Go Tell it on the Mountain

A number of hymns in protestant (or non orthodox) Christian hymnbooks come from used to be called “Negro Spirituals”. I’m pretty sure this phrase has been ‘upgraded’ in some measure. There are a number of such hymns, I really don’t know how many. They all share the origin of coming from the black tradition (more than likely from the slavery era) of Christianity.

The one most memorable to me is what is commonly thought of as a Christmas hymn, but is really an evangelical song of the Biblical teaching of proclaiming the Good New of Christ to all. It is titled “Go, Tell it on the Mountain”.

The first line starts “Go, tell it on the mountain. Over the hills and everywhere. Go, tell it on the mountain that Jesus Christ is Lord!” I know of no other message so basic and so emphatic in all Christendom.

I appreciate the plain and simple phrasing. At least in modern era English. Perhaps were it presented to the 1611 audience of the King James Version of the Bible, it may not be so straight forward. Perhaps in another 400 years it will not be so understood. (Dr. Stephen Hawking’s work may be hard to decipher in 400 years, as well.) But it – currently – is easy to understand both the message and the urgency.

In the interest of total transparency: I am not of any notable Black heritage. The on line DNA test – eh? – pegs me as of primarily Scots ancestry and a bit of European about the edges. I make no claim of Black heritage. I am not ‘woke’. Knowing of the institution of slavery and all the ills and depredations thereunto pertaining, I am not embarrassed or bear shame for anything done by my remote ancestors. Which includes fighting the Pennsylvania Regiment during the Civil War and the Viking raids of more ancient ancestors.

Instead I am a Christian, a self diagnosed musician (singer) a (again self diagnosed) reader and thinker. The song in question is good music and good theology. It represents the best efforts of human beings and Christians.

Last, it is a song of joy! WE HAVE OUR GOD AND SAVIOR! Jesus Christ in the flesh. If any you sing this in church, remember this. It is a song of joy and happiness. Do not sing it as a funeral dirge.

A Brief History of Ammunition

This will be a short history of ammunition.  No doubt some details, perhaps some salient points will be ignored.  Hopefully this essay will provide an over view of the subject and perhaps give insight into why some things happened, or didn’t.  This essay may appear to jump from one subject to another and then back up.  In reality, history usually isn’t as neatly arranged as it could be hoped.    

Primarily this is about small arms.  Cannons and mortar do parallel the development of small arms, but vary.

“Gun power” started out as a mixture of sulphur (sulfur is probably more modern), charcoal and potassium nitrate (sometimes called ‘saltpeter’).  This was the first chemical explosive developed by main stream humans.  The actual discovery is typically credited to the Chinese in the Tenth Century.  It seems that Roger Bacon or Berthold Schwartz at least popularized it in the Thirteenth Century in Europe.  Black Powder is still in use today.  Mostly is is used for a general low explosive where such is needed, and by shooters of muzzle loaders.  

After five centuries – give or take – smokeless power was developed.  Generally this is attributed to French chemist Paul Vielle in 1884.  However, this development was based on prior research and experimentation.  It is only fair to say a number of chemists (Alfred Nobel, for example) were dealing with the problem in the same era.

In the beginning, rifle and handgun bullets were made of lead.  Lead was reasonably available and had a low melting temperature.  So they were easy to cast to the correct size and shape as bullets.  Additionally lead has a high specific gravity and therefore a bullet of lead was heavier than a bullet of tin or whatever.  The extra weight lent a bit more momentum to the projectile.  

Early (black powder powered) firearms had limited velocities.  The bullets were nearly pure lead (as the mining and smelting technology was able) and did a fair job of their purpose.  

The idea of ‘cartridges’ or ‘cartouches’ dates back at least to Revolutionary War times.  The word ‘cartouche’ suggests some French influence in the development.  This device was the development of a cloth (usually linen in the common wisdom) or paper wrapper.  Firearms were practically all muzzle loaders at the time, so using the ammunition ‘packet’ required some assembly in loading the arm.  The reader probably already knows this, but the shooter had to open the pliable container, dump the pre-measured (black) powder charge down the barrel, then insert the projectile (wrapped in the container) into the muzzle of the arm and push the bullet down firmly on top of the powder charge.  Then the shooter had to either check to make sure the flint and steel of a flintlock arm or the percussion cap of a cap lock were in proper working order and position.  The arm was then ready to fire.  

This idea – development – did several things.  Most obviously, ammunition was easier to carry.  Instead of having powder and ignition systems and bullets to carry loosely, and keep from getting wet or over moist, one could carry a bag or box of pre-loaded ‘cartridges’. 

Around the time of the U. S. Civil War (1840ish and after) designers started experimenting with cartridge ammunition, where bullet, propellent powder, primer (igniter of some sort) were all wrapped up in a metallic ‘case’.  These cartridges were not perfect, but were more water resistant than loose components and no assembly was required.  Just get the cartridge in the arm, pointy end first.  

The earliest arms to utilize ‘fixed’ or cartridge ammunition were shortly after the U. S. Civil War.  Cartridges varied by inventor-designer but the most effective systems – at least most popular – sorted out as ‘rimfire’ and ‘centerfire’ systems.  During this time period velocities were generally about the same as they had always been.  Rifles and handguns both were in the 500 to 1500 feet per second  range.  Plain lead bullets worked well.  Some adventurous souls experimented with lead alloys so rifling had a better grip on the bullet.  That did and still does work in the lower velocity ranges.

It was about this time ‘smokeless’ power was visited on the shooting fraternity.  Higher velocities became the norm.  

Plain lead bullets left serious deposits of lead in the bores of rifles and handguns, when fired above a certain velocity.  The amount of ‘leading’ (I’m sure everyone has heard of leading) varies depending on the lead alloy and the velocity of the projectile.  

Military and commercial rifle makers quickly realized the combination of higher velocities and lead bullets were counter productive.  In the United States, in 1892 the 1892 Springfield Rifle (known popularly as the Krag-Jorgensen) was adopted as the standard U. S. rifle.  The Krag replaced the rather faithful M1873 Trapdoor Springfield.  In an instant of bureaucratic time, the U. S. Rifle changed from a single shot to a five shooter, and velocities went from 1350 fps to 2000 fps.  Lead bullets were not going to work.

The earliest development of jacketed bullets is generally credited to Swiss Colonel Eduard Rubin.  (Think Schmidt-Rubin rifle.  Col Rubin designed the round it fired.)  In addition to the problem of rifling, newer designs of rifles and machine guns (also enhanced by smokeless powders, think about it) required a relatively ‘hard’ bullet to successfully get banged, pushed and shoved through the mechanism of newer style rifles, handguns and machineguns of various types.  

It seems the alloy know as Cupronickel was used first.  Cupronickel jackets look like silver or chrome.  The jacketing material is 60% copper and 40% nickel and was the first material used for rifle and pistol bullets following lead bullets. 

However, after a reasonably short time, shooters and armorers discovered that while Cupronickel were superior to plain lead bullets, CP jacketing had it’s own problem.  CP rubbed off on the interior of bores.  Rubbed off as in left hard granules of CP which resisted cleaning.  About the only solvent for CP was – and is – ammonia.  Ammonia will also attack the steel in rifle and handgun barrels.

CP jacketed bullets were used almost exclusively from 1886, when the French adopted the M1886 rifle in caliber 8mm Lebel; to the 1920s when some bright soul came up with the use of gilding metal for bullet jacketing.  

Gilding metal is another copper alloy, but the other metal is zinc.  Some gilding metal does rub off on the bore, but not of the volume nor intensity of CP.  

Other side issues of ammunition theory involves the ‘momentum versus energy’ argument and the ‘amount versus accuracy’ argument.  

Some of the developments are still developing.  The Gyro-jet concept seems to have potential, but lacks initial velocity.  Caseless ammunition is a great idea, but part of what a case does is seal off the breech end of a firearm.  So far, a self-sealing arm cannot be successfully made on a manufacturing line basis.  Experimentation with electric fired primers has met with less than excitement as the firing mechanism is so fast, human shooters cannot quite accustom themselves.  

Hopefully, this brief introduction will encourage study and contemplation on the subject.