Fascines

Fascines (from Lat. fascis, 'a bundle') are brushwood fagots bound together with wire, yarn, or withes. They are 18 feet long and 9 inches in diameter, used for revetting the steps and steep interior slopes of field-works and for other military purposes, such as roofing magazines, Casemates (q.v.), Blockhouses (q.v.), &c., when timber cannot be procured. A double row covered with earth several feet thick is almost bomb-proof. They also make a very strong stockade, and can be used in bridging operations and road-making. Cut into six-feet lengths, they are often carried by the men of an assaulting column to fill up the ditch of a work or lessen its depth. Five men can make a fascine in an hour.