The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1889-04-13


destroy these submerged enemies by
means Of dynamite or torpedoes; fol
with two vessels in close proximity, the
explosion of torpedo would be as dan.
gerous to tho hull of one as to the other.
The British admiralty would not allow
even the, Adamant to explode torpedoes
or dynamite bombs under her own stern.
With regard to repeller, or spring
armored vessel, the Adamant would rely
upon her exceptionally powerful arma-
ment and upon her great weight and
speed. She was fitted with twin screws
and engines of the highest power, and
it was believed that she would be able to
overhaul, ram and crush the largest
vessel, armored or unarmored, which
the syndicate would be able to bring
against her. Some OF her guns were of
immense caliber, firing shot weighing
nearly 1900, pounds and requiring half
ton Of powder for each charge. Be-
sides these she carried an unusually
large number of large cannon and two
dynamite guns. She was SO heavily
plated and armored as to DO proof
against any known artillery in the
world.
She was floating fortress, with men
enough to make up the population of a
town, and with stores, ammunition and
coal sufficient to last for long term of
active service. Such was the mighty
English battle ship which had come for
ward to raise the siege of the Canadian
port.
The officers of the syndicate were well
aware of the character of the Adamant,
her armament and her defenses, and had
been informed by cable of her time of
sailing and probable destination. They
sent out Repeller No. Z, with Crabs j
and X, to meet her off the Banks of
Newfoundland.
This repeller was the largest and
strongest vessel that the syndicate had
ready for service. In addition TO the
spring armor with which these vessels
were supplied, this one was furnished
with a second coat of armor outside the
first, the elastic steel ribs of which ran
longitudinally and at right angles to
those of the inner set. Both coats were
furnished with great number of i'm
proved air buffers, and the arrangement
Of spring armor extended five or six feet
beyond the massive steel plates with
which the vessel was originally armored.
She carried one motor cannon of large
size
One of the crabs was of the ordinary
pattern, but Crab X was furnished with
a spring armor above the heavy plates
of her roof. This had been placed upon
her after the news had been received by
the syndicate that the Adamant would
carry perpendicular cannon over her
stern, but there had not been time
enough to fit out another crab in the
same way.
When the director in charge of repeller
No. z first caught sight of the Adamant,
and scanned through his glass the vast
proportions of the mighty ship which
was rapidly steaming toward the coast,
he felt that u responsibility rested upon
him heavier than any which had yet
been borne by an officer of the syndicate,
but he did not hesitate in the duty which
he had been sent to perform, and imme-
diately ordered the two crabs to advance
to meet the Adamant, and to proceed to
action according to the instructions
which they had previously received.
His own ship was kept, in pursuance of
orders, several miles distant from the
British ship.
As soon as the repeller had been
sighted from the Adamant strict look
out had been kept for the approach of
crabs, and when the small exposed por-
tons of the backs of two of these were
perceived glistening in the sunlight the
speed of the great ship was slackened.
The ability of the syndicate's submerged
vessels to move suddenly and quickly in
any direction had been clearly demon
strated, and although great ironclad
with ram could run down and sink a
crab without feeling tho conclusion, it
was known that it would be perfectly
easy for the smaller craft to keep out of
the way of its bulky antagonist. There
fore the Adamant did try to ram the
crabs, nor to get away from them. Her
commander intended, if possible, to run
down one or both of them, but he did
not propose to do this in the usual way.
AS the crabs approached, the stern
jacket of the Adamant was let down and
the engines were slowed. This stern
jacket, when protecting the rudder and
propellers, looked very much like the
cow catcher of a locomotive, and was ca
pable of being put to somewhat similar
use. 1t was the intention of the captain
of the Adamant, should the crabs at
tempt to attach themselves to his stern,
to suddenly put on all steam, reverse his
engines and back upon them, the stern
jacket answering as q ram.
The commander of the Adamant had
no doubt that in this way he could run
into crab, roll it over in the water, and
when it was lying bottom upward, like
q floating cask, he could move his ship
to distance and make a target of it. So
DESTROYS was this brave and somewhat
facetious captain to try his new plan
upon crab that he forebore to fire upon
the two vessels of that class which were
aDDrOachinv him Some of his pllns were