The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1835-01-02 00:00:00

NEW CONGREVE ROCKETS.

A grand field-day was appointed for yesterday at the Polygon
of Vincennes, principally for artillery exercises, at which his
Royal Highness the Duke of Orleans, General Gourgaud,
Commandant of the Artillery of Vincennes, and a numerous
staff, were present. At twelve o'clock, immediately on the
arrival of. the Prince on the ground, the exercises commenced
with a series of experiments of an improvement upon that for-
midable weapon the congreve rocket (fusierde guerre,) which
were attended with the most complete success, and promises to
give increased power and importance to this branch of• the
service, whenever a necessity may arrive for its employment.
The rockets were of the smallest calibre used iu the French
service, weighing, we understand, six pounds, and are, from
their portability, remarkably well adapted for field service.
Having examined the rockets used on this occasion, as well' as
the mode of firing them, with some attention, the following brief
description will be found to be tolerably exact :—To the end of
the rocket is fixed a shell of cast iron, containing fifteen balls,
which, when it arrives at its destination, explodes, and the balls
are then projected three or four hundred yards further: The
essay commenced by a discharge of .a .number of rockets in
succession,-from a small portable apparatus, weighing not more
than.ten or eleven pounds, thus demonstrating that a single
soldier may carry a considerable quantity of them, with the ap-
paratus fur firing then into the defiles of mountains, and to
other points where the artillery could not be brought to act. A
rocket-carriage, on a novel principle,- containing eight tubes for
discharging eight rockets at ix time, was afterwards tried with
equal success; it is impossible to-conceive that any body of
cavalry could resist the tremendous effect of a volley from a
battery of this nature. The last expel invent was that of a num-
ber,orrockets laid on the ground ancbdischarged, by some im-
proveinent in the form, without any apparatus whatever; with
the roost perfect accuracy; three ranges-Were placed one behind
the other, representing an ambuscade in a defile, &e., and fired
with •the utmost 'rapidity. The effect" of this 'discharge was
wonderful, not a single rocket rising 'higher from the ground
than the height of a man during itsentirecourse. The striking
accuracy of the fire was the object of general remark among the
officers on the ground. It is khown that the ordinary rocket,
froth the-length of the stick,' is greatly under the -influence of
the wind ; but by the.force of the impetuseivon by the improved
composition of the weapon, the entire, with only one or two ex-
ceptions, went in a direct line within the prescribed limit, which
waslhat of g range of planks representing a column of troops,
although the wind was directly across tho line of fire. , His
Royal Highness the Duke of Orleans seemed much pleased
with the result of these -experiments, and, we learn, expressed
his gratification to Mr. Bedford, the director of the establish-
ment des fades de guerre, in the most gracious and flattering
manner. From yesterday's essay there remains no doubt that
when this new arm of the service is properly organised, which,
we understand, is likely to take place immediately, that it will
become a most formidable auxiliary to the 'artillery. The
artillery exercises which'followed displayed much. skill, several
targets bein,,,,o4Struck,- and the first bomb discharged fell direct
into the barrel on the 'top of the perch ; the cannoneer Who
performed this rare and difficult feat was warmly complimented
by the Prince and the other officers present, and his-comrades
afterwards carried him in triumph round the field. The exer-
cises concluded with a petite guerre, in which the artillm and
the infantry on the ground equally participated. The fineness
of the day added much:to the animation of the scene, and a
great number of respectable persons were on the ground.-
Galignanis Messenger.