The Sun.
London, England, 1861-09-24 00:00:00

THE STRENGTH OF GUNS.

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It has been lately stated that the Ordnance Select Com-
mittee of Woolwich Arsenal, being anxious "to prove the
extreme power of resistance" of one of the 100-pounder
Armstrong guns, have tested one with much severity and
with the following results :—The gun has undergone 100
rounds of flung, with charges of 141 b of powder, and pro-
jectiles increasing in weight from 100 lb to I,ooolb. The
I,ooolb projectile was of such length as to extend nearly
two feet beyond the muzzle. Ten rounds were fired with
these enormous bolts, and the guu is reported to be totally
uninjured. The recoil of the gun was very violent. It is
understood to be the unanimous decision of the select com-
mittee that no further attempt should be made to burst it,
as its strength is deemed abundantly sufficient for all prac-
tical purposes." To those who know little of guns this may
seem a severe test indeed ; but those better informed will be
aware that it is hardly, if at all greater than a good cast-
iron gun of the same weight (70 cwt.) ought to withstand.
The 100 lb gun is not far from 61in. bore, the 801 b Arm-
strong having a bore of 6in., the weight being 63 cwt. Let
us see, therefore, what has been done by cast-iron guns of
weights and sizes approaching those of the 100-pounder ex-
perimented upon. Colonel Eardley Wilmot has stated, in
the Institution of Civil Engineers, that a 681 b cast-iron gun
had been subjected to the following tests at Woolwich.
With charges of 161 b of powder, or 21b more than those used
in the " extreme test" of the Armstrong gun, ten rounds
were fired with a cylinder weighing 681 b, ten rounds with
one weighing 1361 b, ten with 2041 b, ten with 2721 b, ten with
3401 b, ten with 4081 b, ten with 4761 b, and six with 5441 b, -
when the gun burst. ' A Spanish 321 b cast-iron gun, weigh-
ing 45 cwt., had withstood the following rounds :-211b of
powder, 641 b of shots and two wads, then 91b of powder, 641 b
shots and three wads, the last charge being repeated and fired
827 times without injury ; with 91b powder, 961 b shot and
two wads ; then with 91b powder, 1281 b shots and two wads ;
and then successively with 91b of powder at each round, with
1601 b, 1921 b, 2241 b, 2561 b, 2881 b, 3201 b, 3521 b, and 3841 b
shots when the gun was full to the muzzle. After this the
gun was fired with 121 b powder and 3201 b shots, 151 b powder
and 2881 b shots, 181 b powder and 2561 b shots, 211 b powder
and 1241 b shots, 241 b powder and 1921 b shots ; and finally
with 271 b powder and 1601 b shots, when the gun, full to
the muzzle, burst. It' thus took to burst the gun an aggre-
gate of 3 tons 13 cwt of powder, 2,5 tons 8 cwt of shot, and
2 tons 19 cwt of wads. An American 9-in cast-iron gun,
weighing 81i cwt, had, Col. Wilmot added, been fired with
the following charges :—Two rounds with 151 b powder and
a 901 b shot, then 1,506 consecutive rounds with 101 b powder
and a 721 b shell, then five rounds with 151 b powder and one
90,b shot, then five rounds with 151 b powder and 1801 b of
shots, then two rounds with 151 b of powder and 2701 b of
shots, then three rounds with 15Ib of powder and 2801 b of
shells, then seven rounds each with 201 b of powder and
shot shell weighing respectively, at each round, 3421 b, 4681 b,
6121 b, 6301 b, 7201 b, 8101 b, and 9001 b, when at the last
charge the gun burst. Taking into account the great com-
plication and cost of the Armstrong guns and the compara-
tively low extreme test to which they have been subjected,
fur a few seconds only, they cannot be considered to show
any remarkable superiority.—Engineer.

DREADFUL RAILWAY CATASTROPIIE

IN AMERICA.

The following additional account of the terrible disaster
on the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad is furnished to
the St. Louis Republican:—

The catastrophe occurred at Little Platte river bridge,
nine miles east of St. Joseph. The bridge was a substan-
tial work of 100 feet span and 35 feet above the river. The
binders of the bridge had been burned underneath the track
until they would sustain but little more than their own
weight, and the fire was then extinguished, leaving the
bridge a mere shell. The train, bringing from 85 to 100
passengers, including women and children, reached the
river at eleven o'clock at night, and the bridge
looking secure,-passed on ; but no sooner had the locomotive
measured its length upon the bridge than some 40 or 50
yards of the structure gave way, precipitating the entire
train into the abyss below. All the seats in the passenger
coaches were torn and shoved in front, carrying men, women,
and children in promiscuous heap down the declivity, and
and burying them beneath the crushed timber, or throwing
them out of the cars through the broken sides. Some were
mangled by the machinery tearing through the timbers ;
several were caught between planks pressing together like a
vice; others were struck by parts of the roof as it came down
with mighty force; and others were cut with pieces of glass,
while wounds and blood and agony prevailed all over the
frightful scene, and shrieks of pain were mingled with cries
of terror. In this manner the two last cars of the train went
down, pitching the passengers into the wreck or throwing
them into water, which at this point is about a foot and a
half in depth.

Only three persons, J. W. Parker, superintendent of the
United States Express, Mr. Mars, mail agent, and Mr.
Hager, were abje to afford assistance to the suffering, the
remainder of those who were not killed outright being so
disabled as to be helpless. After doing all that was pos-
sible for those requiring immediate attention, Mr. Hager
at midnight left the wreck to go to St. Joseph for medical
and other assistance. He walked five miles of the way,
when he found a hand car, upon which he proceeded the
remainder of the journey. Two hundred yards west of the
bridge he cl,scovered a heavy oak railroad tie strongly
strapped across the track, and two miles further on he found
the trestle work over a small stream on fire, which, however,
had not as yet been so badly burned that trains could not
pass over or could not be easily extinguished.
Arriving at St. Joseph the alarm was noon spread,
throughout the city, and although it was 1 o'clock at night,
75 men, including all the physicians in the neighbourhood,
volunteered their service, and at half-past 3 o'clock a train
fully equipped, supplied with medical stores and other ne-
cessaries, was at the scene of the disaster.

The wounded had emerged from the wreck and were lying
on the banks and upon a sand bar in the river. Seventeen
dead bodies were recovered, and it is believed this number
embraces all who were killed up to that time. Two were
so badly mangled that it was not expected they would sur-
vive till morning, while many others were dangerously'
wounded, and would have to be well taken care of to re-
cover. Many who will escape with their lives will be
maimed and crippled.