ly because it was not thought valuable enough
to offset its propaganda value to the enemy, it was not popular. These
were the beginnings of the modern chemical shells.

In connection with chemical warfare, it is of interest to review the
Hussite siege of Castle Karlstein, near Prague, in the first quarter
of the fifteenth century. The Hussites emplaced 46 small cannon, 5
large cannon, and 5 catapults. The big guns would shoot once or twice
a day, and the little ones from six to a dozen rounds.

Marble pillars from Prague churches furnished the cannonballs. Many
projectiles for the catapults, however, were rotting carcasses and
other filth, hurled over the castle walls to cause disease and break
the morale of the besieged. But the intrepid defenders neutralized
these "chemical bursts" with lime and arsenic. After firing 10,930
cannonballs, 932 stone fragments, 13 fire barrels, and 1,822 tons of
filth, the Hussites gave up.

FIXED AMMUNITION

In early days, due partly to the roughly made balls, wads were very
important as a means of confining the powder and increasing its
efficiency. Wads could be made of almost any suitable material at
hand, but perhaps straw or hay ones were most common. The hay was
first twisted into a 1-inch rope, then a length of the rope was folded
together several times and finally rolled up into a short cylinder, a
little larger than the bore. After the handier sabots came into use,
however, wads were needed only to keep the ball from rolling out when
the muzzle was down, or for hot shot firing.

Gunners early began to consolidate ammunition for easier and quicker
loading. For instance, after the powder charge was placed in a bag,
the next logical step was to attach the wad and the cannonball to it,
so that loading could be made in one simple operation--pushing the
single round into the bore (fig. 48). Toward that end, the sabot or
"shoe" (fig. 41) took the place of the wad. The sabot was a wooden
disk about the same diameter as the shot. It was secured to the ball
with a pair of metal straps to make "semi-fixed" ammunition; then, if
the neck of the powder bag were tied around the sabot, the result was
one cartridge, containing powder, sabot, and ball, called "fixed"
ammunition. Fixed ammunition was usual for the lighter field pieces by
the end of the 1700's, while the bigger guns used "semi-fixed."

In transportation, cartridges were protected by cylinders and caps of
strong paper. Sabot