The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1885-04-22
NATIONAL DEFENSE.
A Description of the New
Rified Cannon.
The Kings Guard-DIscipIine. Ac.
cOufrements. Etc.

| guns that were on the ESplanade one day
last week are very handsome pieces, Of the
latest pattern adopted by the Austrian Gov
eminent. When His Majesty Kalakaua was
making his tour around the world in 1881,
he visited a number Of the military arsenals
of Europe, and was particularly struck with
! the lightness and efficiency of the rifed
| breech-loaders in use in the Aus trian army.
AS a special favor extended to no other Gov
eminent, the Austrian Government allowed
| His Majesty to purchase battery of these
! guns, consisting of six pieces, as we'll as a
mountain battery Of four piecesyy
| The large guns are about six feet in
| length, and carry a shot four inches in
diameter. They, as we'll as the guns Of
! the noun tain battery, are breech-loaders,
! the mechanism being very simple and efec-
| tive. rectangular brass block is fitted so
as to slide in a recess formed across the
| breech of the gun, and when closed is Sc
curely locked by turn of a heavy screw
in the block. When the gunner turns the
| lever around and draws back this block one
can look entirely through the piece. The
| space occupied by the shot or shell and its
cartridge is unrihed and very slightly larger
! in diameter than the bore of the piece. The
bore itself is rifed with numerous narrow
raised ''lands,' as they are called, making
about half turn in the length Of the bore
The bore of the chamber in which the cart
ridge is placed is pushed by ring of a pecu-
liar metal 1.-THE composition of which is
secret with the inventory, imbedded in the
brass of the piece, so as to leave a shallow
groove next the sliding block. In this
groove is fitted another ring of the same
metal, which is movable. The face of the
sliding block next the chamber is also fitted
with a disc of the same metal, which pos
sesses the property of expanding very quick
ly and to considerable extent when heated
and shrinking again quite as quickly as
1t cOols. The result is that when the
charge is fired, the rings of metal expand in
stantly, and form an effectuaI gas check
The thin, movable ring is easily replaced
when worn out after repeated firings, and
store of them goes with the battery.
The gun carriages are models of strength
and lightness, they, as well the cassion
or chest, mounted on pair of wheels for
carrying a supply of ammunition, being of
iron, and so light that when the gun is
''limbered up or attached to the cassion,
the whole four-wheeled arrangement is
easily hauled by the five gunners attached
to each piece, from the saluting battery on
the EspluaAGc to the royal barracks. As
for the noun ain battery, the little pieces
can be handled in firing by one man or
taken apart and carried on the backs of
horses, camels or mules.
The cartridges used with these guns are
made of paper that is very tough and re-
sists water for long time, and still the
material is totally consumed when the
powder it contains is exploded, and so all
danger from a premature explosion being
brought about by bits of burning wad is
done away with. The shells are of two
kinds, single and double walled" They
are exploded by a most ingenious fuse ar
ranged to ignite the bursting charge at any
given moment up to five seconds, or, in case
the missile meets with any obstruction be-
fore the time fuse is burnt down, Il percus-
sion arrangement comes into play aud fires
the charge. The ''single wall" shells are
merely hollow cylinders, rounded eff on one
end into q cone shape, and the charge they
contain is only heavy enough to shatter
them into a number of pieces. In the
double WALL there are series of rings that
resemble somewhat the rim of 4 small cog
wheel, from which the spokes have been
knocked off. These rings fit the inside of
the walls of the shell and are piled on top
of each other, leaving an annular space in
the center which is filled with sufficient
powder to burst the rings, as we'll as the
she'll into a number of cubes, each of which
has rough corners, calculated to inflict
frightful wounds. There are other shells
filled with lead balls about half an inch in
diameter, ninety of these being packed in
each shell. They are exploded in the same
nIehner as those previously described.
The guns are fl tilted with elaborate sights,
and so finely are they bored, and so accu-
rately riled, that they have all the precision
of rife fired from the shoulder 1t may
be mentioned here that the shells used are
fitted with rings of copper which are caught
in the rifing of the guns, and compel the
shells to take the rotary motion that insures
their keeping a straight course after leaving
the gun. The guns of the battery sighted
up to 5000 yards, which equals about three
miles, and at that distance they are very
accurate.
Visiting the barracks in which these guns
are kept, and where the Kings Guards live,
our reporter was much pleased with the
cleanliness and order displayed. The
whole interior is kept thoroughly white
washed and the walls are ornamented
with trophies of old arms, alternating with
flags and coats Of arms neatly stenciIled. In
the guard room the detachment Of soldiers
on duty were amusing themselves in a
variety of ways. their arms, which we're
standing in racks near a hand, looking very
bright and well cared for. In the Office of
the commanding officer, Brigade Major
Hayley, to whose courtesy we owe the ma
terial for this sketch, were the rosters Of the
guard and other books and papers connected
with the daily routine Of duty. The report
and detail sheet is particularly well ar
ranged, as by reference to it the name and
number of any one of the guard on duty al
any particular post at any time, day or
night, can be ascertained. This has been
found very useful as enabling the proper
man to be called to account for any neglect