The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1891-08-13
MAXIM AND CALLING GUNS.
Tools OF Modern Warfare Illustrated In .
New York Clubhouse.


"The Tools Of Modern Warfare"
was the subject of an address by
Hiram Maxim. the inventor OF the
Maxim automatic gun. before the Flee
trio club at its house. is East Iwen-
tieth street. last night. says the n. I.
Sun.
Pointing straight at the door OF the
parlor was a cannon. which peered
through hole in steel shield. Piled
on a table were dozen guns and rifles
of all sorts and descriptions. On the
mantlepiece stood row of little bottles
labeled "gunpowder." nitro gEce-
rine.' and dynamite"
Among the guests was K. ). GatlIng,
the inventor of the famous guns that
bears his name. who took front seat
aud watched Mr.. Maxim with a great
deal of interest. Mr.. Maxim first ex-
planned smokeless powder.
He placed some ordinary gunpowder
on piece Of paper, which he laid on
plate and touched off with a burning
match. With flash it went up in a
cloud of smoke.
That. gentlemen" Mr. Maxim said.
'.is not smokeless powder"
Then he took some of the smokeless
powder and burned it in similar way.
1t did not burn SO quickly nor was
there puff, but the flash was much
brighter.
Mr.. Maxim next described the kinds
of shotguns and rifles that have been
in use for the last two centuries. As he
spoke he took from the table one of
each kind to illustrate his remarks and
showed just how it worked.
The first man who ever made a
machine gum" Mr.. Maxim said. was
Mr.. Calling. He made it too early.
however, for metallic cartridges were
not known at that time. Next came
the French mitrailleuse, which consist
ed of twenty or thirty barrels fastened
together. and all were fired at the same
moment. Then came the Nordenfelt
gun. which was simply modification
of Mr. Gatling's idea. The next ma
chine gun to appear was the Gardiner.
which is operated by a crank. The
fault of this gun is that when the crank
is turned too rapidly the machinery
gets damned, and the cartridges won't
90 off.
THE British soldiers who faced the
Arabs discovered this fault, and brave
Col. Barnaby and all his men lost their
lives because they waited until the
Arabs with their sharp swords were
close upon them, and then they resorted
to this gun, and it failed them. Next
came this gun"
Mr.. Maxim placed his hand on the
brass cannon at his side and looked
proudly around the room. Then he
said:
when / went south many years ago
and fired my first musket the recoil
knocked me down. Ever since | was
boy | had experimental with tools
and wood in making little cannons. and
when fell down Il new idea came to
me. | wondered if | couiG not put
that vigorous recoil to some good use.
When went to London experimental
long while, and this gun is the re-
suit. The principle is simple. The
cartridges are fixed TO long strip of
canvas. which passes right angle
through the gun. | press button. the
trigger is releas ID. aud the first shot is
fired. The recoil of the gun is all spent
in pushing the lock-pece back against
spring and pulling the canvas strip.
SO that another cartridge falls into the
place. As soon as the lock piece
touches the spring it is released again.
Another shot is fired, and the recoil
pushes it back again and so keeps up rs
long rs | hold my finger on the button,
or as long as there is a single cartridge
in the strip. OF course there are many
details of mechanism, but that is the
principle of the thing
Mr.. Maxim wheeled the gun around
and pointed it into the mounth of an
iron pipe.
These pipes" he explained. "are
not used in actual warfare. | have
placed them here SO that | can have
something 10 catch the bullets and let
the smoke escape.
There are 1888 rounds on each can
vas strip. and the gun fires at the rate
of ten a second. or about 600 minute.
The Russian army has 1000 rounds On
strip"
Mr.. Maxim calmly sat down behind
his gun and pressed an iron button.
The gun did the rest. There was a
rafting din for five seconds. and
shower of empty shells fell from an
opening in the under side of the gun
aud scattered over the floor.
A dog on the street began to bark
violently, and presently u crowd stood
in front of the clubhouse. attracted by
the sound of the fusillade. Fifty empty
shells were counted on the floor. Mr..
Maxim said:
There are twenty rounds left on
this strip and here they 20"
There was another racket that lasted
two and half seconds and all the
she'll had been fired. Then Mr.. Maxim
told some Interesting facts about his
gun.
The quickest work we ever did was
to fire 2 POO shots in three minutes
BY aiming the gun at its highest eleva-
ton we can fire GOO rounds into the
air. and the last shot will be fired be-
fore the first bullet reaches the ground"
Presently Mr.. Gatling arose:
'Inasmuch as was the first man
who ever made machine gun | will
crave your indulgence for few mo-
ments. 1 lived in indianapolis during
The war. and often saw regiments leav-
ing for the front of battle Many of
them came back in boxes, and that set
me a-thinkiug. found that most of
them died of sickness or priyation.
and Il Jew of bullets. SO said to N.Y.
self: If | can invent gun with
which one man can do the work of
hundred, can't the other ninety-nine
stay home" So invented the Calling
gun.
The Calling gun is also an automa-
tic gun. The navy has put an electric
motor TO one of my guns. and YOU can
fire one shot or 5000 shots. On one
occasion we fired 63. 700 rounds from
the gun without stopping. At another
time we fired 1000 shots into the air.
and the last cartridge blank was out of
the gun before the first bullet had
touched the ground.
''All these inventions however. will
help to preserve peace. War is be-
coming terrible thing. What with
the Maxim gun and the Calling gun
governments will be less anxious TO