Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1885-01-15
MAXIM'S NEW MACHINE GUN.
Hts Automatic ActfOn, Power of8ega-
IatiOns and Rapidly OF Fire

The mitraiIleus6 Or machine gun,
as hitherto constructed, is q weapon
in which all the functions of loading,
cooking, firing, and extracting the
empty shell from the gun are per-
formed by turning crank Or work
ing a lever. The first successful gun
Of this kind was the invention of DR..
Gating, an American. TAis gun was
brought out during the war of the
American rebellion, and before metal
lie cartridges, which are so essential
to the success Of a machine gun, had
reached their present degree of per-
fection. DR.. Gatling did not sucseed
IN getting his gun used to any extent
IN the great American war. The first
machine gun which ever saw service
In the field was the French mitraiI-
leuse. This gun was large, abstrd,
and clumsy, and so heavy that it re-
quired to be drawn by horses; it would
fire but $50 shots per minute. It did
not comprise the necessary element,
OF success, and consequently failed.
The next machine guns to make
their appearance were the Hotchkiss,
the Lowell, the Nordenfelt, and the
Gardner. All of there except the
Nordenfdlt were operated by hand
crank, the Nordenfelt alone being
actuated by reciprecating lever. All
OF these guns nust necessarily be
mounted upon a frm base, ard be
trained and elevated by screws and
worm gears. If they were made to
work freely upon pivot or universal
joint, they would not be firm enough
to remain stationary while the crank
or handle was being operated. The
safe speed at which a machine gun
can be fred depends in a great meas
ure upon the kind and age of cart
ridges used. For Instance, if cart
ridges have been made some time a
trlf1ing amount of moisture NAV have
accumulated IN the powder near the
primer. When this danpness occurs,
the cartridges are said to hang fire
that is, they do not explode at the
Instant Of being struck. Suppose that
one cartridge in d thousand should
hang fire, it would be necessary to
operate the gun sufficiently slowly OF
the entire series to give this slow
cartridge time to explode, otherwise
1t might be drawn frons the barrel be-
fore it exploded, or in the act of ex-
plodlng, in either of which case it
would disable the gun. To this may
be attributed a great deal of the
trouble in operating mackine guns,
and their liability to get out of order
when most needed.
In the gun, which is the invention
OF Mr.. Hiram S. Maxim, OF London,
slow cartridges do not offer an obstacle
to the rapid firing of those which will
explode quickly, from the fact that no
cartridge can be drawn from the gun
until 1t has exploded, as it requires
the force of It's own explosion to un-
lock the block from the barrel and
extract the empty she'll In Mr..
Maxim's new gun there is but oEe
barrel, and all the functions Of load
ing, cooking. firing, Withdrawing the
empty shell from the barrel, and eject
ing it, are performed by the recoil
resulting from the explosion. This
gun may be ikened to a small engine,
the barrel, under the influence of the
recoil, acting as the piston, the block
as the cross head, and the scar and
trigger as the valve gear. The cart
ridges, to the number of 333, are
placed side by side ia a canvass belt,