THE ROYAL ARTILLERY INSTITUTION, 
317 
of direction having been fixed, the elevation was given by a spirit-level, and 
the point where each shot struck the sands was transferred to an imaginary 
vertical plane by a calculation based on the angle of descent. On this plane 
the mean radial distance could be obtained, and taken as a means of com¬ 
parison by the ordinary process. 
To get a still more convenient comparison for accuracy a figure of merit 
was adopted in which unity was assigned to the best shooting gun at each 
range, and to the other guns a figure proportionate to the mean radial 
distances of their shots from the centres of their groups. The results thus 
obtained are shown in the accompanying tabled 
Table of Accuracy, 
4 
B.L. 
M.I. 
No. of 
Remarks. 
rounds. 
mean 
radial 
figure 
mean 
radial 
figure 
m 
range. 
distance. 
of merit. 
range. 
distance. 
of merit. 
Sol. shot. 
°1 
i S 
6 
18 
5 
503 
466 
867 
14 
21 
29 
1-3 
3-0 
1-2 
519 
514 
905 
11 
17 
24 
1*0 
2*4 
1*0 
J Up to 900 yds., 41 rounds; 
> M.L. gun 48 per cent 
n 
12 
846 
40 
2-5 
931 
16 
1*0 
i superior. 
2 
18 
1186 
54 
1*6 
1265 
39 
1*2 
From 900 to 2000 yds., 54 
3 
18 
1492 
60 
1-3 
1598 
63 
1*3 
rounds, the M-B* gun 41 
4 
18 
1770 
70 
1923 
65 
1*1 
per cent superior. 
5 
18 
2115 
131 
2*2 
2230 
114 
1*1 
6 
18 
2384 
162 
1-6 
2564 
118 
1*2 
From 2000 to 3000 yds., 64 
7 
18 
2684 
165 
1-7 
2855 
140 
rounds; M.L. gun 25 per 
8 
18 
2975 
166 
1*1 
3099 
185 
1*2 
cent superior. 
9 
18 
3224 
208 
1*4 
3327 
251 
1*8 
10 
18 
3460 
191 
3524 
363 
2*3 
5 
20 
1848 
112 
... 
1925 
95 
... 
Segment 
shell. 
0 
16 
505 
29 
568 
15 
«•« 
Up to 2000 yds., 61 rounds ; 
3 
18 
1445 
54 
1607 
110 
B. L. gun 5 per cent 
5 
17 
2080 
147 
2277 
165 
superior. 
7 
17 
2644 
264 
2798 
376 
10 
15 
3306 
821 
• »e 
3600 
608 
Common 
shell. 
0 
4 
505 
10 
1-7 
533 
11 
1*8 
Up to 900 yds., both guns 
1 
// 
874 
17 
1-1 
913 
15 
1*0 
equal. 
2 
SS 
1188 
37 
1*6 
1301 
23 
1*0 
From 900 to 2000 yds., M.L. 
3 
II 
1487 
46 
1*2 
1603 
63 
1*4 
gun 66 per cent superior. 
4 
If 
1740 
100 
1952 
29 
1*0 
5 
II 
2042 
73 
2*5 
2216 
72 
1*0 
From 2000 to 3300 yds.. 
6 
IS 
2320 
84 
1*1 
2587 
94 
1*0 
both guns equal. 
7 
IS 
2633 
102 
1*1 
2888 
67 
8 
IS 
2874 
110 
1*0 
3066 
382 
3*4 
9 
IS 
3128 
159 
3349' 
90 
1*0 
10 
si 
3302 
295 
3*2 
3523 
270 
1*0 
With solid shot the superiority of the muzzle-loader is very manifest. 
With segment shell the breech-loader shows a slight advantage. With 
* Report, pp. 22, 23, 24. The results given in the report in separate tables are here united 
in one. 
