Definition of "cannon-ball" [cannon-ball]

• A ball or missile, originally of stone, but now usually of cast-iron or steel, designed to be thrown from a cannon. (noun)

The Century Dictionary (Public Domain)

• "So I drank with them, drink by drink, raw and straight, though the damned stuff couldn't compare with a stick of chewing taffy or a delectable "cannon-ball.""
• "Again there was a puff of smoke and a loud report, this time the cannon-ball striking not more than twenty feet astern and glancing twice from sea to sea to windward ere it sank."
• "Then came my boy code: when on a day a fellow gave another a "cannon-ball" or a chunk of taffy, on some other day he would expect to receive back a cannon-ball or a chunk of taffy."