Note 30 — PART VIII. GUNNERY.
Reading edition
On wads for Heavy Ordnance.
The presence of a compressible body, between the powder and the ball, is necessary for the preservation of the gun. The results of the experiments at Fere, in 1844; at Ruelle in 1844, and 1846; and at Gavres in 1848; with cast iron 30, and 24-pounders, proved that all the pieces, fired without a thin piece of cork interposed between the powder and the ball, burst before 500 discharges were made; whilst those, with which this precaution was taken, sustained 1800 and 2000 discharges without any damage, except an enlargement of the vent. Vide United Service Magazine, September, 1855.