Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-08-26
Methods Of Destruction lawful and
Unlawful.

From the Gentienan's Magazine.
1t is curious to notice distinctions in naval
warfare between lawful and unlawful methods,
similar to those conspicuous on land Such pro-
jectiles as bits of iron ore, pointed stone. 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 on one element as on the other I'm
founded charges by one beligerent against an
other are. however, always liable to bring the
Illicit method into actual use on beth sides under
the preteXt of reprsals as we see in the follow
I ing order of the day. issued at Brest by the
French vice admiral, Marshal CONTAINS. Novem-
Der 8. 1859:
1T is absolutely contrary to the law of ma
tons to make bad war, and TO shoot shells at
the enemy. who must always be fought accord
ing to the rules of honor. with the arms gen.
orally employed by polite nations. Yet some
captains have complained that the English have
used such weapons against them. 1t is. there
fore, only on these complaints, and with an eX-
treme reluctance. that it has been resolved to
embark hollow shells on vessels of the line. but
1T 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 piece of iron, or a
langridge shot. And the wounds that the
crew of the Brunswick received from the
Vengeur in the famous battle between
the French and English fleets in June 1894 are
said to have been peculiarly distressing.
owing to the French employing langridge
shot of raw ore and old nails, and to their
throwing stinkpots into the portfolios. which
caused most painful burnings and seedlings. 1t
is safest to discredit such accusations alto
gether. for there is no limit to the barbarities
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
action between the Lively and the Tourteree,
a French privateer, the use by the latter of hot
shot, mot usually deemed honorable warfare
was considered to be wrong but wrong on
the part of those who equipped her for sea
more than on the part of the captain who
fired them. The English assang batteries
that fired red-h0t shot against Gluckstadt in
1913, are said to have resorted to "a mode of
warfare very unusual with us since the siege of
Gibraltar" The Treatise on Tactics" by the
Emperor Leo W.. carries back the record of the
means employed against an enemy in naval war
fare in the ninth century. The things he recon-
mends as most effective are: Cranes, to let fall
heavy weights on the encmys decks; caltrops,
with iron spikes. to wound his feet; lars full of
qulckme, to suffocate him. jars containing COM
bustibles, to burn him; jars containing poisonous
reptiles to bite him. and Greek fire. with it's
noise like thunder, to frighten as well as burn
him. Many OF these methods were Of imme-
Hioi ioi 'iSdSC, SCiiO knew JUe Vi Jars
full OF pitch, and Hannibal of jars full of vpers
Nothing was too bad for use in those days nor
can 1t be ascertaned when or why they ceased
to be used. Greek fire was used with great
effect In the sea battles between the Saracens
and Christians, but 1t is fair cause of wonder
that the invention of gunpowder should have
SO entirely superseded it as to cause its very
manufacture to have been forgotten. Neither
does history record the date Of nor the reason
for, the disuse of quicklime, which, in the fa-
Hrlt Dover m lbptwopn
French and English, contributed $50 greatly to
the victory of the latter