“With a view to strength and durability, the gun is composed internally of steel and externally of wrought iron, applied in a twisted or spiral form, as in a musket or fowling-piece. The bore is nearly two inches in diameter, and is rifled. The projectile is a pointed cylinder 6-1/2 inches long, and its weight is 5 lb. It is made of cast iron, coated with lead, and is fired from the gun with a charge of 10 ounces of powder; it contains a small cavity in the centre, and may be used either as a shot or a shell. When applied as a shell, the cavity is filled with powder, and a detonating fuse is inserted in front, so as to fire the powder in the centre on striking an object. When used as a shot, the powder is omitted, and an iron point, which favours penetration, is substituted for the fuse. The gun is constructed to load at the breech, the object being not only to obviate the disadvantages of sponging and loading from the front, but also to allow the projectile to be larger in diameter than would enter at the muzzle, and thus to insure its taking the impress of the grooves and completely filling the bore. The piece weighs 5 cwt., and is mounted upon a carriage which bears a general resemblance to that of an ordinary 6-pounder field gun, but which embraces a pivot frame and recoil slide. A screw is also applied, not only for elevating and depressing the gun, but also for moving it horizontally, by which means great delicacy of aim is effected. The recoil slide has an upward inclination, which enables the gun, after running back, to recover its position by gravity; and its use is to relieve the pivot-frame and adjusting screws from injurious concussion. “I shall now give some particulars of the experiments recently made with this gun on the coast of Northumberland, near the village of Whitley, under the official inspection of Colonel Wilmot. “Fourteen shots were in the first instance fired from a distance of 1,500 yards at a timber butt, 5 ft. wide 7-1/2 ft. high. Six of these were expended in finding the elevation proper for the distance, but after that was determined every succeeding shot hit the object without previous graze. The final elevation of the gun was 4 deg. 26 min., and the mean lateral distance of the shot-marks from a vertical line through the centre of the butt was only 11-1/2 in.