The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1889-10-18
sMoKELess POWDERS.
Rapidly Coming Into Use Both for Small
Arms and Artillery.

hAptuiy CominE lntp Use bOtu TOT smhh
Arms and Artillery.
While the tremendous charges of great
bodies Of cavalry undoubtedly formed a
leading feature of the late German ma
neuvers, suggesting how much is expect
Cd Of mounted troops In the future, yet
upon the whole the most important re-
suit effected was the demonstration of
the great effectiveness Of the 80 called
smokeless and noiseless powder. 1t is
not too much to say that the final ma
neuvers at Hanover, in which the Tenth
corps, using smokeless cartridges, de-
feated the Seventh corps, provided with
the new compound is necessity for
warfare hereafter. 1t was found that
the Tenth corps almost held the Seventh
at its mercy, since it could maneuver
alike in front and on the flank Of its op-
ponent without allowing the latter to
properly judge of the firing distances
from sound or smoke, both being so
slight.
To limited extent the action of smoke
less powder has become known through
experiments with the new repeating
arms, and also with artillery. Earlier
In the year, during the maneuvers of the
artillery brigade of the guards in East
pr,,.s;o t,yo roo;menta ono cons;stine,
- aIovar .nd the other ~ e;,bt batter
a., ,,ro,,;oad oil dov Lone Nth ,ha roor-
L. s,,ololeas novder airing nro;ect;Ies of
S;garont ca,;bar II nrodnced at each
shot "a ball of black smoke about three
feet in diameter, which quickly disap-
noy,der left so little refuse in the bore
that instead Of cleaning Il ont after
avery shot Il was only necessary To mass
a zoo tbrouob n now and then
Tn Ita,v recept exneriments with the
s.,ne or eonivalent nowder sboved nrac-
t;caIIv tba came res,,,ts Tho now Cor.
man nowders made by the united Rhine
and Westnbal;an factories are also high.
Iv sat;sfactorv in noint of initial velocity
and moderate nressures.
Tho first general information obtained
In regard To the smokeless powders was
IN Connection with the Iebel rifle. the
new small cal;ber reneatinp arm of the
French which created such AN excite
ment a few wears ago. and practically
dictated reconstruction TO small arms
tbronobout Europe. At that time neither
ths Austrian Mannlicher rifle nor the
C.arp,on raneatar usad snokeless nouda,
II 10 understood of couree that the
,vords usmolelassn and "no;seless" are
uaad IN a comnarative sense as there 10
eome noise and some smoke in nearly all
| theoa noyders II has heen said how
aver that the report of n single Lebel
rife can not be heard at n distance Of
| mora than twentv or thirty wards. that
| n NAV ha aa;d To make M smoke and
| that the recoil Ia of no conseouence what.
ever. The powder is said to be a secret
comnound Of pun cotton and cullodion.
| and its exact CONGESTION Ia perhaps the
only secret now remaining in regard to
the abel rife
The Germans began with the use Of
Tho Dutt;pbofer em;.smokeless nowder
and have also made limitations of the
| French nowder as nearly as n can he
found ont. The Russians have tried a
new nowder made bv the Ocbtenski
factory In Imitation of the Duttinbofer
and ito manufacturers insist that II ia su.
nerior IN the latter in ballistic nronerties.
that Il has a little higher initial velocity
weight for weight with less pressure on
the hore This NAV be the reason yhv
the Russians have come to the use of the
small cal;ber. which conld only have the
required efficiency with one Of the new
comnounds as otherwise the bore would
fonl too ranidIv
The Enplish also have obtained n
smokeless and noiseless powder Invented
nv the well known artillerist. Cant. No
bic, of the Elswick works, at Newcastle
upon-Tyne. A British military authori-
ty saws that its use has almost been de.
cided upon. both for small arms and for
machine and quick firing guns.
1t speaks of the powder as "a curious,
erayish looking material. in long threads
or a whipcordlike form, presumably
from the shape it assumes under hydrau.
lie pressure. Its action is most startling
At 800 Yards range not sound is heard
when a yolley is fired with 1t, and only @
faint haze arises, which is almost imper
ceptible, while shower of bullets is seer
10 fall upon the targets, an effect pro
duced seemingly without cause" Care
full experiments will be made with it a