Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1882-10-04
Killing In " ar.

naval warfare between iawfui and un-
lawful methods, similar to those con-
spicuou. on land. Such proiectiles as
bits OF iron ore. pointed stones. nails,
or glass, are excluded from the list of
things that may be used in good war,
and the declaration of st. Petersburg
condemns explosive bullets as much OH
one element as on the other Unfounded
charges by one belligerent against
another are, however, always liable to.
bring the illicit method into actual u,e
on both sides under the pretext Of re-
prisals, as We see in the following order
of the day, issued at Brest by the French
Nice-Admiral, Marshal Contlans (Noy.
g, 1759):-lt is absolutely contrary to
the law of nations to make bad war,
and to shoot shells at the enemy, who
must always be fought accorl ling to the
rules OF honor, with the arms generally
employed by polite nations. Yet some
captains have complained that the
English have used such weapons against
them. 1t is, Therefore, only on these
complaints, and with an extreme re-
luctance, that it has been resolved to
embark hollow shells on vessels of the
line, but it is expressly forbidden to
use them unless the enemy begin" So
the English in their turn charged the
French with making bad war. The
wound received by Nelson at Aboukir,
ON the forehead, was attributed to a
piece of iron or a langrldge shot. And
the wounds that the crew OF the Bruins
wick received from the Vengeur in the
famous battle between the French and
English fleets III June, 1894, are said
to have been peculiarly distressing
owing to the French employing lang
ridge shot of raw ore and old nails, and
to their throwing stinkpots into the
portfolios. which caused most painful
burnings and scaldings. 1t is safest to
discredit such accusations altogether,
for there is 10 limit to the barbarlties
that may come into play in consequence
of too ready credulity. Red-hot shot,
Legitimate for the defense OF land forts
against ships, used not to be considered
good war in the contests of ships with
one another. In the three hours ac-
tions between the Lively and the Tour
Iterelle, French privateer, the use by
the latter of ho.-shot, mot usually
deemed honorable warfare" was con-
sidered to be wrong, but a wrong on
the part of those who equipped her fol
sea more than On the part of the Cap,
tain who fred them. The English
assaiiing batteries that fired red-hot
shot against Gluckstadt, IN 1913, are
said to have resorted to "a mode Of war
fare very unusual with us since the
siege of Gibraltar" The Treatise on
Tactics, by the Emperor Leo VI, car
ries back the record of the mems EN-
ployed against an enemy In naval war
fare to the nlRth century. The thing:
The recommends stS I4Oot
Cranes, to let fall heavy weights on The
, enemy's decks; caltrops, with lrol
r spikes, to wound his feet; jars full o
, quicklime, to suffocate him; Jars con
: tanning combustii'les, to burn him; jar
containing poisonous reptiles, to bite
him: and Greek fire. with Its noise llk'
7 thunder 70 frighten as well as burn hlh
, MANY of these methods were of ion
1 memorial usage, for Seipio knew th'
e merits of jars full of pitch, and Hanni
bal of lars full of vipers. Nothing wa
: too bad for use In those days, nor cal
:, IT be ascertalnel when or why the.
: ceased 10 be used, Greek tire was use'
= with great effect in the sea battle
!, between the Saracens and Christians
: but if is a fair cause Of wonder that tn
/ invention of gunpowder should have s.
d entirely superseded 1t as to cause IL
!, yery manufacture to have been forgot
ten. Neither does history record tn
e date of, nor the reason for, the dlstis
of ouicklime, which. in the famou
u fight of Dover III 1217, between TN
s French and English, contributed
a greatly to the victory OF the latter
I