IN TIME OF WAR.

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with the powder, the great resistance opposed by the earthupon the upper floor, prevents the powder from acting up-wards, and directs its force against the walls of the tower,which being of no great solidity, easily yield and fall down.

SECOND PART.

Of the Service of Artillery in the Defenceof Places.

105. THE science of defence constitutes one of themost essential branches of the military art, since a few troopsare thereby frequently enabled to make head against a verysuperior army, to the preservation of a whole country : andas in the prosecution of this system, the inferior army isoften compelled to sustain a siege, the defence of places formsone of the most important parts of this science. Now thedefensive system may either be the result of a premeditatedplan ; or a nation may be unexpectedly forced into it bythe sudden invasion of a foreign enemy, or by a train of un-fortunate events, that oblige an army which began the warwith the fairest hopes of conquest, to change its system andact on the defensive.

106. When a defensive war is foreseen, some of the se-nior officers of artillery are sent to inspect the quality andnumber of arms and stores of all forts in the different gar-risons ; examine the condition of the magazines, works,and countermines ; and take notes of every thing that maybe wanting in cafe of a siege.

After the inspection, each officer makes a report in wri-ting of the number and nature of artillery and carriages,with his proposed arrangement of them; and also of theproportion of tools, machines, arms, and ammunition,which in his opinion may be adequate in proportion to thestrength yf the garrison, for making a vigorous defence:

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