Twenty Lectures, of which Fourteen are common to the Students of both Arms and Six confined to Artillery Students.
FIRST SECTION.—SMALL ARMS.
Twenty-seventh Lecture.—(1.) Classification of small arms. Arms not fire-arms. Classification of hand-weapons. Considerations on the profile and outline of cutting weapons. Effect of the curve. Division of the mass. Form of the hilt.
Considerations on the profile and outline of thrusting weapons.
Position of the center of gravity; form of the point. Description of arms other than fire-arms now in use. Sabres and swords. General ideas respecting their component parts; blade, hilt, and scabbard. Regimental arms. Infantry sword. Sword-bayonet of the artillery and chasseurs, cavalry sword; peculiar requisites. Sword of cavalry of reserve, of cavalry of the line, and of light cavalry. Horse artillery sword.
Officers’ and non-commissioned officers’ arms. Cavalry lance. Camping axe. Side-arms in use in the navy. Sword, pike, boarding-axe, dirk.
Defensive armor. Cuirassiers and carabineers’ cuirasses. Cuirass and helmet of the sapper.
Twenty-eighth Lecture.—(2.) Fire-arms. Historical notices. First attempts in fire-arms. Hand cannons. Arquebuses, culverines, &c. Poitrinal, matchlock, firelock, pistol, and blunderbuss.
Means employed successively for loading and ignition of the charge. Twisted match, wheel-lock, flint-lock, percussion-lock, (the two last mentioned here by way of note.) Classified account of fire-arms now in use. Muskets. Considerations on the weight and principal dimensions of muskets. Detailed description of the infantry musket. Action of the flint and the percussion lock.