Liz:

In the early days of black powder, the powder was in a flask, the ball was in a bag or pocket, and the wadding that gave the ball a tight fit in the barrel was in another bag, pocket, or simply hung from the garment and was cut off as needed.

Someone (I don't know if the idea was French, American, or British.) came up with the idea of wrapping the ball in greased paper or cloth, tying it off, and then wrapping the powder in the remaining paper or cloth which was still attached to the ball and tying it off. That way the entire requirement for one shot could be retrieved in a faster manner. You tear open that part of the paper that holds the powder, pour a little of the powder in the frizzen pan, pour the rest of the powder into the barrel, put the wrapped ball in the muzzle with the remaining paper attached, and ram it into the barrel on top of the powder, and you are ready to shoot.

Bountyhunter