The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1855-01-07
The Invention OF the Oval Ball aad, Gun,
with the Minnie Rine, &c..


with the Minnie Rine, &c..
70 THE EDITOR or THE HERALD.
VIII yen please have the KIDD ness t. give the fol
loving additional copies Of letter, from. the N .vy
Department, regarding my invention of the oval or
Lancaster gun. These are all that shall be able to
submit, as it appears by Mr.. Phelps the copyist's
note below, that my letters Of the l6sh and 2ist
July 1872, with the pen and ink sketches, have dis
appeared; and having kept NO copies Of my letters
to the department, cannot reproduce them. On
application to the commapdants office, at the Navy
Yard, Brooklyn, the clerk assured me most posi-
lively that no such letters or sketches were to be
found In that Office. They WERE probably aociden-
tally nislad o. lost, by some person or OH or to
whom commodore Perry may have entrusted. them.
WASHINGTON, d. c., July IL, 1912.
To THE Hon. A. p. UpsHgR, Secretary of the Navy !:
SIR would respectfully beg leave TO submit to
your consideration an Improvement propose in the
Construction Of cannon balls and shells. especially
as regards their form, for the purpose OF securiae
greater range and &C ,uracy of aim.
From some experiments have been enable to
make on smell scale, am fully convinced on
or circular ball shell is by no means the best 70
secure these n Suits
All bodies of weight when moving rapidly
through the air, observe the same laws Ia their mo
ton that regulate the earth in its revolutions And
hence there Is disposition in the moving body to
assume the form of the earth, pass from O sphere
to that ola spheIod and while revolving les own
axis to expand at its equator and contract at It's
poles. And when it ia incapable from its hardness,
or deficiency Of force in motion to assume ths shape
It's resistance TO the air 90 great as to impede it's
passage, and reI der It less steady In its movement
and more uncertain in its aim and range.
Be great IL the disposition OF the particles in q
circular moving body to assume the spheroida FORM
That II Il be IN iron shell of only an inch In thick,
ness. i becomes 50 much aattened on its poles and
enlarged ut what may be termed it's equator thst it
never fails to crack before reaching It's destination,
and loses its effect she'll Hence in the service
shells for ten inch guns In the round form, have to
be cast two and half inches thi ,k, which causes
their explosion into such heavy fragments, and i'd
mits OF so small charge of materials that their de-
structivepess is materially lesser ed they we're In
the first instance cast into the form OF sp5eroid
they might not only be used with larger cavity,
but have greater range, and more certainty of aim.
The same modification In the form of solid cannon
balls, would be Of still greater service In firing
ball Its great resistance as is we'll known, arises
from the contact Of atmosp aerc air. through which
1t passes, and to enable 1t TO move through this ele
ment, with least interruption, It is necessary all it's
partc es should be 30 disposed of as 20 afford the
least resistance, which can only be cone BY giving
notion The smallest undue projection Of m stal at
the wrong pont ct oil visible and which ia the least
varies its form from that Of spheroid cannot fail
to make 1t erratc In its notion to impede it's rauge
and render it's aim imperfect.
From the laws Of motion, it may be fairly infer
red, That cannon ball revolves on its own axis
Lnc ~ leaves It's muZZie Until ~ stopped
and when it Is fired in round shape an ef)rt
must 60 on to assume the spheroidal form, during
its entire fight, and in default Of which it may fail
short Of its desired aim and range.
propose to the Navy Department to have balls
and shell cast and tested on my plan, and under mg
superiDteDdence, aud ascertain whether they are
not superior to round shot, BY actual experiment
TO make the experiment more satisfactory and
ehectual, would also propose that the bore ot the
cannon from p hich they are to be fired be modified
go as to suit the shape Of the shot and that instead
OF perfectly circular bore 1t should be enlarged at
top and bottom into something of an oval for a. ex
tending from Il e mozzls TO the DO wder cnamber A
cannon already cast and bored at the foundry could
easily, BY additional eccentric boIi g. have its cavity
stspee Into the prope- SIZE and form.
To test the advantages Of baIs AID shells Of this
shape would not involve much expense, if fred
nom an ordinary gun, and would Lot probably
exceed one hundred dollars To insure, however,
more complete test OF the propes d Improvement.
i would be best so mount guu for the purpose.
In this event. the of the experiment would
be enhar ced, but under no cir ums 'ances would
Likely exceed four or five hundred dollars, including
aDor, materas balls, pc sder, superlntendence, &c.
sbculd you deem the proposed imDrovemen
worthy of trial by the COVE inment Ell all be
most happy at any time to receive aud obey any in
stJ uction from the Department on the mbact
While I have the honor to be, your very obedient
ard very humble servant, ALExe JONES'
p. S--Please after the 18th inst address me at
New York.
NAVY DEPARTMENT,
WASHINGTON July 10, 1912.
ALEXANDER JONES, ESQ New York.
bR-You are informed In reply to your letter of
the 10th nst that cannot authorize the construc-
ton OF the gun required to test your invention but
any gun In the service will answer, will probably
authorize Itbe casting Of few balls. am very
respectfully, DC. A. p. UpsHuR.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 80, 1854.
SIR-1Dclosed please find the copies as desired,
except your two letters Of the 10Th and 2lst July,
1872 have never the chief clerk says been returned
to the Navy Department. Commodore Perrys re-
port, II any is not on The files Of the Department.
The Ien and ink sketches were inclosed ia your
LETTERS OF the 2lst july 1912, but never have been
returned to the Department. Yours. respectfully,
ALBERT PHELPS, Jr., Copyist.
Having the previous year, orin lS4l, spent soma
s4oO or 5000 IN experimenting with shells, aud
with the view OF firing them from heavy ordnance
was not disposed TO spend any more money in toat
direction on my own account. l found in fidug one
or two OF my shells at a three mile range, at Bos.
ton haIbor, under the direction Of COL Bomford of
the u oDaDce Ofi'e, that the shell in the round
form WIS OF the one best suited to rem Ter nv in.
vention efe cttye They were too iok and too un-
S O. avn and range to suit my purpose, and
soon after Brought my invention OF an oval gun
before the department.
Mr.. Upshur's letter above acted as a perfect
quietus On my further progress. With all due reg
Iect for the memory of thar very excellent and able
man, must yet be permitted say that firing oval
balls from ioui bored guns would have been per.
fec,ly funle
CAIN to be the first inventor OF an oval hall
and oval bored cannon. The Mimic rifle q subse-
queIt invent ion enroachas on nv priucinle 40 far
as tits; he merely cut my oval ball Fig. Q. in
halves, at its shortest diameter C.
J J J ! I. !
ID, and uspg ore of tie halves, a
with its base resting against ire AMO5WAM
charge Of powder, ano being slight MEI5MNM
ly beloved out the powder ia Its fAVIl NlDM ID
explosion causes its sides to ex- MIIHlNM
pand, 1t being Of lead, and to fill WMiNlW
the grooves Of the rife--my oval W1YW
ball cut in two par s makes two OF B
MINES coDcoidsi balls.
The idea had, aleo, occurred to me OF cutting my
oval cannon bale into halves and firing in the same
maDrer but, as the iron would not spread like lead
one CT uld not perceive the advantage Of IL. In all
these plans, the oval form CT the missile, in whole
or In part must be preserved. AND, we contend