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James Richard Haskell was an American inventor chiefly remembered for his invention (with Azel S. Lyman) of a multi-charge gun which was intended to increase muzzle velocity by detonating additional propellant charges behind the projectile or shell as it moved up the gun's barrel and was a distant ancestor of the World War II German V-3 "supergun". In 1854 Haskell began experiments with steel breech-loading rifled cannon and breech-loading small-arms, manufacturing 25 of the former, which were purchased by the Mexican Government. In 1855 he began experimenting with multi-charge guns in partnership with Azel S. Lyman, who originated the idea of applying successive charges of gunpowder to accelerate the velocity of a projectile. ==Rafael Repeater== In 1862, with a French inventor named George Raphael (sometimes reported as Rafael), a supplier of revolvers and swords to the Union army, Haskell invented and constructed a rapid-firing machine gun which became known as the Rafael Repeater. It was mounted on a light artillery carriage and fired standard rifle bullets. Unlike contemporary machine-guns, it did not use a feed hopper or separate cartridge chambers. However, few details remain of how it worked, apart from a mention in a letter from John Ericsson:〔Bruce, p. 209〕 Rafael secured a meeting with Abraham Lincoln thanks to a letter of introduction from New York governor Edwin D. Morgan and in turn Lincoln arranged that the gun be tested by John A. Dahlgren who did so at the Navy Yard, discovering that the gun's range and accuracy were remarkable. At a range of , the lateral deviation was described as "very slight", and "nearly all" of 16 shots fired at a target at were hits. As far as rate of fire went, the gun fired 40 shots in 20 seconds. John Ericsson was impressed, and wrote to Lincoln that The Repeater was tested in April 1863 at the 6th Corps headquarters in Virginia and was praised by a board composed of two Brigadier-Generals and a Colonel. In their report they stated that they found its simple construction, accuracy, range and rate of fire exactly as had been claimed for it and recommended that initially eight to twelve guns be used per brigade. Brigadier General Pratt, whose experience in action with the Gatling gun had not been satisfactory, endorsed the Rafael Repeater in glowing terms and asked that at least 24 of them be issued to his division. After reading the report, Abraham Lincoln asked the Secretary of War to refer it to the Bureau of Ordnance. However, General James Wolfe Ripley, who was notorious for delaying the introduction of repeating rifles, did not buy a single example of the gun.〔Bruce, p. 251〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「James Richard Haskell」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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