Council Bluffs bugle. [volume] (Council Bluffs, Iowa) 1860-1868, 1861-10-30

ISTIT n IN aaR1x GUN AuHToN."
] 4 Istsss1 Foa Fos e Monroe, gives
b follow 3 = ean pf The arst trial Of
;hsersaa u sahio1
! c. 80 7 shS run was tarnetxna
= Ee 8Kfos Ia skok Into the Bay, the de-
Ira being soleIy y test ~ guns which
hssi never befssg y "a 1ssds md % ascex~ I,
- xnros nrnrHs fnxthsg, u
,s,ax IL veil 10 sseGpt4n1ats u xsgaed - Il
sks gun ITSELF III weight b s. O0 posnds |
sssfaDse hnkth is fssEs fazsA ~ re ~ +
fsst Wfnohes diaaaess1 81 borg Il idch-
sis nsansse 4esssNrissu sMkaef
rIsrs. placed Ga platform of soiid mar
sctry8 sIska aas rinedpgoiss6 IA As shpI |
are conicsl, the solIa shot weighing -
pounds, and the ahslI $50 pounds, with . /
barssing charge 81 Is poahds. The charge
ii powder used varies from 40 70 - ms.
The. pawdee used oa this iooaasicn~~sad
wAioh NO doubt will be aaiformly ussd-~
na 4ha Rndmsn grain powder. the ssps-
rite vrxins uf which varied from fiis sise
Of . walnas IN 10 tho size of . hsns 80:
All things being ready, the process %
laAdina ihs gmn was commenced ssT-
geanG Weleh, az the head of his black Dat
saaiiUAtof guarsrs, had already cleared
the deck, wheeled the monster 10 that pig
ears wa over the waters, and arranged
the ssasiag aos alAiSssm on whaoA sAs aaen
noald atand and be up syes With the Eaas-
lie. FIRST, the swab, whiah two nan inr
sert, cleans the interior then Games ?
man with a red flannel bag, filled win
powsses. oa his sAoaldar; ii d the cartridge
and sle ransgaas werksd by fauS men,
sends il hpms,, Than cones the process
| az getting the shot to its place, . mass ct
mettie that four men carry With difhcnlty.
| ls To- frat rolled inso an iron sraals OF
| wias trap, loopad with rope shEoaga
which piece OF strong woads several test
| long, l. inserted. Thps slungs the men
tug the shot up the sseps, 10 the platform,
soaas ten fees hfgh 10 The mouth OF she
gan. Aaoshsr lift beings 10 oa a'lsvsa,
and is is slipped inte the zausale and pasAg
I'd to its place. The gan i than elsvased
by means of al iron bar, the gun being
aiseay balanced On rs tsunnfons. The
prixainx wire perfoEma Its oihos, the fuse
L. insartsd and the l&iyarsi il attaehed~--
Then Lieut., Baylor, who, though sgHgyT
thing has been done under his mfnutest
Inspection, has moved about more IKE q
modest apacsaEos shan the fsaponsiT
| BILE director, gives warning thas che gun
has never before been fired, and moTaa ?
short distance TO the rear, fn which be is
isaitaeed by the others 81 On s3s -2@
4 The men vino are TO ealcai&te the higha
Of the shot are NJ their table Ibe bag u
up, The man With the Lanyard Refires g
| It's full length. ssReady, says Sergeant
Weaeh. Lieat. BayleF gives the word -
ssRAady--kreP ~ 4 serTiac crash, . shss'
Of aarne, and the trembling Of she earth
follow. at the same time there ia aereech
and scream caused By the shot, BLACK
mass which you can see, In It's flight, yell
, ing like an iafurisssd assil let loese from
, the Internal ssgions. We count the SEQ
onas, and watch to see the ball strike a
column on water away on In tha bay shoota
10 TO the haighG % q ships mast. Th'
r elesation Of the qua was ass tsn degrees
D little more than blank shss, consequently
{ the distance was not great say two niles
o the time Of fight fifteen seconds. Tn
: terrible engine, the echoes Of whose thun
: der had scAseslY yet fisd away over tn
8 waters and alpng the shoss, whose breath
Y . dark salphuroas cloud, floats before To
d wind-the thing which We would natural
r ly associate with the idea OF gaowinI
: fery rsonssar, the embodiment of all th
z furies, is next the object of astentioa. !
4 is ~ passive Is anything can be. tn
: Sergeant pats fainilisrly its massive
: smooth brecchs aae snnoke anris st0Wf
from the mouth of the chamber From whic
= the 40 poand shos has just been vonised
!. and for the Instant it is difkcult TO recon
cile the crash, the flame, the sremblln
earth and the ssreech, with the thing tha
neither treznhies nor glowa, nor make
other signs Of Its truly awful and aimos
=. supernatural endoHmenEs. $50 80
II The next time shell Is fred at th
i same range, bat il fails 70 explode. An
y here let me, remark that both shos an
, shell seemed to be not the thing FOR th
. gan. The soft metal with which the
! arc. coated shipped and few i'm all direG
= lions when only few hundred feat frua
= The gun, 30 that one might mistake ii
ipieces for d charge Of grape from q how
: EisRsg. The idea Of Hlling the grooves an
= thsseby obtaining D ROTARY asotion Hul
i haye been but impsrfectly realized. :.
: The gun was again loaded with ssli
!, Ishos, and elevated twenty eight degree
This and the next shot, which was nc ii
> same elevation, sers very Gne features 4
= the experiment. As yoa watched the pr
2 gress 81 the shot, which in its cireait .
tanned an elevation OF probably not LEI
IsA.