The discovery made by Bacon was most probably not more attended to in an age of ignorance, than new discove ries are at the present enlightened period, when they make such slow progress to wards universal adoption : and that of Schwartz was evidently of the same na ture. It is, therefore, much more proba ble, that the use of gunpowder in war was derived ultimately from the Chinese, than that it originated in the cell of an obscure monk, such as Schwartz ; or of one, though of more notoriety, yet from the prejudices of the times held in abhor rence for an imputation of sorcery, as Bacon was. The mode in which the use of gunpowder in war might have passed from China to Europe is the most proba ble and simple imaginable. Zingis Khan is known to have conquered the five north ern provinces ofChina about the year1234. In this conquest, that he must have learn ed the use of gunpowder, and have prac tised it afterwards, would have been ma nifest from reason alone ; as at that time it had been in common use in China up wards of 1400 years, from the facts before stated But we have also the positive testimony of history to attest this point ; for in the Chinese annals of the Moguls by Yuen, as translated by Pere Gaubil, it is particularly stated, that the use of cannon and mortars was familiar in the wars and sieges of Zingis against the Chi nese, both by them and him, in attack and defence. It is most probable that he Used gunpowder in his wars against Mo hammed, Sultan of Carisme, whose domi nions extended from the Persian gulph to the borders of India and of Turkistan ; all which he added to his empire, de stroying many flourishing cities, and lay ing waste a tract of many hundred miles, extending from the Caspian Sea to the Indus, which was richly adorned with the labours and buildings of mankind ; and which has not yet in the least recovered from the effect of his ravages. It is well known that he had a body of Chinese en gineers in his army, who of course must have been acquainted with the use of gun powder ; and his rapid successes were probably greatly owing to this circum stance. The conquests of Zingis would thus have spread the knowledge of gun powder over the western part of Asia, where, at the time of the crusades, the Europeans would have frequent opportu nities of learning it ; and accordingly we find that it was just after this time that it was first used by Europeans in war. At no long period after the return of Ed ward the First to England, who was so famous for his victories in Palestine, we bear of cannon used by the English against the French. The Venetians, who used them in their wars to so much great er extent, that the invention has been commonly attributed to them, were of all Europeans the most connected with Asia at that period ; therefore those who would be most likely to learn the use of gunpowder from the Asiatics : and these are strong testimonies in favour of the in troduction of the invention into Europe in the manner stated, especially as we can trace many arts to Asia, which are well known to have been also learned there by Europeans at the time of the Crusades. Another argument in favour of this opi nion is, that the first war, in which cannon were much employed in Europe, was one carried on by Asiatics against Europeans, in which they were used exclusively hythe Asiatics. It was most remarkable in this war, at the siege of Constantinople, and in 1453, in which Mahomet the Second used one of the largest cannon ever made, which threw a stone bullet of 600Ths. weight. Some knowledge of the use of gunpowder might also have been intro duced into Europe by the successes of Zingis, who extended their conquests over a large portion of Russia, the great est part of Poland, and subdued all Hun gary except three cities, and overran Ser via, Bosnia, and Bulgaria ; and who must have known its effects in war, when it was used by the armies of their prede cessors, as before shown. In addition to the reasons mentioned for the Asiatic ori gin of the use of gunpowder, it should be noted, that the Germans were one of the last nations in Europe who adopted its use ; which renders its having been first invented in that country highly impro; bable.
It was many years after the introduc tion of cannon in Europe, bofore they at tained that form and equipment which fitted them for any extensive use. At the siege of Constantinople, before mention ed, which was 107 years after the battle of Cressy, their form was in the highest degree rude and inconvenient; the object of their use then seemed to be, to imitate the effect of the ancient balista in throw ing large masses of stone ; the large can non before mentioned, that threw a stone of 600168. weight, was so unwieldy, that 60 oxen were employed nearly two months in drawing it about 150 miles from Adrianople ; and it could be only charged and discharged seven times each day.
We find that, at no very remote period, the chief reliance in war continued to be placed in other implements of battle than those for which gunpowder was necessary. In the reign of Henry the Seventh it ap pears that cannon were in some degree neglected, as there is said to be no order on record relative to gunpowder or can non in his reign. In the reign of Eliza beth the effect of the bow and arrow still seems to be preferred in war to that pro duced by gunpowder, as there were se veral acts passed by her relative tO bows and archery, which showed them then to be considered as of the utmost impor tance; and even as late as the reign of Charles the First, two special commis sions were granted for enforcing the use of the long bow.
In fact, it is only a few years back since the use of cannon in the field, or artillery properly so called, obtained the predomi nance it at present holds. The xra of the French revolution may be considered that of its complete adoption ; which was not a little aided by the invention of the species called flying artillery, which took place shortly afterwards.
By artillery, is also understood the sci ence which the officers of artillery ought to possess. This science teaches the know ledge of the materials and ingredients that enter into the composition and structure of whatever relates to the artillery : the construction, proportion, &c. of the differ ent warlike machines : the arrangement, movement and management of cannon, in the field, or in sieges, in such a mariner, that each of them according to the length of its tube, and the diameter of its bore, may be situated in the best place for doing execution : and that the whole train, tak en together, may assist and support each other with the greatest ad van age.
Cannon are chiefly prepared by casting fused metal into moulds made of a fit form, and afterwards boring ont the bar rels and touch-holes from the solid mass. They were formerly cast with the barrels hollowed out in part, and were afterwards finished by boring; but the method now in use prepares a greater proportion of perfect pieces out of a given number of casts.
Cannon for field service, or artillery, are usually made of copper, alloyed with about a tenth of tin ; the tin adds hard ness and solidity to the composition,which (on account of its lightness, its greater durability, and being less liable to burst, and, when that accident occurs, not being apt to fly asunder in small pieces, but ra ttler splitting asunder,) is preferred to cast iron. It is possible to make them even lighter of hammered iron than of the above composition ; and a very neatly finished piece of this kind is among the stores at the Warren in Woolwich, sent in some years ago by the maker, as a spe cimen of what might be done in this way. It was judged that its recoil would be too great, on account of its singular lightness, and therefore this sort was not introduced into actual service ; but it would be no great difficulty to prepare carriages for them, so as to admit of having a sufficient load of sand or earth added, when want ed, which might be thrown away when they were to be removed to any distance ; and then their great lightness would fit them admirably for service in mountain ous countries. Cannon have also been made of staves of hammered iron, bound together by hoops of the same metal, and a large one of this sort may be seen at the Tower ; but we have no account as to their use, durability, or safety.