THE IlOYAL ARTILLERY INSTITUTION, 
227 
NOTE, APPENDED BY MR. MALLET, 
20th January, 1871. 
I avail myself of tRe permission of the Committee of the Royal Artillery 
Institution and of General Lefroy, R.A., to record a few facts less directly 
within the cognizance of the distinguished author of the preceding paper, 
with a view to removing obscurity and making more complete the early 
history of the 36-inch mortars. 
In the passage above quoted from Lord Palmerston's letter, 1st May, 
1855, to the Lieut.-General of Ordnance, the words occur: “two mortars 
upon the plan proposed by Messrs. Mallet and Barry." At the commence¬ 
ment, however, his Lordship rightly attributes the scheme to me. At about 
the above period I had arranged to take as a partner Mr, Frederick Barry, 
then Ass. Ins. C.E., and he accompanied me on, I think, three occasions 
when I waited on Lord Palmerston; hence his Lordship's expression. 
I am alone responsible for the conception, designs, and direction of the 
execution of the 36-inch mortars, to which Mr. Barry contributed nothing. 
His brief connection of a few months with me terminated before the mortars 
were completed. 
My original design for those mortars was completed prior to October, 
1854 ; and the original drawing, made and dated by my own hand (October, 
1854), was laid before and scrutinised by the Royal Irish Academy in June, 
1860, upon the occasion of the controversy referred to by General Lefroy. 
The engraved transcript of this, produced by the Academy, is subjoined. 
o. 
CThe author is indebted to the kindness of the Council of the Royal Irish Academy for the useof this woodcut,] 
