I have in this chapter endeavoured to divest the subject of all extraneous matter, and impart as much information as will enable the reader to form an opinion for himself, and understand something of a science hitherto considered abstract, and which is, no doubt, abstruse. This I have sought to effect in plain language, avoiding, wherever it was possible, all technicalities. The guns of the British nation may be divided into four classes--Park, or Field artillery, Siege guns, or battering train, garrison guns, and marine artillery. The numbers of different descriptions of rates, or weight of guns, vary in all the different classes of the service. There are light, medium, and heavy six-pounders; long and short twenty-four pounders; and two or more weights in all the varieties, even up to the ten-inch gun and thirteen-inch mortar. We have iron ordnance and brass, for long and short ranges, for small or great velocity. The rate, weight, length, charges, point blank, extreme range, &c., of iron guns, will be found in the annexed table, by which will be seen, at a glance, the various matters referred to. IRON ORDNANCE. ---------+-------+-------+------------+------+-------+---------- Nature | | | Charge |Point |Extreme| of |Weight.|Length.| of |Blank |at | Windage Gun. | | | Powder. |Range.|5 deg. |decreased. ---------+-------+-------+------------+------+-------+---------- Pounders.| cwts. |ft. in.|lbs. ozs. |yards.| yards.| 32 | 63 | 9 7 | 10 10-1/2| 380 | 1950 | -- 32 | 56 | 9 6 | 10 10-1/2| 380 | 1950 | -- 32 | 48 | 8 0 | 8 0 | 330 | 1740 | -- 32 | 40 | 7 6 | 6 0 | 340 | 1700 | ·06 32 | 32 | 6 6 | 5 0 | 330 | 1640 | ·11 32 | 25 | 6 0 | 4 0 | 225 | 1500 | ·11 32 | 25 | 5 4 | 4 0 | 225 | 1500 | ·11 24 | 50 | 9 6 | 8 0 | 360 | 1850 | -- 24 | 48 | 9 0 | 8 0 | 360 | 1850 | -- 24 | 40 | 7 6 | 8 0 | 340 | 1800 | -- 24 | 33 | 6 6 | 6 0 | 260 | 1560 | -- 18 | 42 | 9 0 | 6 0 | 360 | 1780 | -- 18 | 38 | 8 0 | 6 0 | 340 | 1730 | -- 12 | 34 | 9 0 | 4 0 | 360 | 1700 | -- 12 | 29 | 7 6 | 4 0 | 340 | 1650 | -- 9 | 26 | 7 6 | 3 0 | 330 | 1600 | -- 6 | 17 | 6 0 | 2 0 | 320 | 1520 | -- Carronades. | | | | | 68 | 36 | 5 4 | 5 10-1/2| 270 | 1420 | -- 42 | 22 | 4 6 | 3 8 | 240 | 1350 | -- 32 | 17 | 4 0 | 2 10-1/2| 235 | 1260 | -- 24 | 13 | 3 9 | 2 0 | 225 | 1150 | -- 18 | 10 | 3 4 | 1 8 | 220 | 1100 | --