Quick Match, used in artillery, made of three cotton strands drawn into lengths, and put into a kettle just covered with white wine vinegar, and then a quantity of saltpetre and mealed powder is put in it, and boiled till well mixed. Others put only saltpetre into water, and after that take it out hot, and lay it into a trough with some mealed powder, moistened with some spirits of wine, thoroughly wrought into the cotton by rolling it backwards and forwards with the hands; and when this is done, they are taken out separately, drawn through mealed powder, and dried upon a line. See [Laboratory].
Match.—The slow match used by the English is made by contract; one yard of it will burn about 8 hours. The French slow match is usually made by soaking light twisted white rope for three days in a strong lye. It burns about 3 feet in 6 hours.
Slow match was made at Gibraltar, during the last siege, in the following manner: eight ounces of saltpetre were put into a gallon of water, and just made to boil over a slow fire; strong blue paper was then wetted with the liquor, and hung to dry. When dry, each sheet was rolled up tight, and the outward edge pasted down, to prevent its opening: half a sheet, thus prepared, will burn 3 hours.
Quick Match Compositions.
| Worsted Match. | ||||
| Worsted | 10 | oz. | ||
| Mealed powder | 10 | lbs. | ||
| Spirits of wine | 3 | pints. | ||
| Water | 3 | do. | ||
| Isinglass | ¹⁄₂ | pint. | ||
| Cotton Match. | ||||
| Cotton | 1 | lb. | 12 | oz. |
| Saltpetre | 1 | 8 | ||
| Mealed powder | 10 | — | ||
| Spirits of wine | 2 | quarts. | ||
| Water | 3 | pints. | ||
The worsted or cotton must be laid evenly in an earthen or other pan, and the different ingredients poured over it, and about half the powder being left a short time to soak, it is afterwards wound smoothly on a reel, and laid to dry, the remaining half of the powder is then sifted over it; and it is ready for use when dry.
The French have lately made their slow match by soaking the rope in a solution of sugar of lead and rain water: in the proportion of ³⁄₄ths of an ounce of sugar of lead to one pint of water; and this they esteem as preferable to the old sort.
MATHEMATICS, originally signified any kind of discipline or learning; but, at present, denotes that science which teaches, or contemplates, whatever is capable of being numbered or measured; and accordingly is subdivided into arithmetic, which has numbers for its object; and geometry, which treats of magnitude.
Mathematics are commonly distinguished into pure and speculative, which consider quantity abstractedly; and mixed, which treat of magnitude as subsisting in material bodies, and consequently are interwoven every where with physical considerations.
Mixed Mathematics are very comprehensive, since to them may be referred astronomy, optics, geography, hydrography, hydrostatics, mechanics, fortification, gunnery, projectiles, mining, engineering, and navigation.