Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1890-01-02
SOME MODERN GUNS.
They Have Reached Enormous Sizes b.
Rapidly of Fire is the Rage.

Rapidity of Fire is the Rage.
The recent completion of a 135-ton gun
at Essen for the Russians and its shipment
from Hamburg to Cronstadt. says the New
York Sun. after a successful test at the
Meppen range, has marked another stage
In the making of monster ordnance. The
largest Krupp gun previously made was
One of about 1l9 tons, throwing proiectiles
of 23l4 pounds. Italy has two of these
mounted IN a shore battery; and it is for
the coast defence also that Russia intends
to use the new gun obtained from Krupp.
1t has been said that the next step in ad-
vance undertaken by the Essen works will
be the making of a 150-tun gun, which will
throw a projectile weighing 5000 pounds.
Hardly less interesting than these cali
bres are the more familiar 110-ton guns
Of the Elswlck works, In as much as they
are used for the bate ries of British ships,
as, for example, on the Benbow. This gun
IS forty-four feet long, or abouttw feet less
than l19-ton krupp, and its calibre is
sixteen and a half inches. The diameter of
the powder chamber is twenty-one inches.
and the maximum charge is $50 pounds, to
be used with a prejectile weighing 1900
pounds. With the extreme powder charge,
a muzzie energy of 50, 700 foot tons is ex-
pected. These figures show a great change
from thirty years ago, when the largest
cannon mounted on a war vessel threw a
shot weighing only sixty-eight-pounds, and
possessing an ergery of only 1lO0-foot
tons.
Still there are not lacking complaints
against the 110-ton guns. Those which
have been built for the Victoria and Sans
pareil are said to have developed serious
defects, two out of the four already de-
livered having failed on the test, and one
seriously collapsed. A gun of this size
costs over 800, 900, so that the loss is seri-
Gus in case of failure. Yet this is a mat
ter that does not concern the Government
where private works, like those of Elswick
& Essen, supply the guns. The makers
have to stand the loss if the gun does not
come up to the contract requirements.
There is apt to be much exaggeration In
the reports of the shortcomings of heavy
guns. Krupp has made four 119-ton guns
for Italy, and the Elswick works have
made many 110-ton guns for the Duillio,
Dandalo, Italia and Lepanto, besides the
lotion guns for the Andrea Dosia, Fran
cisco LAURA and the Morosini. The French
have also many very heavy guns, although
none of quite as great weight as the Krupp
and Armstrong;.
But the attention of artillerists is for the
moment less absorbed In adding more
metal and getting larger calibres than in
the new system 0fsmaller ordnance, which
depends on a great increase in the rapid
ity of fire. This last object, as sought for
from slngle-shOt guns, in which rapidity
of manipulation allows something of the
effect of the revolving cannon. was first
sought for about eight years ago, but it is
only since 1885 that the present remark
able results have been achieved. The Arm
strong qu1ck-fre guns, as used upon the
the cruiser Piemonte, have become famous
the world over; and in addition to the
other European system, Like the Norden-
feldt, Krupp and Gruson, the American
Hotchkiss, Driggs-Schroder and Maxim
inventions have achieved great success.
The advantages of the rapid-ire gun was
set forth by Sir w. Armstrong, in saying
that ''the Piemonte is capable of discharg-
ing against an adversary In a given time
twice the weight of shot and shell that
could be fred by the largest vessel now
afoat, not including the Leviathan battle
ships of five or six times her size" That
this is not an ex~aggeration will be seen
when it is stated that the quick-fring
calibres have been developed from the lit
tie 3-pounders to 6 inch guns, or, in other
words. the calibres forming the armament
of our new ships, Philadelphia, San Fran
cisco and Newark; and they can be
fired six times as fast as ordinary guns of
the same calibres. Five of our new ships,
the 1000 and 5000 ton cruisers, will be en-
tirely armed in their main batteries with
these rapid-fre guns; and probably the
same will be true of the new 1000-ton yes
sells. This fact alone shows the extent to
which the rapid-fre guns have become the
rage, quite eclipsing the interests felt in
the size ofenormous ordnance.