Abstract
IN 1856, an Englishman who had recently invented a rotating projectile was witnessing guntrials with it on a French artillery practice ground near Paris. At that time, both gun and projectile were made of cast iron. These trials were a failure because of the frequency with which the gun burst, and the French commandant, who was in charge, said to him: “This invention of yours will require a better gun than one made of cast iron.” So Henry Bessemer, for it was he, returned to England to make a gun tube that would not burst on firing.
Sidney Gilchrist Thomas
An Invention and its Consequences. By Lilian Gilchrist Thompson. Pp. 328 + 8 plates. (London: Faber and Faber, Ltd., 1940.) 12s. 6d. net.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
CARPENTER, H. Sidney Gilchrist Thomas. Nature 146, 245–246 (1940). https://doi.org/10.1038/146245a0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/146245a0