PONTON, or PONTOON, in War, a kind of flat-bottomed boat, whose carcass of wood is lined within and without with tin: they serve to lay bridges over rivers for the artillery and army to march over. The French pontoons, and those of most other powers, are made of copper on the outside: though these cost more at first, yet they last much longer than those of tin; and when worn out, the copper sells nearly for as
much as it cost at first; but when ours are rendered useless, they sell for nothing. Our pontoons are 21 feet long, five feet broad, and depth within two feet 1.5 inches.