The arte of gunnerie. Wherein is set foorth a number of seruiceable secrets, and practical conclusions, belonging to the art of gunnerie, by arithmeticke skill to be accomplished: both pretie, pleasant, and profitable for all such as are professors of the same facultie. / Compiled by Thomas Smith of Barwicke vpon Tweed souldier.

About this Item

Title
The arte of gunnerie. Wherein is set foorth a number of seruiceable secrets, and practical conclusions, belonging to the art of gunnerie, by arithmeticke skill to be accomplished: both pretie, pleasant, and profitable for all such as are professors of the same facultie. / Compiled by Thomas Smith of Barwicke vpon Tweed souldier.
Author
Smith, Thomas, fl. 1600-1627.
Publication
London :: Printed [by Richard Field] for VVilliam Ponsonby,
1600 [-1601].
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Subject terms
Gunnery -- Early works to 1800.
Artillery -- Early works to 1800.
Ordnance -- Early works to 1800.
Military fireworks -- Early works to 1800.
Link to this Item
http://name.umdl.umich.edu/A12531.0001.001
Cite this Item
"The arte of gunnerie. Wherein is set foorth a number of seruiceable secrets, and practical conclusions, belonging to the art of gunnerie, by arithmeticke skill to be accomplished: both pretie, pleasant, and profitable for all such as are professors of the same facultie. / Compiled by Thomas Smith of Barwicke vpon Tweed souldier." In the digital collection Early English Books Online. https://name.umdl.umich.edu/A12531.0001.001. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 28, 2025.

Pages

How to make a good shot in a peece that is not truly bored: or to know how much any peece will shoote amisse, that is thicker of mettall on the one side then on the other, if you know the di∣stance to the marke.

Question.

A certaine Gunner hauing shot diuers times in a Cannon at a marke supposed to be 500 paces from the peece, findeth she shooteth still towards the right hand, & searching whether the fault were in him selfe, or some impediment in the peece, he findeth that the peece is 2 inches thicker of mettall on the right side then on the left. And therefore requesteth how to lay the concaue of the peece (being 9 foote in length) equall with the marke, so as he may make a straight shot.

Resolution.

To do this or the like, there is a generall rule, that looke how oftentimes the length of the cilinder or con∣caue of the peece is to the marke, which is easily done by deuiding the distance to the marke, by the length of the concaue of the said peece. And knowing likewise how much the one side of the peece is thicker then the other, the one halfe of that ouerplus being multiplied by the quotient first found, the product will shew you how

Page 61

much the peece shooteth wide of the marke. And this is a generall rule: that looke which side of the peece is thickest of mettall, towards that side shall the bullet fall, for that the thinner side is more smart, and the thicke side more dull in heating.

Example.

The Cannon in this conclusion, is said to be 2 inches thicker of mettall more in thicknesse on the right side then on the left. And the distance to the marke is suppo∣sed to be 500 paces, (that is, 2500 feete) the which de∣uided by 9 feete, being the length of the hollow cilin∣der of the Cannon, yeeldeth in the quotient 277 feete 7/9, the which multiplied by ½ the super fluitie of the met∣tall being one inch, makes 272 feete 7/9 still, and so much wide of the marke should the said peece haue shot at such a distance, although she had beene laid full against the mids thereof.

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