I In 1045, a Chinese government official named Tseng Kung-Liang wrote an account of the Chinese use of gunpowder, calling these flying objects "fire arrows." These arrows were not launched arrows but by charges of gunpowder. These fire arrows were traditional feathered arrows propelled by ignited gunpowder housed in a tube tied to the arrow. The fire arrows had flammable materials or sometimes poison-coated tips. The Chinese usually launched these fire arrows in bursts from arrangements of cylinders or boxes which could hold as many as 1,000 fire arrows each. The fire arrows propelled by gunpowder could have had a range of up to 1,000 feet.

II Rocket fire-arrows were used to attack Mongol invaders at the battle of Kai-fung-fu in 1232 A.D. The rockets were enormous and very powerful. According to a report "When the rocket was lit, it made a noise that resembled thunder that could be heard for...