New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1873-12-07

to bribe any one within reach for an impOr.
tant secret. 1t il hardly necessary to refer
hero 90 the publicity gi1aa abroad Of the in
ternal fittings of our monitor battery, or to
the minutest details of the workings of the
turrets, the force Of impact shot against
them, after their success was established at
home.
The science Of war has been brought to
such perfection within the last decade tina.
the whole system of military and naval
operations has become almost completely
revolutionized. With the introduction Of
the monitor floating battery and turret ships
for mounting guns ahOat of enormous
caii6re, it was believed that the human
mind had reached its limit of perfection for
at least century to come in providing new
agents OF destruction. 1t was then to be
simply question between belligerents
which could endure the hardest hammering
against their thick, iron-cased sides before
battle on the ocean could be decided. The
prestige of wooden frigates and clumsy.
looking ships of the line had departed for
ever. The old navies of Europe were rem
dered worthless by little Yankee cheese
box" as the first monitor was sneeringIv
called when the latter steamed into Hamp.
ton roads one fine summer morning and de.
feated the ponderous Merrimac. Since then
the nations OF the Old World have rebuilt
and remodeled their fleets to conform to the
new system of marine architecture which
the monitor had developed. They little
dreamed at that time that they would be
so soon superseded by another American
invention, which from all accounts is des-
tined to do away with the necessity of
armed ships, except for police duty.
When the exlgencies of war called for the
employment OF lrOnclad vessels and float
ing batteries propelled by steam, stone
forts for harbOr defense became compare
lively useless. Recent events. however, in
our own war for the preservation of the
Union, seem to have satisfactorily solved
this question. 1t is now admitted BY many
of our best military engineers that perma-
nent works OF masonry have ceased to be
invulnerable to the bombardment of
hostile fleet OF steam irOn-clads. Beyond
serving as temporary place of shelter to
garrison body OF troops, or as lookout
stations to signal the approach of an enc.
my's squadron, they have ceased to become
of any great practical utility. In the event
of war we should certainly have to rely
upon better system for protecting our
harb0rs and seaboard cities from bonn bard
ment than these massive walls of granite
afford.
River and harbor distractions, chain
cables and sunken vessels in the channels
have never met with much favor from those
most competent to judge of such matters.
To limited extent our monitor class OF
vessels, with their heavy eleven and fifteen
inch guns mounted in their tuIrets, would
prove to be useful auxiliaries, but even
these floating batteries could be met by an
equal if not superior force of the same de-
scription of vessels in the possession of
leading naval power The question then
suggests itself what other means
Of defense, in the event of hostilities break.
ing out, would we have to fall back upon!
Rats of burning petroleum and powder
boats, similar to the bomb ketches used by
the gallant Decatur in the war with Tripol,
could easily be avoided by steam vessels of
war, or lowed out of harms way by steam
blown up with a shell or stranded.
Our main dependence then would have
to be in the submerged bomb. A number
Of interesting experiments have been re-
Gently made with tOrpedOes exploded under
water, both in this country and Europe,
followed by the most gratifying results.
1t has been frequently demonstrated that in
the removal OF wrecks of sunken vessels
which impeded free navigation. and in
blasting rocks from dangerous reefs and
shoals below the surface Of the water, no
better substitute could be offered AS an
agent of destruction we have been pretty
we'll convinced of the tremendous power of
these bombs. The loss of the United States
sloop war HousatOnic, which was blown
up by one of them off For5 Sumter before
Charleston was captured by the Union
forces, and the sinking of several OF our
best monitors in Mobile bay and on the
river are fresh in the recollection
Of every one at all conyersant with the his
,Orv of the war.
With all this ayperianpa N nranoro for
future events, it was finally determined by
,ur own government to adopt the torpedo
hereafter for harbor defense, and the engi.
leer corps of the army and the ordnance de-
)artment at Washington have been busily
engaged in perfecting and developing the
ystem proposed until it is now pronounced
~ competent authority to be superior to
hat of any other nation in the world. The
,lan of constructing these dangerous mis-
lies so as to render them water tight and
rec from all damp vapors, numb eripg and
etting them in position, and connecting
hem with electric wires on shore, has been
arefally matured and Systematically car
led out in every important detail originally
greed upon. AT Willett's Point, on Long
sland Sound, large force is employed in
preparing the metallic cases and charging
hem with the most subtle explosive sub
tances known.
The new submarine torpedo boat invented
" Captain Penn Curry, which has attracted /;
o much attention in naval and military
ircles, is a very different vessel from the
urface torpedo boat designed by Admiral |
'orter. 1t is without doubt formidable |
ngine of destruction, and equal to any
mergency, for either sea service or harbor !
efense, that the contingencies of war call |
,r or occasion demands. This nondescript |
an not be classed as vessel of war in |
teral sense. 1t is a floating body, never |
heless, perfectly capable of destroying the |
trongest built ironclad that ever flOated, |
'ithOut inflicting the least injury on those |
lbmerged. 1t is not only seaworthy in the
eaviest weather, but can navigate the
cean either on the surface or underneath, |
the pleasure OF those on board.
By a very simple process this torpedo
OaL is easily made to sink below the sur
zee by letting the water into the tanks by
leans of an injection valve. 1t can be
andled with the greatest ease and facility,
oising itself at any depth and rising again
the surface at the mere pleasure or
lprice of those confined within it's en-
osure. Its success in this respect has been
ell established during the past six years
probably over hundred descents with
1t the least accident. Pleasure parties
insisting of ten and twelve persons at
me have been taken down in Hampton
'ads, the st. James river, and in New
Ork bay repeatedly without experiencing
Re least unpleasant sensation. After NOV
z around for several hours and firing
nail torpedoes for the qualification of
ose on shore, it has reappeared abruptly
,On the surface again, much to the aston
lment of those who have witnessed its
range though graceful evolutions.
Many amusing incidents in connection
th this torpedo boat might be related
nile making its experimental descents off
,rtress Monroe short time ago. The
lored population in the neighborhood of I
e fort. when they saw it sink with all on i
ard, turned out en- masse with dredging {
,chines and oyster tOngs to effect rescue,
E persons in the boat quietly watching l
rough the port lights of the vessel