The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1876-11-02
Great Britain's Big Gun.
london DniIy News. j

Great Britains Big Gun.
London Daily Newsl
SHoEBURYNFss, September u. Guns,
great and small, are fired every dav over
the sands from this solitary and remote
corner of Essex. and the inhabitants Of
this little town and garrison are 50 accus-
toned to loud and sudden noises rs
scarcely to notice sounds which would
torture the unframed ear; but to-day has
been a day Of dread and its population
to the last man, woman and child has
been all day in a state Of nervous excite
ment and apprehension as to the possibil-
tiles attending the discharge Of such an
unWOnted monster as the eighty
gun. with its SO pounds OF powder and
its three quarters OF ton shot. There
was really some ground for this alarm,
because the gun does not stand with the
rest OF the guns of this school Of gunnery,
but is placed on the breach close to the
barracks and its contiguous thorough
fares, and barely fifty yards in front Of Il
rather extensive block of soldiers cot
tages, and no one could say what effect
the conclusion might have upon adjacent
buildings, while some OF the more timid
DtStiH W SpCtUltilc tNtu blI luC COHllH-
gency of the gun bursting and scattering
its fragments like hail upon the devoted
colony. The breaking OF windows aud
crockery had been 4 ioregonc conclusion,
and yesterday 4 sergcants party went
! around proclaiming, with the sound of
the trumpet, at the street corners, that
| from ten o'clock till five o'clock to-duy
to morrow and on Friday people who
were wise would leave their windows
and doors open, as some sort of precau-
tion against the expected disturbance of
the atmosphere by violent explosions.
! The inhabitants We're given to under
stand likewise, that if, notwithstanding
| their caution and care, damage should be
done. it would be made good out of the
| public funds. but these warnings and
promises did not tend to allay the popu-
| lar disquiet and apprehension 1t Ger
! tainly appeared rs if all the inhabitants
/ were ont of doors Some of the shop
i keepers, as an extra precautiun. shut mp
their shops entirely, a"d every body
seemed to he drawn TO the spot where
the terrible giant lay.
| The trials We're to have been begun at
| ~ O'Clock. but it was two hOulS lat A. be
! fore the order was given to make ready.
The loading apparatus worked admirably
under the control OF about dozen artil-
| lCrs men, and the time required to run
the shot and cartridge down. from the
magazine. and ram both home down tht
muzzle Of the gun was barely five min
utcs. The loading carriage and derrick
were then drawn under the chase. or bar
rel of the gun, the fire buffers Of the gun
-, r.,
gain more space, the electric tube was in
| serted. and the bugle sounded to prepare
! for action The extremely cautious be-
took themselves to safe distances, every
one gave the gun Il wide berth. and most
OF The spectators gazed out Seaward, in
the hope OF catching sight of the wonder
tul proiectle in lis tlight The gun,
through an alteration in the programme,
was laid at an angle of seven degrees, by
which the muzhle was to some extent
elevated and about 5000 yards away u
range party, consisting Of half Il dozen
gunners IN wagon and two mounted
Sergeants in charge, We're posted TO keep
observations, and signal by flag to the
firing point.
There was no target to take aim at, but
4 straight range had been pegged out for
about four miles, nnH the trampng of
horselnen had made the path Of the shot
very legible for some distance The bll-
Gle sounded the order to ''lire, am officer
in the instrument room touched a stud.
the crash came. and then the |, ,1OO-pound
shot was clearly seen cleaving its way
through the air to al altitude of appar
emily several hundred yards, then de
scending and diminishing until lost to
view, until, alter what seemed Il long in
terval, it struck the earth, throwing up Il
volcano of mud and water, and. bounding
on again, to fall and bury itself with an
other splash far beyond. twas atterward
reported that this shot made its first con
tact at q distance of 1867 yards, and that
the ricochet carried it about as far again
The next consideration was the gun, and
how had the carriage withstood the unac
customed strain consequent on the higher
elevation.
Both gun and carriage were in perfect
condition; and then came question as
to what had been the consequences OF the
atmospheric disturbances An officer went
round to take an inventory OF the dam
ages, and the soldiers wives came about
him with dismal records OF broken Win
dows and shattered ceilings. Most of the
cottages along the sea front had one or
two broken panes of glass, several had
their rooms Uttered with plaster from the
walls and ceilings, and one or two had
their window saShes blown completely
out, but the most remarkable effects We're
manifested at a greater distance. The
plate-g glass window of Mr.. Cause grocer,
opposite Mr.. krkwoods canteen, fully
five hundred yards from the gun, was ut
terly destroyed, and the glass, a quarter
OF an inch thick, scattered about the road
A barrack gate was burst open and its
lock broken, several sashes had vanished,
and there were broken windows in every
street Each subsequent round added
something to the damage, but the great
est mischief was necessarily done at the
first discharge.
-Four other rounds were fired ut the
same elevation, namely. seven degrees,
and each shot fell within 4 few feet Of
the same distance. two appearing to bury
themselves at once, and the other two
bounding after number one into the Ger
man Ocean. The gun was then depressed
to an angle of only one degree. and two
shots were sent skimming over the water
making "ducks and drakes' several times
before they disappeared. The second was
observed splashing up foam at distance
of IL, 800 yards, or nearly seven miles
from the shore, and as the twist in the
projectile gave it Il constant tendency to
the right, it seemed to get unpleasantly
near to some shadowy-looking steamers
in the hazy distance.
Rnt one false step, but one wrong habit, one