Q. — Place  a  sereen,  20  feet  high,  on  smooth  wa-


64  GUNNERY   CATECHISM.
ter  at  1,300  yards  from  an  Xl-in.  gun,  ricochet  a
shell  with  the  bore  of  gun  level,  how  high  up  will  it
strike  in  grazing  f

A. — Not  higher  than  10  feet

Q. — Suppose  the  water  is  rough,  how  does  it  of
feet  the  ricochet  f

A. — It  causes  the  projectile  to  deviate,  and  to
bound  high.
Q. — Does  it  affect  range  and  penetration  f

A. — Yes.  It  makes  a  very  perceptible  difference
in  both.
Q. — At  sea,  when  the  surface  is  not  smooth,  what
are  the  most  favorable  circumstances  for  ricochet
firing  f

A. — When  the  flight  of  the  shot  is  with  the  roll
of  the  sea,  and  the  sea  is  long  and  regular.
Q. — How  far  is  ricochet  firing  effective  against
small  objects  ?

A, — Up  to  2,000  yards.
Q. —  WJien  should  it  commence  ?

A. — At  not  less  than  600  yards;  at  less  distances
it  is  preferable  to  fire  direct.
Q. — How  far  has  a  shot  fired  horizontally  from
a  32-pounder  of  S3  cwt.  on  smooth  water,  with  a
charge  of  4$  pounds,  ricochetted  and  rolled  f

A. — About  3,000  yards.
C4TJNNERY   CATECHISM.  65

Q. —  With  the  same  gun  and  charge,  and  an  ele-
vation of  5  degrees,  what  is  the  greatest  range  ?
A. — 1,800  yards.
Q. — Do  shot  ricochet  at  all  with  elevations  above
5  degrees  f

A. — Very  rarely,  and  the  bounds  are  always
higher  as  the  elevation  is  increased.
Q. — To  what  description  of  guns  do  the  forego-
ing questions  and  answers  apply  f

A. — Exclusively  to  smooth  bore  guns  firing  spher-
ical projectiles.
