Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XII.djvu/107

MUSKET 99 zle of the piece. Soon afterward it was made of metal in the shape of a hollow cylinder, and was secured to the piece by slipping the cylinder over the end of the barrel, and fixed FIG. 7. First Bayonets. 1. Bayonet of 1640, triangular blade, fastening in bore of inusket. 2. Spanish Bayonet, fastening in bore. 3. French Bayonet, fastened by ring and spring. in place by a stud soldered to the barrel. This arrangement permitted the piece to be fired with the bayonet fixed. The introduction of the bayonet gradually caused the pike to be thrown aside as an infantry weapon, and cor- respondingly increased the importance of the musket. About this time sights were placed on muskets, and their accuracy of fire was con- sequently much increased. The flint lock was improved, and the barrel and stock were fast- ened to each other in a more mechanical man- ner. Cartridge boxes were introduced, and during the second half of the 17th century the musket was so materially improved that it may be considered as having become the main arm of the infantry from the commencement of the 18th century. The ramrod of the mus- ket, made of wood, was clumsy and easily bro- ken until about lYSO-'SO, when the iron ram- rod was introduced into the Prussian army by Frederick William L, father of Frederick the Great ; and the consequent improvement in the rapidity of fire of the musket was enormous. At the battle of Mollwitz, in 1741, between the Austrians and Prussians, the Austrians used wooden and the Prussians iron ramrods. The defeat of the Austrians was at the time imputed FIG. 8. 1. Old Prussian Musket and Bayonet, with wooden ramrod. 2 and 3. French Musket and Bayonet, model of 1777-1SOO. to the superior rapidity of fire of the Prussian muskets, due entirely to the use of iron ram- rods. During the remainder of the 18th cen- tury the musket gradually, by changes in form, took on the continent of Europe nearly the shape and appearance that it retained until the supersedure of the muzzle-loader by the breech- loader. Bands were substituted for the pro- jections on the barrel which fastened it to the stock, the ramrod was lightened, the leather strap for carrying the arm on the march was added, and the weapon was made simpler and more convenient, so that the soldier was sooner instructed. France led in these improvements. Great Britain seems to have retained an earlier model, and bands were not there applied to muskets until the present century. In the ear- ly part of the 19th century, on account of the wars of the French republic and empire, the number of muskets manufactured was enor- mous. In the two years 1809-' 10 Birmingham furnished 575,000 musket barrels and 470,000 gun locks. In 1813 England made 500,000 muskets, and from 1814 to 1816 she furnished for her allies and herself 3,000,000. From 1803 to 1814 there were made in France about 4,000,000 muskets. In 1818 the percussion cap was invented, and its use gradually superseded FIG. 9. 1. Percussion Musket Lock, sion Cap. 2. Military Percus- that of the flint and steel, so that by 1850 nearly all the armies of the civilized world were armed with muskets using the percussion locks. The advantages of these locks are: 1, the lock is simplified ; 2, the operation of firing is short- ened ; 3, the sureness of fire is increased, the presence of water having no effect upon the explosion of a good percussion cap. The ex- plosive substance in military percussion caps is fulminate of mercury. This salt is mixed with powdered glass, and a small portion of the mixture is placed in the botton of a copper cup. The fulminate is covered with tin foil, and then with lacquer, so that it is impervi- ous to water. With the percussion lock a " nip- ple " or cone was fastened to the barrel of the musket at the right side of the breech instead of the pan of the flint lock, and a hole through the cone communicated with the rear of the bore. The percussion cap was placed on the cone, which it fitted closely; the hammer struck the cap, exploded the fulminate, and communicated fire to the gunpowder in the barrel. The calibres of muskets were until about 1850 '7 in., a little more or less. The