THE GUNSMITH’S MANUAL.
CHAPTER I.
HISTORY OF THE GUN.
Discovery of Gunpowder.—No authentic records have been left to show when or by whom was discovered the wonderful properties of the chemical compound now known as gunpowder; nor have we any information concerning the uses to which it was originally applied. There is little probability that it was at once employed as an agent in fire-arms; indeed, we have pretty strong evidence to show that it was not, for Roger Bacon refers to it in his famous treatise, De Nullitate Magiæ, published A. D., 1216, while fire-arms are mentioned by no writer as having been known earlier than about 1338.
The First Fire-Arms.—The first fire-arms, or guns, as we now call them, are said to have been rude cannon, formed by banding together flat iron bars, something on the plan of our wooden casks or barrels of to-day. These guns were fired with a “slow match,” the gunners retiring to a safe distance while the match was burning to the priming. Their earliest use was as engines of war. The writers of ancient history tell us that they were so employed by the Moors at the noted siege of Algesiras, Spain, in 1341, and at the battle of Calais, in 1346. At the latter battle, Edward III is credited with having had four pieces, which made him victorious.
Earliest Hand-Guns.—It is claimed by Spanish historians that to Spain belongs the honor of having been the first power to furnish her soldiers with fire-arms so small that they could be transported by a single person. They were unwieldy affairs at the beginning, however; really small cannon lashed upon wooden scantlings. The soldier could not fire his piece off-hand, but was forced to carry a “rest” with him wherever he went. Being ready to discharge his arm he balanced it upon the rest, steadied it by holding the scantling under his arm, and then “touched it off” with a live coal of fire, while he sighted along the barrel to take aim at his object. What happened immediately after the coal came in contact with the powder the historian saith not, but a modern writer, who has been examining one of these old guns in a museum, jumps to the conclusion that the soldier, with the scantling under his arm, must have been launched suddenly into an impressive dream of first-class earthquakes, or something else “like unto the combined kicking of about fifty mules.”
Prejudice Against Fire-Arms.—For about two centuries after the invention of hand fire-arms they were so inefficient that the cross-bow, then in general use, was able to quite successfully hold its own against them. It was not until 1596 that Queen Elizabeth, by a proclamation, directed that cross and other bows used in the army should be discarded entirely in favor of muskets. And thereat there arose much murmuring of dissatisfaction throughout the English Empire, according to Michael Montaigne, a most prominent man of his time, who narrates the fact, and adds: “Except the noise in our ears, to which we will be henceforth accustomed, I think the fire-arm is one of very little effect, and I hope that we shall one day give up its use.” Could he return to earth at this age, and see the wonderful fire arms that have developed from the humble beginning of which he was then treating, he would speedily lose his hope to the effect that one day its use would be entirely given up.
The First Rifle.—The first rifle is said to have been made about the close of the fifteenth century, by one Gaspard Zollner, of Vienna. It was a simple barrel with straight grooves; the only object of the grooves being to prevent its becoming so “dirty” from continued use, as did the smooth-bore. Spiral grooving does not seem to have been thought of until many years later.
The Arquebus.—The earliest noted improvement in the hand-gun, making it lighter and giving it a longer barrel, was called the arquebus; but even this was so heavy that a “rest” was necessary while discharging it. This rest was a single staff armed with a steel point which went into the ground like the Jacob-staff of a surveyor, but which fitted it for use as a pike when not employed in connection with the gun. It was called the schweine feder, which rendered into English means the “hog’s bristle.”
The arquebus was a regular “match-gun;” that is, it had a “pan” or receptacle at the side of the breech for the priming powder, which communicated with the interior of the barrel by a small perforation called the “touch-hole.” The priming was lighted by a match, which consisted of a coil of small rope saturated with some kind of chemical, which caused it to burn readily and hold fire for a long time. The soldier using the arquebus carried the match in his hand and kept it burning during an action. The manner of setting off the piece was about the same as with the live coal—he secured his sight and then touched the priming with his lighted match.
The Match Lock.—Later, the serpent-match was invented and looked upon as a startling improvement. It was a simple S-shaped piece of iron or wire hinged to the side of the gun just back of the priming pan. The upper end was provided with a beak which gripped the lighted fuse, while the lower end played the part of a modern trigger. With this contrivance the gunner had only to take sight and then pull with his finger upon the lower end of the S until the lighted fuse was brought down into the priming. After many years of use an improvement was made upon the S, consisting of a small spring which threw it back into an erect position so soon as the pressure upon the lower end was discontinued.