The Louisiana populist., 1896-11-06
NO. Il.
UNCLE SANS MICHTIEST GUN.
When Done No Hostile Ship Will Be Safe
Within Sixteen Miles OF It's Muzze.

Within Sixteen Miles OF is Muzzle.
Largest OF all the guns ever built in
this country, and one OF the largest
ever built in the world, is the 16-inch
gun which the Watcrvliet Arsenal near
Albany, y. Y, is now getting ready to
build.
The United States has built two of
larger calibre for It's coast defenses,
hut they were Old-fashioned smooth
bores, and not TO be compared TO the
new gun in size, weight or anything
except calibre They are two 20-inch
guns, one of which is mounted at Fort
Hamilton, and one Of which lies
mounted on the ordnance dock at Gov
ernor's Island. These guns were not
startling success. The one at Fort
Hamilton has been fired a few times
and each time its recoil raised the very
dickens with its carriage
The 20-inch guns are twenty feet
long, and have a range of between five
and six miles. The new gun will be
nearly fifty feet long Ito be accurate,
1861 feet, will have a range of six
teen miles and be able to penetrate
twenty-se and one-half inches Of
the best steel armor at a distance Of
two miles. The gun will weigh 12b
tons, and it will throw a solid armor-
piercing projectile weighing 2,37e
pounds. When the projectile leaves
the muzzle of the gun it will travel at
the rate Of 1000 feet a second. and If
plate Of Harveyized steel thirty-three
inches in thickness we're placed near
the muzzle of the gun it would be pene-
trated by the flying mass of the pro-
jectile.
This gun, mounted at Fort Wads-
worth, would be able to hurl a 2,370-
pound projectile upon hostile man-of-
war before she got within seven miles
of Sandy Hook. The vessel would be
exposed TO American shot before she
got in American waters, for the range
OF the gun would be far beyond the
"three-mile limit" the distance off its
coast for which a nation claims juris-
diction.
Technically the building Of a gun is
called the assembly" of the gun. The
assembly Of the new 16-inch thunderer
Will not be matter Of days, weeks or
months, but of years. 1t is estimated
that even under the most favorable
circumstances it will be three years
before the gun is ready for delivery.
The building Of 16-inch guns has been
something long desired by the Ord
nance Department, and the plans for
one have been carefully prepared.
The necessity of guns of this calibre
is evidenced by the fact that several
foreign men-of-war have armor
against which even a 12-inch gun
would be ineffective. There is the
British battleship Inflexible, for in
stance, with twenty-four inches of ar
NOR, and the Duilio and Dandolo of
the Italian navy, with twenty-five
inches Of armor.
England has in her coast defenses
and her navy sixteen guns of 16-inch
caiibre, and France has eight. Italy
has twenty-five guns cf 17-inch calibre.
The new gun, work upon which has
now begun at Watervliet, will be su-
perior in effectiveness, however. to the
Italian guns, although they do have
one inch more of calibre. The great
trouble SO far found i'm the construc-
ton of guns Of such immense size as
those considered has been that they
dropped" at the muzzle after being
hIed a few times. The Ordnance Board
In designing the Watervliet gun, how
ever, believes that it has succeeded in
overcoming this defect. The maximum
diameter Of the breach of the new gun
will be 62 inches. The diameter Of the
breach opening is 20 inches. To fire
this gun will require a charge of 1000
pounds Of powder if the usual brown
prismatic kind is used. If the gun is
success more of the kind will be
built. The Ordnance Board is conf
dent it will be success and superior
in effectiveness to any gun in the
world.-New York World.