The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1892-04-26
A MIGHTY GUN.
It's Charge Nearly Thousand
Pounds Of Powder.
Awful Effect Produced by tho Discharge
of This Terrible Engine of War
How 1t Is Loaded and Fired
Tho Missile Employed.

British navy. These gigantic weapons
are in the Victoria, the Benlow and the
Sanspareil. The 110-ton gun is fired
with slow-burning cocoa powder
cocoa" because of it's brown color.
This powder, says the Pail Mall Gazette,
is shaped in hcNagonal prisms, this be-
ing the most convenient form for close
packing. Each prism is pierced with
hole in the center so as to give ready
access to the flame and secure an
equablc ignition. Ten thousand of
these prisms arc needed to make up q
full charge for this monster gun. The
powder along with the shell comes up
from the magazine below in hoist,
and having been placed on the spout
tray, is rammed into the gun by hy-
draulic rammer, the shell of course hav-
ing been first driven forward into it's
place by the same instrument. In near
~ all naval guns the powder charge is
made up into four cartridges, the object
being to get each cartridge down to
weight that a man may lift. But on
account of its extraordinary weight
nine hundred and sixty pounds-the
Charge for the 110-ton gun is divided
into eight cartridges. The gun having
been loaded and sighted by the captain
.of the turrct from his coming tower is
fired by him by electricity. The gun
can be loaded and fred within two and
n half minutes.
The projcctilc fired from the gun
when attacking ships or forts weighs
1880 pounds, and it goes ont with
a velocity of 2,l05 feet per second,
and has n destructive energy equal
to 55,305 foot-tons. If the gun were
to be used against BODY of
men or a notilla of boats, shrap-
mel shell would be uscd-that is, the
long drum-lillc cylinder of steel stand
ing close to the carriage would be shot
from the gun, and its contents-o, 800
four-ouncc bullcts-woulds scatter death
amongst the foe
The bullets are put in layers, though
not with mathematical cXactness-thev
are merely shaken together. Melted
resin is poured in among them in order
to fill up the intcrstices; else, when the
heavy shock of the explosion came they
would be all tiattcned against each
other. Directly the shrapnel case
bursts, the bullets go flying on, while
the spin of the shell, communicated by
the ritiing of the gun, spreads them out
by centrifugal force over large area.
But the gun will most likely be used for
attacking armored ships and forts; in
this case the steel shell, with strong,
sharp point, will be used. These shells
are first forged, then bored, and finally
tempered While they should be tough
in the body they must be hard at the
striking point. The hardness of the
point increases the penetrativc power of
the shell, while the toughncss of the
body prevents it swelling as it is en-
tcring the plate and so increasing the
difficulties of penetration. a good
shell carries itself into the interior of
the ship before it explodes The
shell is constructed to carry such an
amount of powder as will cause it to
explode and add it's pieces to the de-
structive splinters from the broken
plato. The shell used i'll this gun, as
stated, weighs 1,S00 pounds. The terrible
havoc which such a shell will play when
fired with full charge from this gun is
most wildly illustrated on the wall
closet to the model. There is given a
sketch of the course of n shell from the
11O-ton gun of the Sanspareil at trial
at Shoeburyness in March last. The
she'll tore its way at the rate of 2,O79
feet per second through twenty inches
OF compound armor specially manu-
featured, inches of iron fastened in n
heavy wrought-iron frame; 20 feet of
oak baulks; feet of granite blocks; IL
feet of concrete, and 6 feet of brick;
altogether, a feet inches OF wall
unique in history, surely, for combina-
ton of width and variety and strength
OF material! For firing full charge
with armor-pi crcing shot from the no.
ton gun, the country pays for the pow
der, ESQ; for the shell and fuses, Gl2O-
total, s200; not to mention Il much moro
serious item if the gun were continual
~ being fired with full charge, the
damage from the erosion caused by the
powder gases, which causes it to lose
its accuracy, and ncccssitates it's being
refined, at great expense and at the cost
of long delay. But it is right to say the
gun IS seldom fired with its full charge
Provision. in the shape of sights and
range tables, is provided, with all our
heaviest guns for three charges, name
ly, the half charge, the thrcc-quartcrs
charge. and full charge 1t is laid down
in the regulations that for peace prac-
ticc the first is to be used, besides an oc-
casional round of the second to test the
proper working of the mounting; the
full charge being reserved for special
cases during war, when the position of
the ship requires extraordinary excr-
tions to cripple her enemy. 1t is gcncr-
ally considered, says Capt Noble in
Modern Naval Artillery" that the life
of the 6T-ton guns may be taken at 1aO
rounds and the 110-ton guns mt seventy
five rounds, both with full charges.