The Lancaster ledger. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1852-1905, 1861-06-19
Correspondence of Springfield Republican
Balls, Shells and Bombs-How they
are made.
Troy, n. Y. MAY

SA Troy, N. Y, May s.
Ths@W8'ery Arsenal, situated at
West TroyJs, you doubtless now, the lar
gest arsenal for the construction and fab
ricaton OF military implements, other
than small arms and cannon, in the counr
try, and visit to its work shops at pres.
ent, powerfully impresses one with
the power and resources of our Govern
rnent. Everything at present is on war
footing, and from three or four hun dred
hands directly, and as many more indi.
rec,Iy, in the neigbboring iouudries, are
kept busy night and day. Through the
thieving OF Floyd, and TIE recent reQusi.
tons of Government, the arsenal has been
nearly stripped of muskets, pistols and
cannon. but Of other munitions there il
yet An ample store. a large number of
hands are engaged in the preparation of
ammunition SIX thousand ball cartridges
are made daily /; most of these are in
tended for the MIME rifle, but large mum.
bers Of the old fashioned round ball car
tridges are also manufactured.
The rapidty with which cartridge is
made is wonderful. A boy sits a, coun-
ter with cylindrical stick-a pile of
creased oals and one of prepared paper
before hln-a simple roll of paper and n
stick-a jerk and a twist AT one end-a
twist of n string, and the cartridge is rea.
| dy for filling in less time than it takes to
read this description. They are then Ia.
ken III another room, placed open, end
up, in shallow boxes, and man, by
means OF IA simple instrument, fills them
with an equal amount Of powder. at the
rate o. thirty minute. A twist at the
open eud. AMI the cartridge is complete.
lhe manufacture goes on SO fas', that it
requires nearly dozen men aud boys 10
pack, box and remove the finished car
,ridges. In another apartment, "A num-
her of men and girls are employed in the
manufacture of cannon cartridges Of all
sHos, from the mightest columb,ad down
10 the six pounder. The material of
which they are made, is a kind OF woollen
goods (moreen) imported from England
especially for the purpose. Thousands OF
yards OF this material were in the process
OF being cut up and manufactured. Can /
non cartridges are not filed here, but at
the place where they are intended to be
used. In still another department, grape,
canister and strapped ammunition are in
course Of preparation, while huge cart
loads Of bomb shells and spherical shot
are hourly arriving from the neighoorlng
foundres. The grape shot are larger
than supposed, and might more proper,
iy be called peach shot than grape shot.
Some six or more Of these are packed in
II sort OF a wire corkscrcw arrangement,
and fitted into tin case, and when thus
finished, have much the appearance Of
jars OF preserved meats or fruits.
| The manufacture Of bomb shells is also
a matter of much interest. The prepa.
ration Of those Witnessed was brlfv AS
follows: The shell is frs, filled up with
old fashioned, round leaden bullets; melt.
el SUI phur is then poured in to fill up the
jnters,ices and bind the bullets in one sol.
I'd mass the shell is then pu. into kind
Of a lathe, and cylindrical hole Of the
exact size of the orlfce of the she'll is
bored through the bullets and the sulphur
this cavity is flied with powder, even
with the interior edge OF the oritice, six
inch shell Of the kind here described hold.
ing about half pound. The fuse fitted
into the oritice is a recent Belgian inven-
tion, made OF pewter, and resembles the
screwrcap used for tine patent fruit cans.
An examination OF this pewter cap shows.
however, that 1t is made OF two hollow
dies Of metal screwed together and tiled
with meal powder; number Of fine
holes are drilled ia the lower disc, while
the outer disc is entire, and marked with
figures in circle, /, 2, 3, 4. In this
state the shell is water and weather proof.
When taken for use, the gunner by means
of a small steel instrument, scoops out a
portion Of the outer soft metal surface,
and lays bare the charge Of composition
powder below it. Ii The shell il desired
10 explode in one second after leaving the
gun, the scooPng is made on the figure
one; if in two seconds, on the figure 2,
and so on; the idea being that the shells
Of this description shall first strike the
object aimed at and do execution as a
ball, and then explode, sending the bullets
forward as If from another cannon loca-
ted at the point where the fight Of the
shell is arrested. Large shell Of eight or
ten inches are filed with powder only,
and bursting do execution by means Of
their fragments. These large shells are
generally fired by means ola fuse Of meal
powder, extending through brass plug,
screwed into the mouth of the shell; in
both cases the fuse is fred by the igntion
OF the charge in the gun.
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