Take strong paper, but not too thick, cut it into stripes eight inches wide, cut these stripes crosswise into smaller ones of four inches in width, then cut these diagonally, so that the pieces will be three inches on one side, and five on the other. Then having prepared a small round stick, about six inches long, and the same size as the bore of the gun, having one eye round, the other concave, roll the paper round it. The paper should be laid on a table, the broad end to the left, and the side perpendicular to the bases next the workman, the stick laid on it with the concave end three fourths of an inch from the board edge of the paper; envelope the stick in the paper, place the right hand upon the stick, and roll the paper lightly around. Then take the stick in the left hand, and with the right tie a string firmly round the paper half an inch from the end, fold the projecting end neatly down, and press it on a ball embedded in the table, so as to force it into the cavity of the stick. Withdraw the stick and insert three or four tiers of buckshot, each, making a half hitch with the twine between each tier, and ending with a double hitch.
The powder is then put into these cylinders from a charger of the appropriate size, and the [the rest is unreadable, about another dozen words]
New-Orleans Commercial Bulletin - Apr 18, 1862