Chinese soldiers with a volley gun and rockets. At right is a Belgian-made Montigny mitrailleuse, a volley gun with 37 barrels arranged in a hexagonal bundle. On the floor at centre is a block into which would be pre-loaded 37 brass cartridges, each containing an 11mm bullet and powder charge. This was loaded into the breech of the gun, a handle on the side allowed the sequential firing of the 37 rounds. With practice a rate of fire of 300 rounds per minute was possible. At left is a launching ramp and a Hale rocket. The Hale rocket had a powder propellant with the exhaust leaving by angled vents. This caused the rocket to spin in flight, increasing accuracy. This image was taken in c.1880.