Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-11-15

Annual Report of the Chief Of the Naval
Bureau of Ordnance.

The report of Commodore NJ. Secard, chief
of the naval bureau of ordnance for the year
ended June 80, 1889, has been given to the
press. He estimates for the ensuing fiscal year
that the department will need s4,545, 724 in
Guiding $4,000 for completing the gun plant
OF the Washington navy yard. The number of
high power steel cannon for the navy CON-
pleted to date is sixty-one ranging from to
10 inches caliber. The standard muzzle We
locity of these guns remains at 1000 foot Sec
onds, but he says they can easily be increased
to 2, 100 foot seconds without undue strain on
the gun. The final twist OF the rifling has
been changed to one turn in rs calibers of the
gun, which scale will be used in all new guns.
The design of an S-inch gun has been length
ened to IS calibers increasing the muzzle We
locity to q 100 foot seconds
GREAT STEEL GUNS FOR THE NEW CRUISERS
The bureau has begun the manufacture OF
four of them for the Baltimore and two for the
Charleston. These guns will be the largest and
most powerful ever made wholly from steel
manufactured in the United States l2-inch
gun OF 80 caliber length has been designed
four of which will be mounted ON the Puritan
and two on the Texas.
Commodore Sicard says the powder furnished
for the and lO-inch guns has not given salts
IdCtlOn; IL Will not uniformly give Z,UUU 1eet
muZZle velocity with a chamber pressure of IL
tons. BY increasing the pressure to 16 or 1917
tons the velocity is easily obtained but the
bureau desires to continue the standard pres
sure OF 10 tons per square inch if practicable.
PRoJECTILEs AND HoTCHKIss GUNS.
The bureau has amended the design for pro-
jectiles by closing the nose of the shell entirely
loading from the base and using base fuse
only. Bids have been advertised for 1900, 600
nf ahal1
projectiles equal to those made abroad, viz.
of a power and strength sufficient to penetrate
targets of one and half caliber thickness with
out material defOrmation may be produced
Those heretofore submitted to the bureau have
not proved satisfactory.
The Hotchkss company has delivered sew.
enty-four OF tile ninety-four guns called for
under its original contract with the depart.
ment together with $4,000 rounds of ammuni
ton. The contract is making satisfactory
progress. An additional order for ten six
FOUNDER and ten threc-pounder guns has been
gwen to the company and one for the same
number of the same-siZed guns to the briggs
ordnance company for Driggs-Schroeder guns
Continued improvement in the mounts for
main and secondary batteries aboard ship is
reported.
During the year the 6-inch ornaments of the
Charleston, Yorktown and Petrol were com.
pleted and sent to the vessels and the arma
ncnt Tor the Baltimore is ready. Tho S-inch
guns for the Charleston and Baltimore will be
ready within the current year. The arma-
mcnts for the Philadelphia, Bennington Con
cord and San Francisco will be completed az
soon as the vessels are ready for them. The
bureau has contracted with the American
range finder company for the installation Of
the range finders upon the Chicago and Boston.
THE WASHINGTON NAVY YARD GUN FACTORY.
Work is progressing rapidly upon the gun
factory in Washington navy yard, but it will re.
quire $40, 900 to complete the plant instead OF
@625,000. the sum appropriated. The expendi-
lures. under direction of the bureau for the
year ended June 80, 1889, are given in table
accompanying the report and are as follows
Miscellaneous labor. S127,094; material &c.
S76,29S; labor at navy yards, $685., $685. civil
list at navy yards, S55,397.