, 1866-09-14
NUMBER so.


when the war now raging in Europe was on
possibility Of the future, It was said tha,
t'uN ntlSk was determined to pTecipitate hostiliS
sI, e nHeAuse ne believed that In her own exclu4
sl sve possession Of .he needle gun, Prussia had
tne power to remodel the map Of EnRooe Al her
wlII, even with the great odds against her, The
TENOR OF the late news seems to Indicate th.t a.
confidence felt at Berlin in this new vAanon -
wen founded and correspondents and editor
xeIyWhere concur 10 extOlling the superiority
in use. -~''- aSns " now
The needls-gun was Invented In lsa5 II.
Inougn OF course many Improvement, ~.
SINCE oeen made on the first idea. The .r.S,,
otIhe invention belongs 10 Mr.. DreTSe. the nsnt
uiacturer OF arms at Somsrda but m some f.-
IesPectsi the weapon is similar to and an i'm.
Norway me lf99n siAAp bSssethfllesdiHS mgsks. Of
the cartridge Of which is exploded by ne iptrST
sion OF needle into the Illuminate attached -
IL the needle being propelled by a spiral spring,
There is no secret about its mechanism !. "a
the only thing about ii which there Wop,S y.
the least difficulty in copying, is the composi-
tion used as illuminate. This, says forei9n
correspondent, "is q compound of in0redient.
known only to one mantle inYeptor: and a.
determined is the Government that the ,ecr.t
shall not escape, that the man is guarded nigbt
ana day by squad of twelve soldiers every
letter which be writes is inspected, and he IL
person except in the presence of his guard"
The rifle part Of the barrel is thirty-si6 incbea
long, and has calibre of sixteenths of An inch,
win iour grooves, having a twist of Eve eleV-
enths In the length Of the barrel The breadth
OF tnese Is about quarter Of an inch, the depth
tnree nundreths Of an inch. There is an unrihed
chamoef Tor the bed Of the Cartridge, of a diam.
eter shghtly larger than the calibre Of the. bar.
rel and enlarging very little at the rear to ad-
mt II,I tne cartridge after repeated discharges.
Mhere the chamber unites with the grooves
there Is gradual slope to facilitate the passage
OF the ball, and prevent too sudden a c6mpres.
sion.
The barrel is screwed into a cylinder which
holds together the mechanism of the piece.
Ihe contriVance by which the trigger pushes
forward the needle is too complicated to be de-
talled The cartridge isS of course, peculiar.
Inc illuminate is between the powder and the
oall, so that the needle has to 60 through the
powder. The ball is sphere conical, weighing
four hundred and fifty grains. The charge Of
powder is hfty,sx grains. The weight of the
gun complete is between ten and eleven pounds.
The advantages cf the Brm, besides the great
one Of celerity Of FIRE, are The simplicity Of the
mechanism, which can be taken apart without
any screw-d:iTer, or other implement the safe
ty and ease with which it may be cleansed the .
convenience of loading in a limited space or on
horseback the certain and uniform filing of
the grooves; the reduced charge conseousnt
upon the entire consumption of the powder;
and the disuse of the ramrod. The chief objec-
tion brought against it has been that firing so
raPdly. the soldier would not be apt to aim, and
-Rosfon A1psrfjser