FORTIFI 
sndnly eighteen or twenty feet broad, and the depth about 
feven or eight feet ; the tides (loping toward the bottom, 
which is about fix feet wide ; but the ditches on the 
Tides are about ten feet wide, and fix feet deep. Thefe 
are the dimenfions ufually given ; but the general practice 
is only to get earth fufficient for the work, without re¬ 
garding the regularity of the ditch; for as thefe works 
in attacks are often thrown up by night, the keeping, 
ftri&ly to the affigned dimenfions is hardly practicable. 
The parapet is generally raifed about three or four feet 
difiant from the brink of the ditch, the fpace left between, 
called the berm or foreland, ferving to lodge the rubbifli 
beat down by the enemy’s firot, that it may not fall into 
the ditch. The thicknefs of the parapet fhould be about 
twenty feet, in order to be cannon proof, and about feven 
or eight feet high, when the enemy lias no command above 
the battery. But if they have a command over this 1 height, 
the parapet fhould be raifed high enough to cover the- 
men when they load the guns. The length of the parapet 
depends on the luimber of guns to be employed in the 
battery. Thus for one gun, allow eight yards in length ; 
and fix yards more for every other gun. So two guns have 
fourteen yards ; three guns twenty yards ; four guns twen¬ 
ty-fix yards, &c. There fhould alfo be great care taken 
that the battery be not enfiladed by the enemy’s cannon : 
this is eafily prevented by railing, at one or both ends of 
the parapet, a bank acrofs the battery called an epauUmcnt, 
of the fame thicknefs and height of the parapet, and about 
eighteen feet long. 
The parapet confifts of two parts, namely the wall and 
the merlons. The wall is that part of the parapet which 
is contained in one piece from end to end, and is about 
three feet high. The merlons are detached pieces of the 
parapet, leaving openings for the embrafures, through 
which the cannon deliver their (hot. The embrafures 
fhould be cut as much as is pofiible perpendicular to 
the parapet; therefore the battery (hould be parallel, or 
nearly fo, to 'the object to be battered : for the direct 
fhots have mod force; and oblique embrafures weaken 
the merlons, or parts of the parapet ftanding between the 
embrafures. The embrafures are ufually about three feet 
wide on the infide, and about ten feet on the outfide; fo 
that the cannon may be trnverfed from the right to the 
left, and command a large extent in front. The diftance 
from the middle of one embrafure to the middle of the 
next (hould be about eighteen feet, in order to leave fuf- 
■ficient fpace for the working of the guns, the (towage of 
the fhot, and other necelfaries. 
The platform is a floor made to facilitate the rolling of 
the gun-carriage wheels, and to prevent them from fink¬ 
ing into the ground by the weight of the cannon, efpeci- 
ally in wet weather. Platforms are generally laid (loping 
toward the parapet with nine or ten inches fall ; this car¬ 
ries off the rain, prevents the gun from recoiling fo much 
when fired as it would do if laid level; and when loaded, 
it is more readily brought to the embrafure. In tempo¬ 
rary batteries the platforms are' made of planks laid acrofs 
fome ground timbers or (leepers ; there is ufually a plat¬ 
form made to each gun eighteen feet long, eight feet broad 
next the parapet, and about fourteen feet broad at the 
tail, the intermediate fpaces ferving for the (hot, and 
other neceft’aries. When a platform is to be laid on 
marfliy ground; firft lay a floor or two of fafeines; cover 
thefe with hurdles of twelve or fifteen feet long, and fix or 
feven broad ; on thefe lay a floor of four inches of earth, 
in which the (leepers are to be laid, and over them the 
planks. When a battery is built of (lone or brick, tire 
platform is generally a fiat-ftone pavement ranging the 
whole length of (he battery. This, on account of its re¬ 
fitting the injuries of the weather for a long time, is to 
be preferred to planks; but in cafe of a bombardment. 
Inch a platform is to be avoided, becaufe the (hells will 
not only break the pavement, but alfo, by driving about 
the broken (tones, do the troops confiderable mifehief. 
Th e magazine to a field battery is ufually made about 
CATION. 
fixfy yards behind the plaffortn. It is a cavity dug in 
the ground about four feet deep, and the earth thrown 
between the pit and the platform ; the (ides of the pit 
are fometimes planked round to keep it dry, nd prevent 
the earth from crumbling in ; and the powder-barrels 
placed there, are covered with hurdles and earth, or 
tanned hides, to preferve the powder from wet and fire. 
The Communication fo the magazine is by a (loping trench 
beginning to defeend about fix yards behind the platform ; 
and the earth thrown on that fide, where it will inoft con¬ 
veniently cover the perfons, who remove the barrels of 
powder from the great magazine to the battery, or (’mail 
magazine. When there are many cannon in battery, and 
the fervice is quick, it is cuttomary to have to every two 
pieces a (mall magazine to hold about thirty barrels of pow¬ 
der. This is placed about twenty yards behind the plat¬ 
form, and a gain ft the merlon between the cannon ; and as 
faft as thefe barrels are ufed, they are replaced by others 
from the principal (tore. 
To construct a Fascine Battery. —For one ,gim 
provide 600 fafeines of nine feet, ico of fix feet, 120 of 
three feet; and, for every other piece, 400 fafeines of nine 
feet, 100 of fix feet, and rob of three feet; and each fafeine 
being about nine inches thick ; and let there be three or 
four pickets for eVery fafeine. Trace the limits of the 
parapet in two parallel lines about eighteen feet difiant, 
allowing eight yards in length for one gun, and fix yards 
for every other gun ; arid along thefe lines cut a trench 
about half fpade deep. Lay a row of nine feet fafeines 
along one taench, obferving that their ends be we! 1 jammed 
one into the other, and let each be pegged down with 
two pickets, driven into the ground till the head is funk 
into the fafeine. Clol'e to this row lay another, the two 
end ones being of fix feet, and the reft nine feet, which 
will prevent the joinings in this row from falling againft 
the joinings in the firft row : let thefe be alfo ftaked down 
as before. Clofe to the fecond row lay a third, all of nine 
feet. Clofe to the third lay a fourth, the two end ones 
being fix feet, and the reft nine feet. In this manner lay 
tire rows of fafeines within the limits ftaked out, which 
will be covered with twenty-four rows; then over this 
floor of fafeines, throw earth to fill up the hollows, and 
let the whole be trod or well rammed down. On the 
firft floor lay a fecond; obferving, that as in the firft: floor 
every fecond row ended with fix-feet fafeines, fo in tire 
fecond floor every odd row fhould end with fix-feet ones, 
that the joinings of no two fafeines in this floor may 
fall over the joining of the fafeines below them. Let 
the outfide rows in the fecond floor be fo piaced over 
thofe in the lower, that there be a little (loping preferved, 
the work narrowing upward. The pickets which (lake 
down this floor are to be driven up to the head, and the 
channels or hollows in the floor are to be filled up with 
earth. In this manner lay four floors, which will raife 
the work to about three feet, when that part of the 
bread work called the wall will be completed. 
To stake out the Mf.rlcns. —Meafure from each 
end of the wall twelve feet, there place a flake ; and 
plant other flakes at every intermediate eighteen feet; 
this being done on the infide of tire wall, let other flakes 
be planted on the outfide, either directly oppofite the 
former, or in the line toward the place where the gun is 
more particularly intended to deliver its (hot. Plant 
other flakes on the infide, one a foot diftant on each fide 
the former, and this will leave fpaces of two feet each 
for the inner opening of the embrafures: then on the 
outfide, plant other (takes at five or fix feet diftance from 
the former ones, one on each fide, and fpaces of ten or 
twelve feet will be marked out for the outfide openings 
of the enibrafur.es. In the direction at the pickets, which 
limit the inner and outer openings of the embrafures, let 
(ingle rows of fafeines be flaked down acrofs the wall, 
and thefe will be the Tides of the embrafures. Fill the 
intermediate fpaces or merlons w-ith rows of fafeines laid 
lengthwife to the wall, aiid this will be the firft do or of 
2 the 
