The Portland daily press., 1894-11-17
BODIES PERFORATED BY BULLETS
Ghoulish Experiments Made by the U.
S. War Department.

The Small Calibre Bullets are Less Iniur.
ious to Flesh and Blood than the Larg er
Missiles-Bones Perforated Without
Splintering.
/ Uncle Sam gives a. test occasionally of the
effect of rifle projectiles upon animal tissue
and bone. In order to make these tests
effective and of value to the War Depa1t
ment the bullets are fred into animals, and
when practicable into human bodies. A
recent test OF this kind was made with in
teresting results. Human todies were pre-
pared. and two rides, especially made, were
used. the ranges being of various grades UP
to and including 1900 yards. The arms Sc
lected were the services 45-caliber SPRING
field rifle and the experimental 3O-caliber
Springfield. The cartridge for the 45-caliber
one was loaded with SO grains of black pow
der and hard lead bullet, cannelured and
fabricated in the cannelures. weighing 500
grains. For the 3U-caliber rifle was used a
charge of 81 grains of Wetteren smokeless
powder. with a bullet of hard lead with a
German silver jacket. without cannelures
or lubricant.
! The ranges used in the experiments were
2,0o0. 1880, 1900. 800. 500, $50, $50. $50. and
100 yards. With regard to the velocity tests
it was found when the elected distance was
short one the bullets struck nearly hori
zontally instead of at an angle, which may
be considerable if the range simulated is u
long one. The velocity of rotation was
found to be different also from what it is at
the actual range. With reduced charges of
powder it was found the bullets did not al
ways take to the rifing of the barrel in
proper manner. especially VIXEN the twist
was a quick one. The bullets were in these
cases found to strike side on to the object
shot at. or else to tumble about in an awk-
ward fashion and hit the object in some PEI
culiar style not at all desired.
OBSTACLES TO THE TEST.
Of course the difficulties presented to
your Uncle Sam in obtaining cadayers
enough to practice on presented many OBJ
staoles to the extended testing of all the
peculiarities, SO when it was desired, as in
the recent experiments, to compare the
effects of the two different models of bull
lets on the same part of the human body,
the use of reduced charges could not be
avoided. This was decided upon as it was
found the possibility of striking the part
desired at the actual ranges in a reason
able number of shots would be extremely
doubtful. and success only be attained by
providing large number of cadaver and
going through long and tedious expert
ments, 1t was decided. however, that the
results obtained by the use of reduced
charges may, at least, be considered asfair
approximations to the actual results at
ranges in the neig borhood OF those simulat-
ed.
At the Frankfort arsenal, where the tests
were made, it was found that with small
caliber rife. having quick twist. it was
impossible to simulate the remaining veloc-
iiy obtained at greater ranges than 1000
yards. The reason was that a charge of
powder, just sufficient to drive the bullet
out of the bore. gives much greater veloc-
ity than is required. If the slugging of the
bullet is reduced by using rifle with an
enlarged bore, OF by reducing the diameter
of the bulleu by compression. it might be
possible to produce very low initial veloci-
ties, but they would he SO irregular no re-
lance could be placed upon them. In fact
considerable irregularity was found in the
rvelocities Stimulating those obtained at
1000 yards, and occasionally the bullet
would be driven out of the bore or would
strike side on.
The experiments were conducted in the
regular arsenal gallery. The cadaver at
which he shots were fired was placed at
distance of tifty-three feet from the muz-
zle of the gun except for the 1,500 and 1900
yard ranges. where it was found necessary
in order to record the low yelocities OBJ
tanned to reduce the distance between tar
gets to fifty feet, which caused the veloc-
ity to be determined at Jwenty-eight feet
from the muzzle. For these ranges. there
fore, Uncle Sans men placed their grim
targets at twenty eight feet from the muz-
zle. A tackle attachedto the roof. beams
allowed the grisly Target to be moved SO as
to bring the portion desired to be struck
into proper position. Behind the cadaver
were a number of barrels filled with saw
dust, placed one behind the other. These
enabled the bullet to be recovered and ex-
amined without it having suffered defor-
nation other than that received in travers-
ing the part of the body struck. The bull
let's used were stamped on the base with a
distinctive letter or number as positive
means of identification. Certain bones of
the body we're selected and we're fired at
in pairs at each range. one of the pair be-
ing reserved for the experiment with the
80 caliber bullet and the other for similar
experiments with the As oaliber one. The
object in this was to show that the effects
of two bullets in the bone or other portion
1.-The body should be produced under abso-
lutely similar conditions.
Grim, indeed, were the conclusions
drawn from the results shown at the tests.
Technical Illustrations and tables were Civ
en- to Uncle Sam. showing just what sort of
wounds his rifles could produce on the per-
sons of opposing soldiers, in case it became
necessary to fire at live men instead Of
dead ones. Conditions were noted and it
was found that the effect of the small cali
Der bullet upon the bones was not as severe
as that of the 45 caliber. There was. the
report said. less SCATTERING and sometimes
complete perforation of the bone with little
or no splin.ering, all of which must be COM
forting to soldiers who May have to stand
a realistic test of the firing of bullets. In
the joints 1t was found that the wounds in
f1icted by the small ealiber bullet We're less
severe. and partook more of the nature of
subcuraneous Wounds. In thos . Joints and in
soft parts where the same effect WIS found