, 1861-05-14

The James Ataeh Cannon


teriRls, and tince the late Ef1mca1 Har RfFa.
proficiency has been attained in the nennfse-
Rihed Caunon, which have been tested and
proved to b. the most efficient gun in war,
Among these riled guns m4Y be enumerated
the Armstrong, the Whiteworth, the Napo-
leon, the Cava11i, the Lancaster, the Dahl
green and the James Riled Cannon, the Latter
OF which ia bedrg extensive1y adopted In tbs
United States Service, and which Ne shau CON +.
h4e our attention to. :
"The "James Rifle Cannon and Pr2jecsle
was patentad some four years tince by Gen.
Charles 7. james, Of Rhode Island, and its ad-
siats of system Ct IifiDg tbs smooth:bere
guns 1t present in use, and the adaptation Of
the well-knovn principle Of the rife p.tch
to the rrcjeGtile to. be used insthem, when RI
led The chief invention ia in the projectile,
which consists OF q pointed cylinder With
an expanssble ring OF band Of Haetals, tn or
lead, with an outer covering CT eanyaas, thor
oughly saturated RIth tallow or other 1ubEica-
ting substance, enveloping nearly the whole
OF ita cylindrical portion. It weighs
more than doable the spherical balls used
in smooth bore guns for instance, the ordt
nary aixpounder brouzs gun which carries
q - i poaaas
of metal, and other calibres in similar pro-
portion, thus more than doubling its tff4ctive-
ness; but when Lbs greatly Increased range
and accuracy OF thesE Prct settles IRE consider
ed, 1t makes the Eix-pouuder far superior to
ii the same ratio .sof sIyenees: the various
ea1ibres ofguns usedh the sekylcax. e. K
Let us examine more particularly the PFC
tectile The e1pansit1e ring or band of metA]s-
with its can1aa covering, is firmly fitted into
broad reress around the cyinafIaA} or bear
ing surface Of the rr1jeetlle, one-e1ghth u
an inch or more In dep:h, and slightly pro-
jecting above fts neta1 part, which prevents
all contact between tie latter and ths
grooves Of the gun aud consequent -IniarJ to
them, by abrasion, bl1!se Of aty other iei9ry.
At the base erd Of the bail is a cavity sx;end-,
Ing nearly its length, radiasing from which are
ducts or PASSAGES, like. the mertice holes n
the hub Of wheel, to the inner surface Ct ths
expaneibIe band. The moment the powder
tgnites, the gases generated BY the explosion,
rueh into the cavity and through the duets
or passages ,against the expansib'e band and
pressing It ont firmly and equally on al aides
aea;nst the bore Of the gun and into tho
rifle grooves, prevents all escape Of gas,
destroys ali Windage and causes the nrcjac--
tile, by rea3on cf its connection with the band
to follow accurately th6twist Of the:gr1oves
and to rotate on its axis On 1earing'the muz-
zle, Like the Well krown riff pa1eh; the eX-
psneib1e band, with its ou.er c1vering OF
creased canvas, prevents Gil lsading Ct the
guns, and, ,Sbsing firmly preszed- into 1.-The
gro YES, effectively expels at the muzz;e, all
Tssiduum OF a former discharge.
This r!fis canI .of En-: James is tEe most
wonderful improvement ever Jet made III tho.
scierce Of gunnery. The force BY Which theee
projectiles are thrown and the extent Of range
as well a. the accuracy OF results, is far beyond
anything before attained or supposed to be
possible. Tue aecuraey is az great even at the
distance Of two miles es that Of the best rife
at ordinary distances.
To give some idea Of the immense range OF
a. = = = L-r z-rL ~.
miles. The writer Of thIs article eaw, summer
before last, at Am s Cannon Foundry, in Ca
botvi1le, Mass, q test ct an ordinary elx-pcun-
der, rihed, and from which one, Of James u:
pound shot WIS fred. Thu projeeti1s was ta-
ken from the foundry, and the range Of tn.
~ charge Of powder. The ball passed through
small pine tree and lodged In a eand bank,
with 6uf1cieut rotating force to polish tbs
burr Of tLe casting of IS If it Tad been done BY
the hsnds Of q skillfm mechanic.
No vessel ever yet constructed can resist
| the forca Of these projectiles propelled from
| any riied cannon at distance OF eren-two or
| three mi1es. They can be rsed In al sizes and
| kinds of brass, iron or "brorze guns that are
rifsd, and the cost to any State Of ri1ing their
cannon On hand, would tn the saving Of the
powder alone, pay the cost Of Hftnast. !
The highest Testimonials hRve been givea by
| Board OF Ordinance Officers Of the Army,
convened to test the James rife cannon a. viii
BE- reen by tte following endorsement Of the
V" Il i sdmiraoly ada2tedso the various cal,
ibrea Of guns now in. 1se, requiring only that
they be r3Aed, (which can be readily done
| without even removing them from the Foria
plied with aproper proportion Of the r!aed
prcjsetiles. Besides the adFautages thus to
be attained Of converting our smooth bored
cannon into rified cannou, the Weight Of met