The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1868-11-09

with the armament OF, CUR troops and our
forts have steadily refused to perceive that
Captain Moncrief's system was worthy
trial: and during this same interval these
wise engineering and astillery authorities
have actually been eRsnding about t5,-
1000 in the consruction OF forts
which Captain MoRsrief's discovery
had already rendered Eseless, and worse
than useless. Five Ei1iions gone from
official obtusenees and seglect since the in
yention was made-thiasis the measure of
the money value whi1h the invention
would have had in ten Fears only. Unfor-
tunately, this has beens lost through that
system Of soldier-econosay which has been
80 much in favor of late sith the admirers Of
storks-Balfour finance. What the ultimate
saving due to the invention will be is some
thing which battles ealsulation. Not only
does It render unnecessary all the costly ap-
!paratus Of built-up forts, with shields at
.e1 900 per gun, but It makes US absolutely
safer without them; and the structures
which have been absorbing 80 much money
on Portsdown Hill and q score of other
places are not only not required, but are
absolutely mischievous, and must of course
be pulled down with all possible dispatch.
What might not the country save if there
were but grain of intagence and insight
in those who ara allowe4l uecantrol its ex-
Ipenditure Itis ;pleasanter task to con
template the triumph of Captain Moncrlen's s
genius than to dwell further on the dullness
of those who have so long thwarted 1t; SO
we will pass at once to the consideration OF
what it is that the inventor proposed to him
self, and whathe has actually accomplished.
The sole object of oil fortifcations Is to en-
able great guns to be used for the destruc-
ton of an enemy, while the guns themselves,
and those who serve them, are pro-
tected from attack. Two methods nave
long been in usa-one, the oarDette
system the other, the embrasure system.
On the former the gun was n1ounteds so as just
to peer over the top of an lmpenetraoie
parapet; but the defect of 1t was, that
there the guns stools permanently exposed
to the fire of the enemy, and that the gun
ners were equally exposed during the whole
progress Of loading and laying the piece
The accuracy attained with modern arms
had become so great that enflading and
ricochet fire for a comparatively short time
was enough to disable almost any barbette
battery. To make the guns and men O lit
tie safer, the embrasure method was ADOPT
ed. On this plan, it is true, the gun and
gunners were kept below the level OF the
parapet, but to enable the gun to be hred II
was necessary to pierce the parapet IN front
Of. it and if any lateral range had TO be
attained, the opening jaws of the emorasure
were necessarily very wide, and formed
convenient funnel into which hostile force
might pour round shot, shell, grape, and
rife balls, at discretion. Even two or three
good rifiemen in hole opposite SO excellent
target were often found suttlclent TO keep
down the fire of huge piece OF ordnance,
and to infict heavy loss On, those VINO
attempted to work it; and though some
thing was done by movable mantelets 10
screen the men from rifle bullets, there was
no way OF protecting either them or their
run from the incessant pounding OF artll-
lery. The upshot was that any fortress IN
the world was bound to succumb after q
sufficiently persistent attack. Captain Mon
crietf proposed to change all these condl-
tons. and he has done it. If he could only
do away with embrasures, and keep the
eunners always safe behind the parapet,
and the gun Itself equally safe except for
second or SO while it was delivering its fire,
the great end would be achieved. All that
was wanted was some contrivance for lifting
the gun above the parapet at the moment OF
firing, and bringing it down again, just as
rifeman under cover might lit up his rite,
fire over o wall, and then drop down into
position of perfect safety. But a rifle
weighs ten pounds, and q great gun may
weigh ten or twenty tons, or even more ana
the apparently hopeless problem was to han
die this huge mass Of metal with the
same speed and facility as common mus
ket. The desirableness OF some such con-
trivance was Of course obvious to every ar
tillery officer, and indeed to all persons VINO
had devoted a moments thought to the sub
ect. Some speculated on the possibility OF
obtaining the required mobility by means
of hydraulic force, but this idea was soon
abandoned, and the problem given up III
despair. And yet, though they could not
see it, the requisite force was there, IN
separable from the gun, not only running 70
waste, but doing all the mlschle1 1t could
by shaking and tearing platforms to pieces
and worrying the souls of engineers IN
their endeavors to neutralize 1t. Ii they
could only get rid of recoil they could build
platforms on any ground strong enough to
stand forever. Kecon was considered in the
service as the bane Of all constructive en-
gineeripg, and yet all the while it was the
pest friend of the fortihcatlon-maker-the
one thing needed to make his work per-
| feet. 1t never seems to have occurred
| to any one before Captain Moncrlett Tor,
| if. it did, the idea never fructlhed,) that
| the recoil might be made servant,
aud not master; and that, instead OF let
ting it expend its strength on the destruc-
ton of carriages and platforms, 1t might De
| used to do the one thing that was wanted
to lift the gun above the parapet at the mo-
ment of firing, and deposit 1t gently below
in place OF safety the instant after the
shot was delivered. This was the simple
idea of Captain Moncrief's invention, and
the mode of applying it is as simple as the
idea itself. Imagine foWlng- piece hxeo
to the top of the back Of rocking
| and fred. The chair rolls back with the
| recoil, smoothly and evenly, without the
slightest jar; and if caught and stopped
at the lowest position the gun may DC
| loaded and the chair let go, when IL mus'
instantly roll back to recover Its balance
and bring the gun once more to the top
Fire the gun again, and the process re-
peats itself; and SO we have our gun al
ways fred from high position, and In
stantly brought to lower level to De
again prepared for action. This Is the
whole essence of Captain Moncrlett 8 de-
vice. The rocking-chair-the elevator, as
it is called weighs some Six tons, and the
weight is SO distributed that IN the position
Of Equilibrium the gun is at the highest
point. The bottom of the elevator is round,