Just like their enemies, the musketeers of Mont Blanc County also received some long wooden rods the size of gunstocks before they got their matchlock guns.
The recruits had to cut the long sticks short themselves, drill holes in the shortened stick with a red-hot iron rod, and craft lids of the right size. The final product was the small wooden bottles hanging on the chests of the musketeers.
On the eve of battle, the musketeers would fill these bottles with just enough gunpowder for one shot, then tightly screw on the cap, placing them alongside their guns at their bedside.
