Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1889-03-08

practicability OF the plan and the ap-
paratus necessary is now ready. This ia
no insane theory. 1t is a revolution!
1t is just what this country has been look
ing for.
Consider its defense of New York snd
Brooklyn. An enemy's irou-ciad fleet ar
rIves off Sandy Hook. As long as they
can be kept outside the Hook t%ere will
be little DANGER, and people may go about
their business as usual, for although
guns have been built that would throw
proiec.iles from Sandy Hook to Brook
Ign the gun carriages on board ship do
not admit of 4 sufficient elevation OF the
guns to attain that range. The enemy
must come inside, up near the narrous at
least, to bring their guns to bear effect
lively. Their vessels-nearly ali foreign
iron clsds-draw between twenty five an
thirty feet of water. They must man
euvre With caution, therefore, and avoid
all shoal places, entering only through
the main ship channel; the vessels Of
lighter draught through the Swssh chan
mel. Buried in the sand on the Hook and
in underg round passages on she Long
Island shore, the plauts aud machinery
will be established for forcing the Petro-
leum as desired. From each of these
stations system of many pipes viii be
laid, running to different points in the
main chip channel The pipes will be
fitted with valves, which will be closed by
the water pressure, but opened by the
hydraulic power I Led to force the pstro-
leum from the reservoirs. Some of the
pipes may even be brought to the sur
| face in shoal water, aud being pointed
ward the channel, the petroleum may be
fired In stream from considerable
distance and fall in the track of vessels
at different points.
The enemy decided TO enter ard form
in column, one vessel ahead OF the other,
to steam through the narrow channels.
| They can only come IN at high water, or
at the beginning of the ebb. AS The lead
ing vessel approaches the entrancs to the
channel heavy charges of petroleum are
fired through the nearest pipes and, ris-
ing to the surface, spread over wide
area. At the same time the dynamite
| guns, placed in the proper positions,
tnrow u namber of burning and inextin-
| guishable buoys, which fall in the chan
! mel and set fire to the petroleum. These
| buo. 3, being light, mag be thrown
great distance from guns hidden from
view, sunk in emplacement on shore.
| Capt Zalinski has proposed to throw such
| buoys TO light up the water that guns on
| shore may be trained on sessels attempt
| ing TO enter harbOrs at night. L he buoy
scheme is perfectly feasible, ara may be
| utilized to ignite the petroleum. The
fire spreads rapidly, but the leading yes
| sci dashes ahead, nothing daunte6, think
| ing to pass beyond the limits of the fire,
followed by the ships in the rear. Bat as
they proceed charge after charge of pc
troIeum will be forced through the pipes
successfully as they are approached and
the flaming buoys will continue to fall
| The oil, spreading all over the surface of
the water but thickens in the channel,
soon becomes lake of fire envelo ping
the ships.
An iron ship may not burn, though it
| will make good furnace. But the
| emoke-that must not be forgottenl 1t is
| well known that smoke will be impor-
| tant element in future naval battles
Vessels of great speed will race each
other, friend sinking friend. The smoke
from the burning petroleum will envelop
the enemy in heavy clouds, making it i'm
| possible for them to see each other or the
shore. The hsrbor bouys will all be
! removed in time of war, and the officers,
| BOT being able to see the landmarks, can
not get their bearings to steer by. They
may attempt to steer by compass, but
that will not save them in narrow chan
mel. What will they do? They cannot
turn in the narrow channel! Signals can
not be seen. If one ship stops the one
astern runs her down. They cannot get
| out again as they came in The utmost
conf ssion-a panic will be the result.
Some ships will get aground while groping
about in the smoke aud flames. Worse
still, some of the surface pipes will fire
| the petroleum high into the air, landing
| it on the decks aud against the sides of
the armornlads. They will not burn Of
course, but the petroleum will. II will be
ignited by the fire on the surface of the
water, and the flames will creep up the
sides, setting fire to the boats and all ex-
posed woodwork. The flames running up
the side may reach the ports and the guns.
The gunners can see nothing. They
cannot ain their gum, surrounded by
| cloud of dense black smoke. The sitting
| fumes of fierceess burning petroleum
| viii render the crews helpless, II it does
not suffocate them. And while the
enemy's ships are thus inc x plicably mix
| ed up, bewlldered and aground, other
means of attack may be used to complete
their destruction. The dynamite gun
mounted ashore on a fixed platform is
| aHkno wledged to be won ierfuIl accurate,
and at 4 known range she'll after shell
may be thrown among the enemy's fleet.
| Small, fast vessels, with their bow
strengthened for ramming, may dash out
| from inside the Narrows, and when their
crews protected from the smoke may rash
upon the helpless enemy who cannot use
their guns to keep them off, and thus
sink his ships. fleet il this position,
while it can see nothing, can itsstf be
seen from the shore and thus be target
for ali guns and torpedo boats. A few
| vessels of the Vesuvius type, however
| vulnerable to shot, would be of great ser
vice when the enemy, shut up by the
smoke, could not train his guns on them.
| Dynamite fire, and smoke com tined
would leave nothing of the proud iron
clad feet of the enemy. They may come
to these shores prepared to fig ht the usual
| weapons-guns and torpedoes-but they
will not be ready, like Casters cavalry, to
'charge through He'll and back again"
| Similar defeuses could be placed in
| Long Island Sound at different points to
| defend that approach to New York. To
| defend Baltimore and Norfolk, plants
| should be established at Cape Henry, st
the mouth of Chesapeake Bay, and be
tween FIT. Monroe and the Rip Raps.
| oGu6T utiSusts DdltluOEt. WneTS
water shoals in the Chesapeake, would
serve as al inner line.
Philadelphia, New Orleans and Wash
ington would be perfectly safe. The
Potomac, the Mississippi and the Della
ware could be converted into rivers of
fire fot miles.
Nearly all the ports of the United
States have outlying islands with narrow
passages between them, where the petro-
leum defense would be effective, support
ed by dynamite guns-take Boston for
example.
Many people will say this scheme is
wild and imagip stive one, but it Is not. 1t
is practicable and it will be so demon
strated. As the Monitor swamped all
ideas of naval architecture in 1862 so the
petroleum plan will revoluiio-ize harbor
defenses of today. The United States is
self Supporting, it needs nothing from
abroad. 1t may close its ports or per
nit them to be blockaded indefinitely
with but little harm, white q few fast
cruisers roaming the sea may play havoc
with the enemy's commerce. 1t is only
necessary to keep iroD-cisds away frou
the cities that they csunot be bombsrded,
snd the United States may not fear wGr.
The magnificent naval ornaments of
Europe can excite no terror in this couu-
try when they must pass through sea of
fire to get st rs. Once more the Ameri