The Washington bee., 1899-06-17
A HOARY PROBLEM.
1a Cannon BE Fired From a Car Travel
npat the Rate of Mile Minute, &c.

III a Cannon BE Fired From q Car 1ravel-
ing mt the Rate of Mile Minute, &c.
The question was sprung in Bohe-
milan den on Orleans street, after the
coffee was brought in. Suppose
cannon was mounted on an engine"
said one of the Inner Circle, and
was"
"Aw, that's as old as Patti" sneercd
a privileged guest, "and as simple as
A Il c"
shut up" replied the charter MEM
ber calmly, 'and listen to the PROPOSE
tion. S'pose cannon was mounted
on a locomotive, pointing backward.
The cannon is SO charged that it car
ries a ball exactly one mile in exactly
one minute and the engine Is moving
forward at a-mile-a-minute speed.
When the cannon is fired what be-
comes of the ballT'
plain as day" declared the priv
legged guest, who had been idgetihg
during the statement When the
cannon is fired the ball begins its
flight and thereafter has nothing TO do
with the engine OF the gun. 1t simply
wings through space for a mile from
its point Of departure, and there it
stops. This. according to the PROPOSE
ton, requires one minute, during
which time the locomotive has been
travelling steadily in the opposite d.
rection at equal speed, and has, there
fore, also covered one mile from the
place of explosion. Distance between
its noint of arrival and point at which
ball drops, two miles. It's clear as hy-
drant water. Gimme a cigarette.
somebody"
"Your explanation is dead wrong"
said member who had been think
ing swiftly 1T ignores the most es.
sehtial factor in the whole problem.
You must remember, when the cannon
is fired, that rhe engine is travelling In
the opposite direction at the rate Of a
mile a minute. In other words, the
tube, or gun itself, is being drawn
away from the ball at exactly the
same speed the ball would develop if
the gun was stationary, thus neutraliE-
ing the effect Of the powder.
1T is as If you struck at man at
the rate of ten feet a second and leap
cd backward at the same speed.
Naturally, you wouldn't hit him. The
ball. Of course, simply drops at the
muzzle of the cannon. 1t don't go an
L u
resembling, in tat respect. the think
ing machine OF the gentleman who has
just favored us with his amusing"
"Belay there"' exclaimed the poet
lauriate Of the Quarter Latin, don't
get SO gay and naughty! You've dim
ly unprecedented the principle involved.
but you've still away off yourself from
the real Pearl or Truth Listen to the
ton is based on the assumption th:C
the speed of the ball and speed Of the
engine neutra,ize each other because
they are equal" Yep" admitted the
charter member grudgingly. Pre-
cisely.' continued the poet, land there,
my boy. is where YOU fall down.
Their speeds are not equal.
The engine is moving forward at a
mile minute and goes as fast at one
part of its Journey as at another bur
the speed Of The ball. on the contrary,
is constantly diminishing, until t
drops. spent at the end of its flight. 1t
is evident. therefore. that it starts at
much more than a mile a minute. AMI
as equality Of speed is the basis ot
your childish theory, you will consider
yourself squelched. Tell the minion
TO pass the growler."
The charter member leaped wrata-
fully to his feet and five others began
to talk simultaneously. Order erie
the boss Bohemian. pounding on the
table with a mahl-stick. Gentlemen,
stop yelling or the place will be pulled.
This problem was unfortunate, but it
illustrates most of the affairs Of life.
We are deceived by surface simplicity.
rush widely at conclusions and take
cropper over some small. unObstruSive
fact which we hadn't noticed.
The cannon conundrum reeks with
fiendiSh SubtletieS. The ball. for eN
ample. partakeS of the momentum OF
the engine. which must he overcome
before ii budgeS. Then again. it is I'M
portant to know whether ii was fired
with or against the revolution of the
earth. Again you must determine what
percentage Of the speed of the proiec-
tile is developed before it reaches the
muZZle. and that in turn involves the
length of the tube and character of the
bore
These are things it would take
skilled mathema tician 'steen months TO
figure out. They would carry them in
10 dilferential calculus and probably in
10 the asylum. Therefore. III the inter
est of sanity. | declare the question
barred New Orleans Times-D Demo
crat.