Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1868-12-09
The Artillery Trials at Fortress Monroe
Letter from Gem barnard


To the Editor of the New York Times:
There were three targets. First, fac
simils of the Totten casemate, designed
by the eminent military engineer whose
name it bears, after elaborate and pro-
longed experiments, and a type of the
most perfect construction, for its date, in
the world. Unfortunately, that date just
preceded the great revolution in artillery
and naval construction. 1t is an easy
solution of the problems which this revo-
luton has propounded to denouncs
"granite." As there are now existing
many important works built on this plan,
it is at least fair matter for experiment
to ascertain just what degree of modern
artillery fire they will endure, and whether
they can be made, by any modification,
available for the defense of the harbors
they were designed to defend; or, if not,
to see the ocular proof exhibited. We
know, indeed, that Fort Sumter not even
granite work-only brick), with its old
armament of small ordnance, had con-
test with monitors" armed with 10
inch guns" and that the advantage GER
tainly was not with the monitors.
Second-An "open embrasure of
earth, strengthened by iron about the
throat, designed as modification of the
"barbette system, and intended for the
protection of gunners and guns firing
over esrthen psrapets.
Third-A gun casemate with an iron
front or shield.
These last two named structures can
alone be considered experimental IN
the proper sense of the term. They
were both designed three years ago, before
a single experiment had been made in
England for harbor forts, if we except
the futile one in 1861 upon the Thorny-
croft bars, for the first experiments In
England on land casemate fronts were
made in November, 1896, with q granite
casemate, and with shield on Chalmer
plan, somewhat modified by the English
engineers; but the accounts thereof did
| not reach US till long after that date. 1t
| is not necessary here to consume space
in explaining why it took so long to get
these constructions authorized, nor why
so much delay occurred after the con-
structions were complete. 1t is enough
to say that, designed and built SO long
anterior to the date of trial, they by no
means represented the knowledge of the
day in this sort of construction. Indeed,
could this delay have been anticipated
considerable changes would have been
made. If any one, therefore, expected
complete "success for the targets, it
was certainly not the designer.
Considering these qualifying facts, the
results were by no means discreditsole.
At the iron portion, the entire area OF
which was only eleven feet by twelve, six
rounds were fred at a distance of one
hundred and fifty yards. Ali these were
made from some of the heaviest guns
known, viz: The l5-iDch smooth-bore
and the l2-inch rife. The first fire was
with reduced charge, the second, third
and fourth with tie maximum charges
the guns could bear, the fifth and sixth
with like charges, only reduced to repre-
sent the longer, but still very close range
OF FIVE hundred yards. Four of these
shots were designedly fred at the weak
est points that could be selected, aud so
great was the accuracy that but one OF
these six shots deviated perceptibly from
the precise spot aimed at
The fifth shot, directed at an unessen-
tial sppendage Of the shield-an isolated
niece Of iron, constituting q sort Of lin
tel over the embrasure-broke it in two,
the shot aud a rortion Of the fragments
entering. 0f the other hve shots, no
one penetrated through the shield Of
fragments thrown of from the iron, but
two or three, detached from the rear sur
faces Of the l2-inch plates Showing that
that thickness, uubscked, IS suincientl
we're dangerous, and these would have
been stopped BY skin. Indeed, on re-
moving the board-screen after the fourth
shot to take g photograph, there was bat
one single mark Of flying fragments
upsn II, and that high overhead.
As TO the guns used. yoa need no in
formation concerning the l5-inch. The
l2inch rife, with seventy pounds Of
F, rovisr and an expandinE projeeii!e, is