The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1873-11-25 00:00:00

TRIAL OF THZ GREAT GUNS ON THE
, NOTHIL

The trial which has been looked forward to with
considerable interest in Weymouth, was to hunt use
off on Wednesday; but • fele days before we received
Intimation that It would take plane on Thureday. Oa
Wednesday evening sin gentlemen of the °edam*,
&boot Committee arrived Is Weymouth, and took up
their quarters at the Gloauster Hotel. They inaluded
Major Alderson, LA., Colonel Feld, HA., Major
Maitland, R.A., Colonel Hayman R.A., Colonel
!palish, 11.8., and Lieutenant Inglis, RE Shortly
before seine on Thursday morning, the unestrtainty as to
the hcur of the trial was removed by the ruler giving
polio* that the gnu would be fired at 10 o'elosk, and
the inhabitants wort requested to open their windows.
About • quarter before 10 o'clock, the six sauternes
named started in. very quiet way Irons th• Gloucester
Hotel, and prooseded on foot and unsususeted of being
more than ordinary gentlemen towards the New Quay
End, where four of them took boat, and accuse the
Harbour: They arrived with business-like punctuality
at the Tort, at 10 o'clock, and were neelved by Colonel
Akers, RE., Major Jones, RA, and thiptain
with Caplan Eut, It N., Lieutenant Lyle, rtac, and
others, and among those present as spectators was the
Rev. J. H. Addison. The Royal Artillery ware turned
out and drawn up in two lines is the interior of the
Fort. Tbe distinguished visitors at des prooeeded to
' the gno-cluireber, and Inspected the gee No. 6, an 18
too monster, with 10-Inch bore, the oos to be drat
experimented with. It is • muu'e-loader, of the form
so familiar ef late from pictures in the illustrated
periodisale, scosistipg of three thicknesses of iron
fitting oni• over the other, so that although only about
18jin diameter at the moue it Is some foar feet thick
at the breech. The gun, iteLf, though doubtless the
most ieterestlng to Weymoutlaitus, was not the first
object with the oommittee, who Inepeeted the fittings,
sad the openings in the third& We have before
deseribed these, and it will be enough to repeat that
they are of several layers of solid rolled iron, tha octet
' about Sin. thick In one plus, while behind they are
ronathened by suouraive layers of different thicknesses
till about 18e. thick. Too great eocunoy in not adtemble,
' for military reasons, in describing the resisting strength
of thus shields. It is with the working of the guns we
hays most to do. The openiegs in the bills 'steward are
oblate, with the owners 111• d, BO 0•11 to form oetagons,
with sides differing in length. The longed aids of the
triensular cYrnere is Bin. ; the shorter or horisoutml
ILlttng one 211. 19S14%.enthethelonruruZ Pc:frP:;:e.
gun prej ate through the aperture, there remains about
6io, apace on each side, and wren at the level the
motes is lit. din, from the top of the opening, and
o,n. from the bottom. Though the opening is tins
contracted to what might be thought its narrowest
limits, yet it is deelrable to narrow the entrance still
ferther, as the immense charges of powder' new used
send forth such masses of smoke that if it could enter
the gun-shamber freely, the gunners would run a risk
of beteg steed hi their own smoke Beside this they
would be liable to be struck down by ride bullets, and
a shot or shell might And its way ie. The amok* and
bullets are sought to be still further guarded against
by • system of rope mantels. formed in the eau of
this No. 6 embrasure of rope 0 inches in eirounifer-
epee, and elosty woven or interlaced. The rope in
No. 8 embrasure ix 4-inches in eircumforene,, and one
of the obj_ols of the trial wu to ascertain if the din.
rope lOU as efficient as the 6 inch • but this was not
decided when the first trial was finial:ed. The 0111000,4
are five in number, oonsisting of one bribed ever the
top of the inner part of the embrasure, ond two
perpendioular ones on ugh side of the embrasure;
the latter hung on stout iron rode orossing the top of
the embrunre, They were found in prestos to coo.
tract the opening sufficiently ; but they rather inter-
fered with the working of the gun. Thus it was
amiable to give it power of traversing 60 degrees
from the extreme right to the extreme left, or other-
wise ,• but when the gun was over 271 degrees to the
left, it was premed hard against the mantels, whielt
would not suffor so much compression as was expected.
It was then traversed to the right, and on this side the
usautlets interfered rather more, for thecae could only
g 0 27 and one-eighth degrees from the central line ;
5 and lee stabile of horizon sweep were lost. The
upper flautist was also found to interfere with the
*levitate, for at 9 davits& elevation, whisk it was
desired to get, the dile sights oould not be is.. for the
mantlet, and the oental sight could not he used on
aeratust of the eiroular form of the gun. However the
latter was not ecesidered of mush importais.. for at
71 &pees elevailes, the lOu can be alibeed by lb.