40 
MINUTES OF PROCEEDIN'G-S OF 
This gun was next fired at the same range, with a shell of homogeneous 
metal weighing 12 lbs. oz., with a charge of 1 lb. 14 oz., and a bursting 
charge of 6 oz., but no fuze, against a 2-in. plate, with a backing of 12 in. 
of timber; it passed through both plate and backing and buried itself in the 
earth beyond; there was however no appearance of the shell having burst in 
passing through the plate. 
It may be well here to explain, that the explosion of these shells without 
fuzes was supposed by Mr Whitworth to be due to the heat generated in 
the metal of the projectile on impact, he having specially constructed them 
with that view, and having also provided an arrangement of flannels covering 
the bursting charges by which he could govern the time of explosion; but 
whether the heat was thus generated, or whether it was due to the violent 
friction of the particles of powder among themselves or against other 
substances, or the sudden loss of velocity in the projectile, appears a fair 
matter of doubt. Be this as it may, he certainly obtained some very satis¬ 
factory, and, at that time, unprecedented results. 
The next gun fired was the 70-pr., with a charge of 12 lbs. of powder, 
at 200 yards, and with a shell formed of similar material to the others, 
weighing 69 lbs., having a bursting charge of 2 lbs. 6 oz., but without a 
fuze. The initial velocity of this shell was 1275 ft., and the loss of velocity 
in 40 yards, about 10 ft. per second. 
The target used on this occasion was made in the form of a box, with the 
object of putting to the test Mr Whitworth's boast, that he could drive a 
shell through the side of an armour clad ship and make it burst between 
decks. The front of the box was made of 4~in. armour on a 9-in. backing 
of timber; the back of the box was of 2-in. armour plate on 4-in. of wood, 
and its sides were of 4-in. timber, the cubical contents of the box being 
about 35 ft. 
The shell fired on this occasion, with an initial velocity of 1275 ft., passed 
completely through the 4-in armour plate and its oak backing, and exploded 
on the rear side of the box, the plate of which was indented 2| in., bursting 
the box and blowing all six sides outwards. 
The great success of this and the 12-pr. shell must of course be mainly 
attributed to the superior quality of metal in the shell, which admitted of 
its passing through so great a thickness of iron unbroken; previous expe¬ 
rience having presented no instance of a shell passing through even 1 in. of 
iron without breaking up, and 2 in. of iron having hitherto broken even 
solid shot of steel. 
Soon after this Mr Whitworth followed up these experiments on a larger 
and more important scale by practice with the 120-pr., at 600 yards, against 
the new “ Warrior” target. 
In this trial a solid homogeneous metal shot, weighing 129 lbs., was fired 
with a 23 lb. charge of powder, giving a striking velocity of about 1280 ft., 
and punched a clean hole through the 4^-in. armour, lodging itself in the 
timber backing against the skin, which was a good deal injured; a rib 
previously cracked by the Horsefall gun was now completely broken in two, 
and some bolts gave way. 
A shell of homogeneous metal, weighing 127 lbs., with a bursting charge 
of 3 lbs. 8 oz., and without a fuze, was next fired at the same range with a 
charge of 25 lbs. of powder, giving a terminal velocity of about 1263 ft. 
