AN IMPROVED METHOD OF FIRING OR DIS- CHARGING CANNON AND OTHER FIRE-ARMS, A PART OF WHICH INVENTION IS APPLI- CABLE GENERALLY TO THE FIRING OF CHARGES OF POWDER
Year: 1863

page_text: Sealed the 24th February 1863, and dated the 3rd January 1863.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Edward Newton
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
3rd January 1863.
I, WILLIAM EDWARD NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery
Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "AN IMPROVED METHOD OF FIRING OR DIS-
CHARGING CANNON AND OTHER FIRE-ARMS, A PART OF WHICH INVENTION IS APPLI-
CABLE GENERALLY TO THE FIRING OF CHARGES OF POWDER," to be as follows:-
The first part of this Invention relates to the firing of cannon and other
fire-arms by currents of electricity, and without a vent or touch hole; and the
second part of the Invention relates to the fuse by which a charge of powder,
wherever desired, may be fired by a current of electricity.
The object of the first part of the Invention is to avoid the use of vents, 1

page_text: priming holes in fire-arms, and specially in cannon. In the rear end or
breech of the cannon, and in line with the axis of the bore, a conical hole
extending entirely through to the bore is made. To this hole is accurately
fitted a conical plug of metal coated with some non-conductor of electricity.
The metallic surface of the inner end of the plug should be left uncovered.
To the outer end of this plug is attached a conducting wire leading to a
magneto-electric machine or battery, or other source of electricity. The car-
tridge or charge of powder is provided with a fuse, which constitutes the
second part of the Invention. It is a known fact, that if a short and feeble
conductor be used in any part of an electric circuit the passage of a slightly
intense current will partially burn such feeble conductor with an instantaneous
emission of intense heat as the current is thereby broken.
The second part of the present Invention is based on this fact, and consists
in forming a fuse for igniting powder by connecting the ends of two metallic
conductors by means of a feeble conductor in contact with the charge of
powder, or separated therefrom by some equally combustible matter. A con-
venient mode of effecting this object is to insert two copper wires in a block
of wood which I term the holder; these wires should be about three-sixteenths
of an inch apart from centre to centre, and the edges of the extreme ends of
the wires should be completely in contact with the wooden holder; the other
ends of the wires are left to project from the block to a sufficient length
for a purpose to be presently described.
The feeble conductor for connecting the extreme ends of the two copper
wires is simply a mark on the end of the holder extending from one wire to
the other, and made with a pencil of the softest and purest plumbago. The
holder is surrounded with paper extending sufficiently beyond the end of the
holder to form a small case to hold a small charge of powder in contact with
the feeble conductor. When a current of electricity is induced in passing
through the plumbago mark or other feeble conductor it will ignite a portion
of it, producing a break with an intense flash which will ignite the contained
charge of powder. To protect the ends of the conducting wires and the
plumbago line from oxydation and injury, they may be coated with collodion
or other equivalent substance. This fuse is placed at about the centre of the
cartridge or charge of powder, with one of the conducting wires extending
through and projecting slightly from the rear end of the cartridge or charge
of powder to insure its coming into contact with the metallic face of the plug
at the breech of the cannon when the cartridge is rammed home. The other
conducting wire extends and projects through the cartridge, and is in contact
with the bore when charged into the cannon.

page_text: As one of the conducting wires of the fuse is in contact with the inner end
of the conical plug, which plug is in connection with the conducting wire
leading to one pole of a magneto-electric machine or galvanic battery, and
the other conducting wire of the fuse is in contact with the bore of the gun,
it follows that when the butt of the cannon is connected with the other pole
of a magneto-electric machine or battery and the electric circuit is established,
the current, on reaching the point of one of the wires, will be conducted to the
other wire of the fuse by the pencil mark or other feeble conductor, causing
a flash or spark which instantly ignites the charge of gunpowder.
The first and second parts of this Invention may be used separately if
desired; and fuses made on the plan of the second part of the Invention may
be used for firing cannon and other fire-arms by substituting some other
suitable means for transmitting the electric current to the conducting wires of
the fuse; and fuses made on this plan may be used for firing torpedos and
mines, and charges for blasting rocks.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Edward Newton in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 3rd July 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
EDWARD NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Third day of January, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-three in the twenty-sixth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors. give and grant unto me, the said
William Edward Newton, Her special license that 1, the said William Edward
Newton, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
William Edward Newton, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at
any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times
thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for
"AN IMPROVED METHOD OF FIRING OR DISCHARGING CANNON AND OTHER FIRE-ARMS
A PART OF WHICH INVENTION IS APPLICABLE GENERALLY TO THE FIRING OF CHARGES OF
POWDER," being a communication from a foreigner residing abroad, upon the

page_text: condition (amongst others) that I, the said William Edward Newton, by an
instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should particularly describe
and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the
same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great
Scal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately after
the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Edward Newton, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement, reference being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
The first part of this Invention relates to the firing of cannon and other
fire-arms by means of currents of electricity, and without the use of a vent or
touch-hole. The second part of the Invention relates to the fuse by which a
charge of powder, wherever desired, may be fired by means of a current of
electricity.
The use of a vent or priming hole in fire-arms, and specially in cannon, is
known to be objectionable for reasons so well understood that it is deemed
unnecessary to state them herein. The object of the first part of the present
Invention is to render the use of vents or priming holes in fire-arms and
specially in cannon unnecessary.
The mode of constructing the parts for the application of the first part of
the said Invention I will describe as applied to a cannon, as from that expla-
nation any one skilled in fire-arms may readily make the application to other
fire arms.
In the accompanying Drawing, Fig. 1 is a longitudinal vertical section of a
cannon fitted with the improvements; Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the fuse,
the wrapper being represented as transparent.
In the rear end or breech of the cannon a, and in line with the axis of the
bore, is bored or otherwise formed a conical hole extending entirely through to
the bore; this hole is reamed out to a conical form with the greater diameter
inside, as shewn in Fig. 1. To this hole is accurately fitted a conical plug of
metal b, the periphery of which is to be coated with some suitable non-
conductor of electricity. It has been found that enamelling the surface of the
plug in the same way and by the same means as is generally used for
enamelling iron wire answers the purpose well; as, however, this mode of
insulating the metal surface is well known, I have not considered it necessary
to describe it. The metallic surface of the inner end of the plug, or at least

page_text: a portion of it, should be left uncovered; this metallic plug bis to be accu-
Tately fitted and driven forcibly into the conical hole, and secured by means of
a nut c or other suitable means on the outside.
It will be evident that the only effect of the force of the discharges on the
inner end of this plug will be to drive it in tighter; to the outer end of this
plug is attached a conducting wire d leading to a magneto-electric machine or
battery, or other source of electricity. The cartridge or charge of powder e is
provided with a fuse f, which constitutes the second part of the Invention.
It is well known that powder and other explosive substances may and have
been exploded by electric currents. The most approved mode heretoforo
known is by means of currents of electricity generated by the galvanic battery,
and transmitted by suitable conductors to the point desired, and there united
by a very fine short iron or platinum wire or foil placed within a cartridge or
other case containing powder. By passing such a current of electricity of
sufficient volume through the conductors the small wire or foil becomes hented
to a sufficient degree to ignite the powder; but to induce in the small con-
necting wire or foil a degree of heat sufficient to ignite gunpowder, considerable
time as well as a large volume of electricity is required to produce such an
effect even at so short a distance as one mile. Currents of intensity which
could be transmitted by small conductors would not produce sufficient heat to
ignite gunpowder. The length of time required to induce the required high
degree of heat, as well as the use of a galvanic battery and large conductors
are serious objections.
Magneto-electric currents have been used to explode powder which can
be ignited at a low degree of heat, and known as percussion or explosive
powder, but the use of such powder is attended with great risk; notwith-
standing such danger, however, it is the most improved mode heretofore
practised for war and mining purposes.
Another mode which has been suggested and applied is to use what is called
the Ruhmkorff coil, by which an electric spark is made to jump from the
point of one conductor to another within a cartridge, and in so doing to ignite
the contained charge of powder; but this method requires insulation of the
conductors to such a degree of thickness, that in practice it has not succeeded
well.
With the fuse which constitutes the second part of the Invention all the
above objections are avoided, as with it the gunpowder may be instantly
ignited by slightly intense currents induced by a magneto-electric machine or
battery, the former being preferred for obvious reasons.
It is a known fact, that if a short and feeble conductor be used in any part

page_text: of an electric circuit, the passage of a slightly intense current will partially
burn such feeble conductor with an instantaneous emission of intense heat, as
the current is thereby broken. The second part of the Invention is based on
this fact, and consists in forming a fuse for igniting powder by connecting the
ends of two metallic conductors by means of a feeble conductor in contact with
the charge of powder, or separated therefrom by some equally combustible
matter.
In the accompanying Drawing, g represents a block of wood which may be
termed the holder, and into which are inserted two copper wires h, h, of about
number sixteen wire gauge; these wires should be about three-sixteenths of
an inch apart from centre to centre, and the edges of the extreme ends of the
wires should be completely in contact with the wooden holder g. The other
end of the wires are left to project from the block to a sufficient length for a
purpose to be presently described.
The feeble conductor for connecting the extreme ends of the two copper
wires, h, consists simply of a mark i (Fig. 2) on the end of the holder, such
mark extending from one wire to the other, and made with a pencil of the
softest and purest plumbago. The holder g is surrounded with paper extend-
ing sufliciently beyond the end of the holder to form a small case to hold a
small charge of powder in contact with the feeble conductor.
When a current of electricity is induced in passing through the plumbago
mark or other equivalent feeble conductor it will ignite a portion of the metal
mark, and produce a break with an intense flash which will ignite the con-
tained charge of powder. To protect the ends of the conductor wires h, h³,
and the plumbago line from oxidation and injury, they may be coated with
collodion or other equivalent substance. The fuse thus formed is placed,
by preference, at about the centre of the cartridge or charge of powder e with
one of the conducting wires h extending in a slight coil through so as to
project slightly from the rear end of the cartridge or charge of powder in order
to insure its coming into contact with the metallic face of the plug b at the
breech of the cannon when the cartridge is rammed home. The other con-
ducting wire is extended through the cartridge, and projects from the
side or periphery of the cartridge to such an extent as to insure its being in
contact with the bore when charged into the cannon.
It will be seen that one of the conducting wires of the fuse is in contact
with the inner end of the conical plug b, which is in connection with the con-
ducting wire d leading to one pole of a magneto-electric machine or galvanic
battery or other suitable means for introducing currents of electricity, and the
other conducting wire h¹ of the fuse is in contact with the bore of the gun.

page_text: The two wires are insulated by the non-conducting coating of the conical
plug, and therefore when the butt of the cannon is connected with the other
pole of a magneto-electric machine or battery either by the ground connection
or by another conducting wire, and the electric circuit is established. The
current on reaching the point of one of the wires will be conducted to the
other wire of the fuse by the pencil mark i or other equivalent feeble con-
ductor, thereby causing a flash or spark which will instantly ignite the charge
of gunpowder.
By the foregoing means cannon or other fire-arms can be instantly fired
by simply closing the electric circuit, or what is the same thing, by simply
turning the magneto-electric machine, thereby dispensing with the necessity of
using a vent or priming hole, and avoiding all the objection thereto.
And although it is considered best to use fuses constructed according to the
plan of the second part of the Invention, in connection with the first part of
the Invention, I do not wish to be understood as restricting myself to the use
thereof, as the first and second parts of the Invention may be used separately,
if desired, by substituting, in connection with the first part of the Invention,
some other suitable means for igniting the charge of powder by electric
currents. And fuses made on the plan of the second part of the Invention
may be used for firing cannon and other fire-arms by substituting some other
suitable means for transmitting the electric current to the conducting wires
h, h', of the fuse; and fuses made on this plan may be used for firing torpedos
and mines, and charges for blasting rocks, &c.
When but one fuse is required to be fired at a time, bass wood and the
substance known as the hard compound of vulcanized india-rubber will answer
a good purpose for making the holder, but when it is desired to fire several
at the same or nearly the same instant of time, and all connected in one
electric circuit, it will be best to make the holders of some non-conducting
substance which is not easily combustible, such as glass, ivory, bone, &c.
And although I have named copper wire for the conductors h, h¹, of the fuse,
it will be understood that this is a mere preference, as other wire may be used
for the purpose. And as for the feeble conductor connecting the two con-
ducting wires h, h, it has been found that a mark made with a plumbago
pencil is best adapted to the purpose, but I do not wish to be understood
as limiting the claim of Invention to the use thereof, as other substances may
be substituted to make this film conductor. These suggestions will indicate
that other and equivalent means may be substituted.
Having now described this Invention of an improved method of firing
and discharging cannon and other fire-arms, part of which Invention is

page_text: applicable generally to the firing of charges of powder, and having explained
the manner of carrying the same into effect, as communicated to me by my
foreign correspondent, I would observe that what I claim and desire to secure
by Letters Patent, is,-
First, combining with the barrel of the cannon or other fire-arms an insulated
plug extending through the metal from the bore to the outside, such insulated
plug to be used with a cartridge having a fuse provided with two conducting
wires, so that when inserted in the bore, one will be in contact with the bore
and the other with the insulated plug, as herein set forth.
-Second, I claim, as an improvement in fuses for igniting powder by elec-
tricity, the connection of two conducting wires by a feeble or film-lime
conductor, whether such interposed feeble conductor be placed directly in
contact with the powder or with a combustible substance interposed, substan-
stantially as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Edward Newton, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, the Third day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.
W. E. NEWTON. (L.S.)