Part 514

VARSA, Ind. The rainy season.

VASANT, Ind. The mild season or spring.

VASSALS. They who in the feudal system were obliged to attend their lord in war, as a tenure by which they held their lands, &c.

VEDETTE, (Vedette, Fr.) in war, a centinel on horseback, with his horse’s head towards the place whence any danger is to be feared, and his carabine advanced, with the butt end against his right thigh. Vedettes are generally posted at the avenues, and on all the rising grounds, to guard the several passages when an enemy is encamped.

The Vedettes to the out-posts should always be double, for the following reasons: first, that whenever they make any discovery, one may be detached to the commanding officer of the out-posts; secondly, that they may keep each other watchful; and thirdly, that the vigilance of both may render it impossible for any thing to come near them without being seen. They should be at no greater distance from their detachments than 80 or 100 paces.

For particular instructions relative to the posting of Vedettes, see a treatise on the duties of an officer in the field, by baron Gross; Am. Mil. Lib.

VEKILCHARES. A word used among the Turks, which signifies the same as Fourrier in the French, and corresponds with quartermaster.

VELITES. Roman soldiers, who were commonly some of the Tiros, or young soldiers of mean condition, and lightly armed. They had their name, a volando, from flying, or a velocitate, from swiftness. They seem not to have acted in distinct bodies or companies, but to have hovered in loose order before the army. Kennett’s R. A. page 190. Their arms consisted of a sword and javelin, and they had a shield or buckler which was sufficiently large to cover its man, being round and measuring three feet and a half in diameter.

They generally wore wolf’s skins, or some other indifferent ornament upon their heads, to distinguish them during an action. Their javelins were a sort of dart, the wood of which measured three cubits in length, and was about the thickness of a finger. The point was about a hand’s full breadth in length, and was so thin and brittle, that it snapped off the instant it reached or penetrated its object, so that the enemy could not return it. It was distinguished in this particular from other darts and javelins.

VELOCITY. The quickness of motion with which bodies are moved from one place to another.

Initial velocity of military projectiles, as ascertained by the experiments with the Ballistic pendulum at Woolwich, in 1788, 1789, and 1790. These experiments were made with shot of equal diameters, powder of equal strength, and under a mean height of the barometer; and shew,

1. That there is very little difference in the velocities of shot fired from guns of the same length, but of unequal weights; the advantage being sometimes in favor of one and sometimes of the other.

2. That velocities arising from firing with different quantities of powder, are nearly in the proportion of the square roots of the quantities or weights of powder.

3. That the velocities decrease as the distances increase, arising from the resistance of the air, which opposes the progress of the shot, in a proportion somewhat higher than the squares of the velocities throughout; and only to a small variation.

4. That very little advantage is gained in point of range, by increasing the charge more than is necessary to attain the object, the velocities given by large charges being very soon reduced to those by moderate charges: those for instance given by half the shot’s weight are reduced to an equality with those by one third, after passing through a space of only 200 feet.

5. That very little advantage is also gained by increasing the length of guns; the velocity given by long guns of 22 calibres length of bore, being reduced to an equality with those of the short guns of 15¹⁄₂ calibres with similar charges, after passing through the spaces as follows:

With ¹⁄₂ the shot’s weight 285 feet ¹⁄₃ Do. 200 ¹⁄₄ Do. 150 ¹⁄₆ Do. 115

6. That the resistance of the air against balls of different diameters with equal velocities, is very nearly in the proportion of the square of their diameters; or as their surfaces.

7. That the velocity is not affected by compressing the charge more or less; or by heating the piece in different degrees.

8. That a very great increase of velocity arises from a decrease of windage; it appearing, that with the established windage of ¹⁄₂₀ between ¹⁄₃ and ¹⁄₄ of the force is lost.

9. It also appeared, that by firing the charge in different parts; by varying the weight of the gun to lessen the recoil; or even by stopping the recoil entirely, no sensible change is produced in the velocity of the ball.

10. That though the velocity of the shot is increased only to a certain point peculiar to each gun, (a further increase of powder, producing a diminished velocity) yet the recoil of the gun is always increased by the increase of charge.

11. Velocity of a light 6 Pr.--length, 4 feet 8 inches; charge, ¹⁄₃ the weight of the shot; 1558 feet per second.--6 Prs. heavy; 6 feet 8 inches; charge ¹⁄₃ = 1673 feet.

Velocity of a light 3 Pr. length, 3 feet 4 inches, charge ¹⁄₂--1371 feet per second.

Do. Heavy 3 Pr. length, 5 feet 9¹⁄₂ inches, charge ¹⁄₃ the shot--1584 feet.

Velocity of French Ordnance.

24 Pr. charge 8 lbs. the eprovette mortar giving 125 fathoms, the initial velocity is 1425 feet per second; with the eprovette at 90 = 1209 feet; with a charge of 12 lbs. and the eprovette at 125° the initial velocity will be 1530.

Charge. Eprovette. Velocity. 16 pr. 5 lbs. 125 1415 16 pr. 8 do. 1510 12 pr. 4 do.} { 1520 8 pr. 2¹⁄₂ do.} long { 1418 8 pr. 3 do.} guns { 1460 4 pr. 1 do.} { 1335 4 pr. 1¹⁄₂ do.} { 1508 12 pr. 4 do. }field { 1442 8 pr. 2¹⁄₂ do. }guns { 1422 4 pr. 1¹⁄₂ do. } { 1446 8 inch how’r. 1 do. 390 8 inch how’r. 1 2 oz. do. 516 6 inch how’r. 1 do. 532 6 inch how’r. 1 12 oz. do. 704