPULAR SCIENCE REVIEW. 
November 23, 1865, gave such indications of the power of the 
new method, that no subsequent correction or modification 
has been found necessary to adapt them to the law of resist- 
ance ascertained in several hundred rounds. 
The eminent referees already named establish Professor 
Bashforth’s claims to priority in the following sentence : — “ By 
experiments made in this way, Captain W. H. Noble has 
obtained very good results, which confirm in a remarkable 
manner those which had been previously obtained by Professor 
Bashforth for high velocities, and agree approximately with 
those of M. Helie for lower velocities.” A singularly interesting 
result has been obtained. 
It appears that if the shot flies faster than a sound-wave, the 
shot is preceded by an automatic wave caused by itself; fol- 
lowed as it were more slowly by the wave of the explosion. 
But if the shot is behind the sound-wave, in consequence of its 
velocity being less than that of sound, the shot may be travel- 
ling in a medium more or less dense than the undisturbed 
atmosphere ; and the law of resistance may be subject to 
sudden changes or leaps showing unsteadiness, detected by the 
readings of the chronograph. In this case tilting of the shot 
may be presumed. 
There are several very valuable results obtained from the 
development of the ascertained laws of flight, and applicable 
to hitting the mark with the best effect. 
Spheroidal-headed shot showed the greatest steadiness and 
the least resistance of all the solid forms of elongated shot 
used. 
A condemned 40-pr. B. L. gun was bored out to 5 inches. 
The chronograph showed remarkable precision and steadiness 
of flight. “No other gun succeeded so well.” Rounds 139 — 
178 were fired April 29 and 30, 1868. The co-efficient of 
resistance was found remarkably low for this gun. 
The 250 lbs. shot with charge of powder appeared to 
meet with unusually great resistance of the air, and indicated 
great unsteadiness for low velocities. 
The 9-inch gun, formed with a rifling of 0 to 1 in 45, gave 
great indications of unsteadiness. 
A 10-inch projectile would strike a harder blow at 2,000 
yards than the 9-inch would inflict at the muzzle. 
The power of perforation at 1,500 yards is the same as that 
of the 9-inch at the muzzle. 
The Whitworth elongated 150 lbs. flat-headed shot appeared 
to exhibit unsteadiness of flight under the larger charge of 
20 lbs. powder, but assumes an eminently true motion when fired 
the lowest charge, 10 lbs. of gunpowder. 
