The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1892-12-30
RAPID FIRING GUNS.
How the Inventor Of the Calling
Struggled at First.

EsAbQraEeQ
ciple of the Maxian Gun, in Which thu
Reeoil Is Made to Do the Work.
A white haired, white bearded old mai
of striking presence aAd nervous man
hers is a familiar and ff6auent figure al
one of the up town hotels. His name i
Richard j. Calling, and he is the invent
OF of the Gatling gun, which has playe.
in modern warfare a larger and more Ell
fective part than any other instrument
of destruction. Or. Calling has been a
great traveller as well as close and care
full observer, and is a delightful and in
structive companion. While chatting
with him the other evening he told me
the curious and interesting story OF the
origin of the Gatling gun. DR.. Gatling
was born in South Carolina and received
his medical training here in New York.
SIN 1861" said he, 81 was living in
indianapolis. Ny residence was near
the depot, and often saw troops of vol
unteers leaving for the front or when
the dead bodies were brought home for
burial. | was surprised to note that the
number Of men killed by sickness was
far greater than those killed by ball or
actual battle. One day l observed that
of nineteen corpses which arrived at the
depot only three had been killed in bat
tie. Then the thought struck me thatii
a gun could be constructed capable OF
doing the work of hundred men and
recurring but two or three to operate 1t
the horrors and the duration of war
would be wonderfully lessened.
81 set to work at once, and in few
months completed the first Calling gun.
NV first guns were built in Cincinnati
and were able to fire from 100 to 25U
shots per minute. Six had been com
pleted when the factory burned down
and the guns were destroyed. Follow
ing this accident l had thirteen guns
made at what is now the type foundry
| in Cincinnati, and those | sent on by my
partner, wealthy merchant of Cincin-
natl, to Washington to persuade the
government to introduce them He took
them to Baltimore, where he left twelve
and went with the other to Washington.
The chief of the ordnance department. at
the time was an old fogy. He received
him coldly, told him he had no faith in
| his gun and that he believed that flint
| lock muskets were, on the whole, the
best weapons for warfare. In short, he
| would have nothing to do with him.
"My partner then left Washington
and returned to Baltimore. Ben Butler
was there with his troops. He had
heard of the guns, and he asked to see
them work. AS soon as he had done SO
he said he would buy them on his own
responsibility, and did SO, giving his
voucher for $12, 900 for them. My part
| ner had this cashed,l but at this time
there was great fall in pork, and SO, 00G
hogs which he had packed in Chicago
with the expectation of rise had to be-
sold. In word, the break in the mar
| ket ruined him, and my money went
with him.
80 for the first twenty guns / had
made at a great cost to myself Ireceived
nothing. Ben Butler took the guns he
had bought with him to the battle od
Petersburg and fired them himself. They
| created great CONSERVATION and slaugn-
| ter, ard the news of them went all over
| the world, Now they are used by all
the leading governments of Europe, ana
| also in Asia and Africa"
Equally curious and equally interest
| ing was the origin Of the Maxim gun, in
rapidity of fire and destructive qualities
the most formidable rival of the Gatling
| gun. Hiram S. Maxim, from whose brain
it sprang, is enc of the greatest Of living
| inventors, man of splendid intellect
| and superintendent energy. Long be-
| fore he became famous as gun invent
or he had achieved distinction as an
| electrician, and it is well known that he
was narrowly anticipated by Edison in
the perfecting of the incandescent light.
when | went south as soldier in the
ranks many years ago" said Mr.. Maxim
not long since, land fired my first mus
| ket the recoil knocked me down. Ever
since was boy | had experimental
with tools and wood in making little
cannon, and when fell down new
idea came to me- wondered if could
not put that vigorous recoil to some
good use. When went to London ex-
perimented long while, and my gun is
the result. The principle is simple. The
cartridges are fixed on long strip OF
canvas, which passes at right angles
through the gun. press button, the
trigger is released, and the first shot is
fired.
''The recoil of the gun is all spent in
pushing the lock piece back against a
spring and pulling the canvas strip SC
that another cartridge falls into its
place. AS soon as the lock piece touches
the spring it is released again. Another
shot is fred, and the recoil pushes it back
again, and so it keeps up as long as
hold my finger on the button, or as long
as there is single cartridge in the strip.
OF course there are many details OF
mechanism, but that is the principle OF
the thing. There are 1888 rounds On each
canvas strip, and the gun fires at the
rate of ten second, OF about 600 min
ute The Russian army has 1000 rounds
on strip. New York Herald.