Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1890-12-18
TREMENDOUS aApID FIRING.
A Six Inch Gun Pours Gut Shot After
Shot at Enormous Speed.


Shot at Enormous Speed.
Some important experiments were car
ried out at the artillery range of Sir W.
G. Armstrong, Mitchell & Co. The
principal object of trial was six inch
quick firing gun Of 40 calibers Of length
on mounting of new design, specially
arranged to be suitable for either the
upper decks or the between deck bat
teries of our new cruisers Another
feature of this trial was the use of cord
ite, the new smokeless gunpowder,
which has been the subject Of extensive
trial during the last twelve months and
seems likely to make complete revolu-
ton in artillery warfare. The proof Of
this gun was carried out by the Wool
wich authorities at Silloth, when the
remarkable velocity Of 1900 f. s. was
obtained with a charge Of cordite pow
der.
The programme began by firing five
rounds with charge Of Z x i powder
and service projectile for rapidity. The
total time of firing these five rounds was
sixty-one seconds. The same experiment
was then carried out with charge Of
cordite, but after three rounds the firing
was stopped for few minutes to remove
burr in the threads Of the breech ac-
ton, caused by sand getting into the
gun. The first three rounds of this series
were fired in twenty-four seconds, and
the second two in fifteen seconds. Five
rounds were then fired with Z x E
powder (non-smokeless) and service pro-
jectile at a target which consisted of two
casks lashed together with flag above
them, at 800 yards range.
There being no wind the smoke hung
a great deal, and the firing was there
fore directed by an observer who stood
clear Of the smoke. The FIVE rounds
We're fired in sixty-one seconds, the tar
get being struck twice, the other three
shots just missing.
TO show the advantage of cordite over
the L x e powder five rounds were then
fired with the former at the same target,
the flag and staff Of which still remained
upright, as the tide being low the target
rested on sand. 1t was found quite feas-
ible to fire with the utmost rapidity, and
yet, on account of the snokeless quality
of the powder, to aim each shot deEber-
ately. The result was that out Of the
five shots the target was actually struck
four times (which completely destroyed
the casks and perforated the flag several
tines, and the last shot was only five
yards short; and these five rounds with
the above remarkable accuracy were got
off in the surprisingly short time Of fifty
five seconds.
Five rounds with Z X E were now
fired, changing from one target to an
other, three targets being placed at
ranges 500, 400 and 1900 yards, and
spread out so that the gun had to be
travcrsed through considerable arc Of
training in going from one to the other
The results were as follows: 1, 900 yards,
hit target; 2, 900 yards, hit target; g.,
1,400 yards, fifty yards over; A, 1 400
yards, hit target: 8. 1,s00 yards, hit tar
get, cutting flagstaff.
The total time of these five rounds
was 3 minutes and 43 seconds, but
a few seconds delay was occasioned
by the cap of cartridge case, which
was only temporarily secured for these
experiments. falling off in the gun
during loading, which necessitated re-
loading. Five rounds Of cordite, under
similar conditions to the last series, were
now fred at the 900 and 1 400 yards tar
gets, the 1900 yards one being no longer
visible. The results were as follows:
/, 600 yards, hit target; 2, 900 yards, hit
target, cutting flagstaff; 8, 1,4OO yards,
ten yards over; A. ], 400 yards, five yards
over; 5, 1,4O0 yards, twenty yards over
The total time for these five rounds was
minute 81 seconds.
The gun was then fred with degs.,
10 degs., - degs., Is degs. and 90 degs
elevation, with charges of E x E and
cordite, to test the mounting, and except
for little difficulty in running out when
at 90 degs. elevation everything went
erfectly.-LondoA Times.