Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1880-01-02
AMERICAN CARTRIDGES.


Russia was smong the first to
make use of the American metallic
cartridges, and she attempted in
vain to initiate them. After vast
ing IL. !. .liiu.,> al cartridges made
a anterior maicrr,l, size wisely con-
cludcd To buy here as other f"reign
nations have since done. Some Of
the American cartridges sent To Rus
sia were subjected 10 the unpareIled
test of a FIVE weeks soaking ~ the
waters of New York harbOr, the
vessel carrying them having sunk
off Staten Island on her way ont.
They were fished up as good as new,
and, triumphantly passing the or
deal of a new test of their firing
quality, went on their way again,
and have no doubt long since added
their quota to the return of casual
ties. For good cartridges Amerl-
can copper is needed, fact which
the Europeans are beginning to
learn. Even so long ago as the days
of the mound-builders, it was dis
covered that our Lake Superior re-
gion produced a copper ore of un-
common purity. Ore of equal purl-
ty is not, it would seem, to be found
elsewhere, and perhaps the process
of annealing is not so we'll under
stood abroad. At all events, the
brass made of the foreign copper,
abounding in the sulphurets. lacks
the necessary strength and ductility,
and for some reason the metallic
cartridges made abroad are liable to
deteriorate in quality. During her
war with Turkey, Russia purchased
large quantities of brass here, one
Connecticut firm alone supplying
two millions of dollars worth of
sheet brass. Other governments
have, no doubt, been purchasers.
Ready-made cartridges have also
been sent abroad in such quantities
that a million has become the unit
of calculation. Three forms of car.
tridges are given in the illustrations
on page 449, one showing the Unit
ed States government cartridge, an.
other the Peabody-Martini cartridge
and the largest the Sharps or Rem
ington special lOng-range cartridge
The government cartridge contains
70 grains of powder and hardened
bullet, composed of one part of I'LL
and sixteen parts of lead, weighing
4O5 grains. The Peabody Mertini
has ST grains Of powder and bull
let of the same composition weigh
ing 4sO grains. The long,range
bullet has one part of tin to four
teen parts lead, and weighs 55C
grains, the charge of powder being
100 grains. The advantages of the
heavier cartridges are are vel
shown in the experiences of the Turk
ish war already referred TO. What
ever else they may lack, the Turks
have certainly shown superior intel
igence in the armament of theil
troops. The English, who use the
same gun, had, on a smaller scale
an experience similar to that of tht
Turks. The rifles used by the rife
brigade in the campaign against the
Afghans were sighted for 1900
yards, and at 2,1OO yards were fOunC
effective. The rifles with which oul
own army is provided are sighted tC
1900 yards, as will be seen from the
cut on page 45O, showing the militia
rY sight. Some of the sights USED
by rifemen in long-range shoot
ing are also shown; the Verniel
sight, and a sight combining spirit
level and wind-gauge. The ordina
ry Vernier will register to the thous
anth of an inch, and Verniers have
been made so as to register the TWEEN
ty thousanth of an inch, these fine
sights being used to regulate the or
binary sights. These very int
sights are not adapted to military
service, in which the rife is sub
iected to a different usage from that
prevailing at Creedmoor, where the
long-range rifeman is able TO give
his weapon all the care that a mu
sician would take of his precious
Stradivarius violin or his Tourtt
bow.
Col. ". C. Church, IN "Ameri
can arms and An1naata1itiO7o;" Serb
raer for January.