3 ; an inch; the size of the ramming wire the hole at the bottom of the funnel may be half way between, or of an inch diameter. Push the wire rammer through the funnel, till it protrudes 2 inches beyond the bottom; observe the part of the wire which is now level with the top of the funnel; withdraw it, and file a bright mark round the part it will be about 4 inches from the end. The wire, having been inked, shows the bright mark more plainly. Make a deal box, 3 inches square, and 4 inches deep, and nail a bottom to it. Also have a little nipple, fig. 73, with a wire, as drawn; it can be secured to a flat board. To charge the cases. Set the choked end of one on the nipple, insert the funnel in the other end, put the wire rammer down through the funnel, and let it fall to the bottom of the case: put in some fuse, and jolt the rammer up and down, till the case gets so far filled, that the bright, filed notch, before described, is on a level with the top of the funnel. It is necessary to sit at a table to charge the cases; the eye is, then, on a proper level to see the mark. As the cases are thus charged, set them in the square box, choked end downwards, till a number are filled. Now take out a handful, invert them over a sheet of paper, and give them a few taps with the rammer; this will shake out a great deal of loose composition, that has got puffed up, in the case. Return them to the deal box. The next operation is to bounce, or bang them. For this purpose take a long slip of paper, 7 inches broad. Stretch it lengthwise before you. Lay a number of the cases upon it, so that all the choke ends lie flush with the left edge of the paper; then roll them up in the paper; turn and set them upright on the choke ends; the paper will now stand up more than an inch above the cases, as a tumbler, three parts full of water, stands up with an empty space above the Rest them on a sheet of paper, and pour in a quantity of F grain powder; this will fill every case; loosen the paper wrapper, and allow the superfluous grain powder to fall on the paper. Set the cases, choke downwards, in the square box. As they are all full, it is necessary to get a little out of each. water. For this purpose, lay the square box, containing them, horizontally on a sheet of paper, on one of its sides; turn it gently over, and lay it on the next side; a little of the gunpowder will spill out; turn it gently over again, and lay it on the next side; and so proceed, till every case has about of an inch empty. The ends of the cases are now to be closed. Take a case, in the left hand, as in fig. 63, and wind a piece of string, or whipcord, three or four times round it, holding the end of the string, a, firmly with the thumb; then, with the right hand, bring the end, b, back over all the folds, as in fig. 64; pull the end, B, tight, and the case will be closed. Melt some common bottle sealing-wax in a pipkin; carry it to a distance from the fire, and dip the ends of the squibs into it. Next, prime them, by pressing the choked ends into very slightly damped meal powder, as directed for wheel cases. Take a piece of touch-paper, 15 inches by 10. Divide it into 48 pieces (2, 2, 3, 4); each piece will be 21 by 11. Roll a piece round the primed end, twist to a point, and fasten it with a bit of carpet thread, hitched three times round it. SERPENTS. These are simply squibs, made short, in order to burn out quickly, as they are intended to be thrown from mines, and would otherwise lie too long on the ground. They are best made entirely of brown paper, pasted all over, exactly like wheel cases, and choked in the same manner. Cut the paper 6 inches by 21, and roll them on the squib former, so that they shall be 2 inches long. Ram them with the funnel and wire, but continue the ramming till the guide-mark stands a little higher than the level of the funnel; until, in fact, the cases get half full. Bounce, close, and dip them in melted wax, like squibs. The best way to prime them is to paint them with the sash-tool, slightly, then plunge them into dry meal, so that they may be, as nearly as possible, like quickmatch. If they were pressed into wet meal powder, of the consistency of mortar, and then rubbed smooth on a Dutch tile, or slate, or plate, they would dry hard and glazed. In this case, if they were fired from a mine, in all probability threefourths of them would miss. In brushing them with the sash-tool, with meal paste, turn the brush well round, to leave little in; so that, after being pressed into the dry meal, they may not be choked up, but the cup shape still be left. They are not to be touch-papered, being intended only for mines, rockets, or shells. PINWHEELS. Procure some 16-lb. double-crown white paper. A sheet is 30 x 20 inches. Leaves a piece 30 × 17 The small strip may be used for odd purposes. Divide the 30 by 17 into 10 strips, each 3 by 17, for penny pinwheels. If the paper were cut the other way of the sheet, it would not wind smoothly, but crumple up. The fibres, from some cause or other, appear |