New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1862-02-20
TESTING THE WESTERN MORTAR FLO
TIITA

From the correspondence Of The Missouri Deuo-
crak we select the following Interesting details Of
experiments with the Western mortar hotilla az
Cairo:
for the Western Flotilla, wss tested beow Cairo.
The mortar was placed on ore Of Redmans mortar
beds, aud twelve l3inch shells were prepared Tor
the charge and filled with wet sand. The hrst test
was with eleven pounds OF powder, oy the force Oh
which the she'll was impelled q horizontal distance
Of two miles and half The second test was made
with 20 pounds of powder, impeling the shell DIS
aDce of three uiles; tine Of flight 29i seconds Inc
tird test was made with the full charge of 23pounds
of powder. The time OF flight WAS 81 seconds, and
the shell was mpeed distance Of three and han
miles The recoi Of the gun-oarriage, when this
charge was fired, was about two feet.
Experiment number four gave results similar 70
number three. Capt. PsuidIng describes the con.
cussion a. very stunning and painful, ana thinks IL
could not be endured within tue bulwarks of tho
mortar boat by any man for more than Eight or ten
consecuti0e HhCts.
Number i've was with but fifteen pounds Of povt.
der the mortar in this case being elevated to more
than forty.ive degrees The shell was twenty-elght
seconds in the air. aud seemed to fall as far away az
any of the procecius ones which led to the opinion
that lighter charge Of powder was quite az Efficient
IA a full %3-pouud charge.
The mortsr boats are abou. sixty feet long and
twenty-five feet wide, surrounded on all SIDES by
iron.plaie bulwaFks six or seven feet high. The
mortar it,ef weighs u, 2lO POUNDS, has bore cas-
ily admitting "a i3-i0ch she'll ard from the edge OF
the bore to the outer Iim is seventeen inches. Inc
mortar bed weighs 500 pounds, AID Is pronounced
t. be tie most admirable mortar-carriage yet IN.
vented Tie she'll filled with wet saDd weighed 80
p9uuds. Filled with powd-r three shells w,li welgh
2lJ pounds, aud can he thrown nj least hall nile
further than were those filled with the ssnd. So.
Twenty OF these boats drop down to wil0ln
easy reach of Columbus and a. the same time be out
a the reach Of the best IiRed cannon the Rebels
may bring 10 hear-so small indeed, at distance Oh
three ana half four miles as scarcely 10 be dis-
camille on the surface Of tile water. Each OF these
boats will ire at "A low es innate, four shells an hour
Twenty OF them wOull discharge eighty shells an
Lour and at thi. rate for ii ht OF ten hours 500
of tbe-e terrific misrles may be thrown Into me
Re 81 camp and Qualifications.
The trial demonstrated that the recoil OF the boat
was altogether lateral, and not perpendicular, hs Il
W., feared II would be- IL also shows that the IRON
bulwarks render tue conclusion more severe than ~
would be without them, and that, II they are per.
ritte6 10 remain some plan will have 10 be deVised
by which the gunners at each discharge may get out,
la OF them illustrating the effects OF the concus-
-ion j. the circumstance that the cap Of the gunner
Who discharged the l5-pound charge was carried
sav non hia mead and he almost taken OF his feet.
Another objection TO tie boat, Was ITS construction
AZ the bow aud stern. Unless lowed very slowly,
both W and down stream, II dipped the water con-
.derily These, however, are all minor objections.
and easily got rid Of Tie bouts will admirably serve
the purpose for which they designed, and prove
the most terrible engines OF destruction the epemy
have gel mad to encounter.