University of Virginia Library

Chapter XIV.

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8

The names of all sorts of great Ordnance, and
their appurtenances, with their proper tearmes
and expositions, also divers observations
concerning their shooting, with a Table of
proportion for their weight of metall, weight
of powder, weight of shot, and there best at
randome and point blanke inlarged.

A CANON royal, or double Canon, a Canon, a Canon Serpentine,
a bastard Canon, a demy Canon, a Canon Petro, a Culvering, a
Basilisco, a demy culvering, a bastard Culvering, a Sacar, a Minion,
a Falcon, a Falconet, a Serpentine, a Rabbinet. To all those doe
belong carriages whereon peeces doe lie supported by an axeltree

betwixt two wheeles, whereon doth lie the peece upon her trunnions,
which are two knobs cast with the peece on each of her sides, which
doth lie in two halfe holes upon the two cheekes of the carriages, to
raise her up or downe as you will, over them are the capsquares,
which are two broad peeces of iron doth cover them, made fast by a
pin with a fore locke to keepe the peece from falling out. That the
peece and carriages is drawne along upon wheeles every one doth
know, if shee bee for land service, they have wheeles made with
spokes like coach wheeles, and according to their proportion strongly
shod with iron, and ∥ the pins at the ends of the Axeltree is called
Linch pins.

If for Sea she have Trucks, which are round intier

peeces of
wood like wheeles. To mount a peece is to lay her upon her carriages;
to dismount her to take her downe. Her Bed is a planke doth lie next
the peece, or the peece upon it upon the carriage, and betwixt the
Peece and it they put their quoines, which are great wedges of wood
with a little handle at the end to put them forward or backward for
levelling the Peece as you please. To travas a Peece is to turne her
which way you will upon her Platforme. To dispert a Peece is to
finde a difference betwixt the thicknesse of the metall at her mouth
and britch or carnouse, which is the greatest circle about her britch,
and her mussell Ring is the greatest circle about her mouth thereby
to make a just shot, there are divers waies to dispert her, but the most
easiest is as good as the best: and that is but by putting a little sticke
or a straw that is strait into the toutch hole to the lower part of the
Sillinder or Concave, which is the bore of the Peece and cut it off
close by the metall, and then apply it in the same manner to the
mouth, and it will exactly shew you the difference, which being set
upon the mussell of the Peece with a little Clay, Pitch, or Wax, it will
bee as the pin of any Peece is to the sight, levell to the carnouse or
britch of the Peece, otherwaies you may give her allowance according
to your judgement.

Taper boared, is when a Peece is wider at the mouth then towards
the britch, which is dangerous (if the Bullet goe not home) to
burst her. Honicombed, is when shee is ill cast or overmuch worne
shee will bee rugged within, which is dangerous for a crosse barre
shot to catch hold by, or any ragge of her wadding being a fire and
sticking there may fire the next charge you put in her; and you may
finde if she be Taper boared,

either with a crooked wyer at the end
of a long staffe, by scratching up and downe to see where you can
catch any hold, or a light candle at the end of a staffe thrust up and
down to see if you can see any fault. Britchings are the ropes by which
you lash your Ordnance ∥ fast to the Ships side in foule weather.
Chambers is a charge made of brasse or iron which we use to put in
at the britch of a sling or murtherer, containing just so much powder
as will drive away the case of stones or shot, or any thing in her. In a
great Peece we call that her Chamber so far as the powder doth reach
when she is laded.

A Cartrage is a bagge of Canvasse made upon a frame or a round
peece of wood somewhat lesse than the bore of the Peece, they make
them also of paper, they have also Cartrages or rather cases for
Cartrages made of Lattin to keepe the Cartrages in, which is to have
no more powder in them than just the charge of your Peece, and they
are closely covered in those cases of Latten, to keepe them dry, and
from any mischances by fire, and are farre more ready and safer than
your Ladles or Budgbarrels.

A Budgbarrell is a little Barrell made
of Latten, filled with powder to carry from place to place for feare of
fire; in the cover it hatha long necke to fill the Ladles withall without
opening. A Ladle is a long staffe with a peece of thin Copper at
the end like halfe a Cartrage, in bredth and length so much as will
hold no more powder than the due charge for the Peece it belongs to.
A Spunge is such another staffe, with a peece of a Lambe skin at the
end about it to thrust up and downe the Peece, to take off the dust,
moisture, or sparkes of fire if any remaine in her. And a Rammer is
a bob of wood at the other end to ramme home the Powder and the
Waddings. Waddings is Okum, old clouts, or straw, put after the
powder and the Bullet. A Case is made of two peeces of hollow wood
joyned together like two halfe Cartrages fit to put into the bore of a
Peece, and a case shot is any kinde of small Bullets, Nailes, old iron, or
the like to put into the case to shoot out of the Ordnances or Murderers,
these will doe much mischiefe when wee lie boord and boord:
but for Spunges and Rammers they use now a stiffe Rope a little
more than the length of the Peece, which you may turne and wind
within boord as you will, with much more ease and safety than the
other.

Round Shot is a round Bullet for any Peece: Crosbar-shot is also
a round shot, but it hatha long spike of Iron cast with it as if it did
goe thorowthe middest of it, the ends whereof are commonly armed
for feare of bursting the Peece, which is to binde a little Okum in a
little Canvasse at the end of each Pike.

Trundle shot is onely a bolt
of iron sixteene or eighteene inches in length; at both ends sharpe
pointed, and about a handfull from each end a round broad bowle
of lead according to the bore of the Peece cast upon it. Langrell shot
runnes loose with a shackell, to be shortened when you put it into the
Peece, and when it flies out it doth spred it selfe, it hathat the end of
either barre a halfe Bullet either of lead or iron. Chaine shot is two
bullets with a chaine betwixt them, and some are contrived round as
in a ball, yet will spred in flying their full length in bredth; all these
are used when you are neere a ship to shoot downe Masts, Yards,
Shrouds, teare the sailes, spoile the men, or any thing that is above
the decks. Fireworkes are divers, and of many compositions, as
Arrowes trimmed with wild fire to sticke in the sailes or ships side
shot burning. Pikes of wild fire to strike burning into a ship side to
fire her. There is also divers sorts of Granados, some to breake and
fly in abundance of peeces every way, as will your brasse balls and
earthen pots which when they are covered with quartered bullets
stucke in pitch, and the pots filled with good powder, in a crowd of
people will make an incredible slaughter; some will burne under
water, and never extinguish till the stuffe bee consumed; some onely
will burne and fume out a most stinking poison smoke; some, being
but onely an Oile, being nointed on any thing made of dry wood,
will take fire by the heat of the Sunne when the Sunne shines hot.
There is also a Powder, which being laid in like manner upon any
thing subject to burne, will take fire if either any raine or water light
upon it; but those inventions are bad on shore, but much worse at
Sea, and are naught because so dangerous, and not easie to bee
quenched, and their practise worse, because they may doe ∥ as much
mischiefe to a friend as to an enemy, therefore I will leave them as
they are.

There are also divers sorts of Powder, the Serpentine is like dust
and weake, and will not keepe at Sea but be moist. The common sort
is great corned powder but grosse, and onely used in great Ordnance.
Your fine corned Powder for hand Guns is in goodnesse as your Salt-Peter
is oft refined, and from ten pence a pound to eighteene pence
a pound.

A Tomkin

is a round peece of wood put into the Peeces mouth
and covered with Tallow, and a fid a little Okum made like a naile
put in at the toutch hole, and covered with a thin lead bound above
it to keepe the Powder dry in the Peece. Shackels are a kinde of Rings
but not round, made like them at the hatches corners (by which we
take them up and lay them downe) but bigger, fixed to the middest
of the ports within boord, through which wee put a billet to keepe
fast the port for flying open in foule weather, which may easily indanger,
if not sinke the Ship. To cloy or poison a Peece, is to drive a
naile into her toutch hole, then you cannot give fire. And to uncloy
her, is to put as much oile as you can about the naile to make it glib,
and by a traine give fire to her by her mouth, and so blow it out.

Compasse Callipers belongs to the Gunner, and is like two halfe
Circles that hatha handle and joint like a paire of Compasses, but
they are blunt at the points to open as you please for to dispert a
Peece. A Horne is his touch box, his Primer is a small long peece of
iron, sharpe at the small end to pierce the Cartrage thorowthe
toutch hole. His Lint stock is a handsome carved stick, more than
halfe a yard long, with a Cocke at the one end to hold fast his Match,
and a sharpe pike in the other to sticke it fast upon the Deck or platforme
upright. The Gunners quadrant is to levell a Peece or mount
her to any random.

A darke Lanthorne is as well to be used by any
body as he. For Morters, or such chambers as are only used for
triumphs, there is no use for them in this service; but for Curriours,
Hargabusacrocks, ∥ Muskets, Bastard-muskets, Colivers, Crabuts,
Carbins, long Pistols or short Pistols, there belongs to them Bandiliers,
bullet Bags, Wormes, Scowrers, melting Ladles, Lead, Molds
of al sorts to cast their shot. Quarter Bullets is but any bullet quartered
in foure or eight parts, and all those are as usefull a ship-boord as on
shore. For the soule, trunke, bore, fortification, the diversity of their
metals, and divers other curious Theoremes or tearmes used about
great Ordnance, there are so many uncertainties as well in her
mounting, levelling upon her platforme, as also the accidents that
may happen in the powder, the ground, the aire, and differences in
proportion. I will not undertake to prescribe any certaine artificiall
rule. These proportions following are neere the matter, but for your
better satisfaction reade Master Digs Pantometria, Master Smith,
or Master Burnes art of Gunnery, or Master Robert Nortons Exposition
upon Master Digs Stratiaticos, any of those will shew the
Theoricke at large. But to bee a good Gunner you must learne it by
practise.

A Table of proportion for the weight and shooting of great Ordnance.

                                     

	The names of the great Peeces	The height of the peeces.	The weight of the peeces.	The weight of the shot.	The weight of the powder.	The bredth of the Ladle.	The length of the Ladle.	2400. li. of powder makes of shot in a Peece.	Shot point blanke in Paces.	Shot randome in Paces.
		Inches.	Pound.	Pound.	Pound.	Inches.	Inches.
These Peeces be most serviceable for battery being within 8c. paces to their marke, which is the chiefe of their forces.	1 A Canon Royall.	8 ⅓	8000	66	30	13 ¼	24 ½	80	16	1930
	2 A Canon.	8	6000	60	27	12	24	85	17	2000
	3 A Canon Sarpentine.	7 ½	5500	53 ⅓	25	10 ½	23 ⅓	96	20	2000
	4 A Bastard Canon.	7	4500	41 ¼	20	10	23 ⅓	120	18	1800
	5 A demy Canon.	6 ½	4000	30 ¼	18	9 ⅓	23 ¼	133	17	1700
	6 A Canon Petro. [_] 9	6	3000	24 ¼	14	9	23	171	16	1600
These Peeces be good and also serviceable to be mixt with the above Ordnance for battery to peeces being crost with the rest, as also fit for Castles, Forts, and Walls to be planted, and for defence.	7 A Culvering.	5 ½	4500	17 ⅓	12	8 ½	22 ⅓	200	20	2500
	8 A Basilisco.	5	4000	15 ¼	10	7 ½	22	240	25	3000
	9 A demy Culvering. [_] 10	4 ½	3400	9 ⅓	8	6 ⅓	21	300	20	2500
	10 A bastard Culvering.	4	3000	7	6 ¼	6	20	388	18	1800
	11 A Sacre.	3 ½	1400	5 ⅓	5 ⅓	5 ½	18	490	17	1700
	12 A Minion.	3 ¼	1000	4	4	4 ½	17	600	16	1600
	13 A Faulcon.	2 ½	660	2 ¼	2 ¼	4 ¼	15	1087	15	1500
	14 A Faulcon.	2 ⅓	800	3	3	4 ¼	15	800	15	1500
These Peeces are good and serviceable for the field, and most ready for defence.	15 A Faulconet.	2	500	1 ¼	1 ¼	3 ¼	11 ¼	1950	14	1400
	16 A Sarpentine.	1 ½	400	⅓	⅓	2 ½	10	7200	13	1300
	17 A Rabonet. [_] 1	1	300	½	½	1 ½	6	4800	12	1000

Note that seldome in Ships they use any Ordnance greater than
Demy Canons, nor have they any certainty either at point blanke or
any random.

Note your Serpentine powder in old time was in meale, but now
corned and made stronger, and called Canon corne powder.

But that for small Ordnance is called corne Powder fine, and
ought to have in strength a quarter more, because those small Peeces
are better fortified than the greater.

Now if you have but one sort of Powder for all, abate ¼ part,
and cut off ¼ of the bredth and length of your Ladle.

But Cartrages are now found the best and most readiest.

Provided alwaies, that all Shot must be a quarter lesse than the
height of the Peece.