The Osceola times., 1884-03-29
TORPEDOES.
Terrible Engines That Crush ironeisus
Like Egg-shells.

Like Egg-shells.
lie Figaro.
The torpedo-boat has the form ri
cachalot, or sperm-whale, but longer. An
iron cachalot. all black. Its back sat
this moment half open. Inside can be
seen its entrails of steel and of brass. Its
machinery is tremendous. The boat
can make twenty-five miles an hour
Everything is sacrificed to speed.
take my place, not without difilcuity'
on its narrow back, where there is bare
" room to sit down.
Meanwhile the officer takes his place
in an iron box in the forepart. AT his
feet sits the helmsman guiding the rud-
der The seven other sailors stow them
selves away as best they can, crouching
down under cover. The cast iron cage
can only protect the officer and his
belmsman against rife-balls. A cannon
shot would crush them like 40 many sar-
dimes in tin-box.
The chimney is very small. The smoke
rises as through the blow-holes OF a
whale. The tail of the boat, however,
does not recall the tail Of eetaceous
monster nor of fish. For the tail OF q
fish is scull Nature does not yet know
that creation of a man-the screw.
This torpedo-boat has an awful mis-
| sion, It is intended to hurl torpe does
against the bottom of an enemy's vessel
And the cachalot-boat seems to cast its
torpedoes from its two nostrils. In fac'
the torpedoes lie in two large tubes plac
ed in the nose of the boat.
The torpedo-boat will approach within
sixty or seventy meters of the hostile
ship. under God-knows how terrible a
cannonade. 1t fires its torpedoes. Th'
torpedo runs under the water and strike
the bottom of the great ship. Then the
huge iron-clad that had cost perhap
twenty-five millions and carries five hun
dred sons of Man and Woman, is rivel
asunder like some vast whale struck Il
the belly by some contemptible sword
fish. But in this case the iron whale goe
to the bottom
As for the torpedo itself, il is the in
vention of the Austrian Whitehead. {?
France, like other nations, has pun
chased the invention. She is havin
these torpedoes constructed at 1ndret.
The use of torpedo-boats is ofgreat in
portance in the protection of all our con
mercal ports. Already Dunkerque ha
bought them, and other pors are negot
ating for them. State aid is expected.
In form the torpedo resemles . cigar
steel cigar six meters long. Moved b
compressed air, il has screw in its tai
and in its belly veritable clockwor
machinery which urges ii through I'll
water as soon as launched, and also eau
, es it to burst the instant it strikes Til
bottom Of the hostile vessel.
| can compress whole volumes of de
criptions into a few lines, because al
sitting as | write, in torpedo boat, wit
two torpedoes before my eyes.
Verify the torpedo seems animate
with the human rage of destruction as
rushes through the waterl
Each torpedo costs the State l0,W
francs 2,000)-certainly no single cal
non shot costs so much.
One remains dazed at hearing the de
criPtion of this prodigious engine
death-as though the thunder ofa heay
piece of ordnance was crushing close
ones ear.
And yet, after a little reflection, II
mind feels quite calm again--and this
the reason why:
Force had begun TO devour the. worl,
On land victory belonged to the heavie
battalion; and on sea 20 the most ponde
Gus masses of iron. And 10, the torpec
suddenly makes Its appearance as Il
defense of the feeble at sea.
The invention of the torpedo has hs
! this unexpected result that Man. wi
, seemed upon the point of being su
pressed by the terrible science ofmodel
, warfare, is magnifcently regenerated !
, that very scIencel
Hereafter the fate of the me st coloss
iron-clad will be in the hands ofany ms
Z possessing the strong soul of soldi
/, and patriot Hencelorth the ccolne
: of one single man will nc worth as mu,
5 a. any three-decked man .of-war.
Man has thus recovered his rights, h
l individuality in war.
, Far the diflicslty attending succes
! full attack with torpedoes is very consi
erable.
While looking through the thick glas
, es which serve as windows to the otii,
: sitting in the iron cabin, ard which I
r semble the eyes of the cachalot, the ,
| ficer must direct the torpedo-boat dire
l Iy against the vessel.....in the midst
r the deaiening roar and binding smol
: of the enemy's cannon.
He must remain as calm--even cal n
/ than-the angler who sits upon son
grassy bank, in the luminous silence