Originally Posted by
Ballistics in Scotland
No, it just started off with black powder... The ballistic advantages of small calibres, fast twist and elongated bullet were well known, but accompanied by fouling problems unacceptable in a military rifle. They knew that the French had developed a "chemical powder" which solved that problem, and were sure they were going to have their own, but they didn't have it by the time the Lee-Metford was adopted in 1888.
So the first propellant was a single pierced pellet of compressed black powder, a technology which probably derived from the military Congreve rockets which mostly missed Fort McHenry, and had been found insufficiently consistent in the Snider conversion of the muzzle-loading rifle. sights were calibrated for about 50ft./sec. ( a good guess) higher velocity than black powder would provide. Cordite was introduced in 1891, and black powder was certainly just a temporary expedient.