Chewed Round Ball NH.
- Thread starter How Lucky
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villagenut
Gold Member
While I am a believer that soldiers put these poisonous balls in their mouths for different reasons, yours was probably chewed on by some varmint or wild pig.
Professor of Engineering
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Nice find! 
I believe villagenut is correct.
I believe villagenut is correct.
1KBlueTuber
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Nice find I’m with villnut, I’m from NH and just a couple weeks ago a raccoon grabbed a musketball I found off our back deck table one night and chewed it up just like your Find obviously with fresh shiny areas.
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Nice early ammo!
John
John
How Lucky
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1KBlueTuber, I would like to see a picture of that ball, it would be a fascinating comparison.
I was going to dismiss the fact that an animal would have chewed the ball. Why would an animal chew on something like that and then bring it all the way down to the shoreline? Then it struck me "Lard"! The musket balls, wadding and other tools to load and fire a musket would all be scented or covered in animal fat. Very fascinating! A raccoon or skunk would have eaten the entire rifle if it could have fit it in its mouth. My musket ball possibly traveled in the stomach of some raccoon till it was passed out onto the beach. Making sense to me now.
For a soldier to chew a ball to produce a so called poison ball is not holding up for me any longer. Misshaping a ball so that it no longer fits the muzzle, fires true and gums up the barrel quicker is not prudent. I do understand that shot was chewed on for other reasons, but to make a poison ball
I have to agree with Villagenut and 1KBlueTuber. My vote is for animal chewing.
I was going to dismiss the fact that an animal would have chewed the ball. Why would an animal chew on something like that and then bring it all the way down to the shoreline? Then it struck me "Lard"! The musket balls, wadding and other tools to load and fire a musket would all be scented or covered in animal fat. Very fascinating! A raccoon or skunk would have eaten the entire rifle if it could have fit it in its mouth. My musket ball possibly traveled in the stomach of some raccoon till it was passed out onto the beach. Making sense to me now.
For a soldier to chew a ball to produce a so called poison ball is not holding up for me any longer. Misshaping a ball so that it no longer fits the muzzle, fires true and gums up the barrel quicker is not prudent. I do understand that shot was chewed on for other reasons, but to make a poison ball
I have to agree with Villagenut and 1KBlueTuber. My vote is for animal chewing.
villagenut
Gold Member
This may be an older thread but I did find some historical records of soldiers chewing on roundballs....thought it was eye opening for those who thought it never happened.
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