Year: 1887

page_text: 1, HARRIS PRIULI HURST, residing at Summit in the County of Pike, and State of
Mississippi, one of the United States of America, inventor, do hereby declaro the
nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This cartridge is an accelerating cartridge, in which one charge of powder starts
the projectile, and a second charge gives it an additional impetus. A wad attached to
the projectile or to a sabot by a wire serves to wipe the gun after the projectile leaves
it. The projectile or shell carries bullets which are fired from the projectile in
succession during its flight.
Figs. 1, and, 2, are modifications of the cartridge, shown in longitudinal section.
Fig. 3, is a section showing a cartridge in the gun barrel.
Fig. 4, is a rear view of cartridge.
Fig. 5, represents a projectile with wiping wad attached.
A, indicates the base of a cartridge shell, provided with the usual flange, B. The
base is of metal, and has a strong tube, C, attached, which tube contains the projec-
tile, a, and also a powder charge, D, and a wad, E. The tube. C, is strong enough to
withstand the explosion of charge, D, with safety. The cartridge is capped in any
usual manner, as at, F.
The base, A, is much larger in diameter than tube, C. An outer casing, G, of paper
or thin metal, surrounds tube, C, leaving a space between, to contain the charge, H.
The casing, G, may be attached to the base piece by a screw thread, or by tying, or in
any other usual manner.
When the charge, D, is fired it drives the projectile forward into the bore of the
gun, and the base of the projectile must pass out of tube, C, before the charge, H, is
ignited. The charge, H, is much larger than charge, D.
In fig. 1, the front of tube or casing, G, is closed by a wad, I, which rests on or
against the projectile.
In fig. 2, the casing, H', is of thin metal, and is crimped in to embrace the front
end of central tube, C, and is either crimped into or screwed to the front of base
piece, A. The tube, C₁, is perforated at, C, so that the fire from the charge in
tube, C, shall pass through said holes when the base of the projectile has passed said
holes.
The tube, C, may have a perforated wad, I, near its base, which wad is attached
by a coiled wire, K, to the projectile, a, or to a sabot or wad near said projectile, or to
the projectile itself. When this projectile leaves the gun it will uncoil the wire, K,
which is longer than the gun barrel, and finally draw the wad 1, after it, thus
cleaning the bore of the gun. The wad, I, attached to projectile, a¹, is shown in
fioure 5.

page_text: In fig. 3, I have illustrated a cartridge in its seat in the chamber of the gun. In
this cartridge the outer casing is dispensed with. The tube, C³, extends forward of
the base, A, and contains the projectile, a², which extends forward of the tube, and
has a band or bands, a³, at its front end, to enter the rifling of the gun. The tube, C²,
is surrounded by a ring or rings, L, of compressed powder, the outside, of these rings
not being quite so large as the chamber, M, of the gun barrel, N.
An air space, O, is thus left around the cartridge and projectile, when the cartridge
is in its seat in the chamber of the gun.
The rings, L, may be of slow or quick powder, or of different qualities. The front
ring will be first ignited and as the ignition is from the front the powder will burn
backward or toward the centre, and cannot be thrown out of the gun by the
explosion.
The base piece, A, may be grooved from the front, to form a cup at, A. When the
charge explodes this cup will expand and serve as a gas check. A ring, P, of rubber
or leather, may be placed in this cup to assist in forming a gas check. With my
cartridge I have been enabled to burn a powder charge in weight nearly three times
the weight of the projectile, without great strain to the gun, and I have attained very
high velocities and great penetration with very little recoil.
The projectile I prefer to use with my cartridge is a shell, a, provided with a large
number of chambers, b, each chamber containing a ball cartridge, c, or a bullet and
powder charge. The projectile, a, may have either a base burning or a front burning
time fuse, as, d. The fuse communicates with a slow burning composition, e, in the
annular chamber, f, and this composition ignites the cartridges or charges in
chamber, b, successively. When all the charges in chamber, b, have been fired the
burning composition, e, communicates with an explosive charge, h, in the central tube
or wall, i, of the shell, which charge explodes and ruptures the shell.
I am aware that shells have been made with charge chambers for cartridges, but
these were to be fired simultaneously whereas mine are fired in succession while the
projectile is in its flight, thus scattering the bullets over a wide surface.
Figure, 6, illustrates the general arrangement of parts, the shell being shown in
longitudinal section. Fig. 7, is a cross section near the centre of shell.
Figure, 8, illustrates in section a cartridge c, for chamber, b, and figure, 9, illus-
trates a mode of holding the bullets in chamber b, by compressing the bullets into
groove around the charge chamber, b.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The accelerating cartridge having tube which contains the projectile, and a
powder charge surrounding said tube.
2. The accelerating cartridge having a tube which contains the projectile, and a
charge of compressed powder surrounding this tube.
3. A cartridge containing a projectile or wad with a wire attached, and a wiping wad
attached to said wire.
4. A shell having a series of charge chambers containing powder and ball, and a
composition for igniting the charges in succession.
5. A shell having a number of chambers charged with powder and ball and a
composition to fire the same successively, and a bursting charge, as set forth.
Dated this 7th day of December 1887.
TTY300