The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1896-01-10
FAST SHOOTING.
Wonderful Rapidly of Fire Attained by
New Electric Motor Gun.

| "ondertui hapidity OF Fire Attained by
| New Electric Motor Gun.
Washington Letter to New York Tribune.
The naval rapid-fire gun board, of
| which Lieutenant n. L. Mason is the SEN
| ior member. has submitted to Captain
| Sampson, chief of the bureau of ord
| nance, a report on the trial of an i'm
| proved Calling gun. In its general fea-
| lures the gun is the same as the 30-caliber
| gun tested by the board last year. 1t diff
| fers in important details, however. The
| caliber of the improved invention is 1886
and the length of the barrel 26 inches. A
change in the firing mechanism has been
| made, and now the operating is done from
| the right-hand barrel instead of the lower
one. The change allows more time for
the operation of the extractor and re-
duces the danger of disabling the gun by
hang-fires. A novel electrical attachment
is used with the gun. which permits of
| about 1850 shots per minute being fired,
| remarkable showing. The improved Cat
| ling underwent tests in competition with
the Browning automatic gun recently de-
| scribed i'm these dispatches. Later IL will
have to meet several foreign inventions.
The experiments with the Calling gun be-
gan with the firing OF 1000 rounds deliber-
ately. This was followed by the dis
charge of 100 rounds rapidly. No time
was taken for the first test. but in the
second the record was nine seconds. Then
there were no interruptions to the firing
one misfire occurred. Forty rounds were
fired i'm five seconds. so rounds in six sec
onds. 100 rounds in seven seconds, 200
rounds i'm IS seconds. and 400 rounds in
81 seconds. There were no Interruptions
TO the operation. one man operated the
crank and two men were at the feed
Later 400 rounds were fired in 80 seconds
Without any difficulty 400 shots were fired
in one minute.
In the course of the last test one case
containing 10 cartridges. was split later
ally. Then followed the firing of 100
rounds deliberately. every fifth cartridge
being a dummy. The experiment was sat
isfactory to the board. Two hundred shots
with the extreme elevation and 200 shots
with the extreme depression were then
discharged. the time for the first being q
seconds and for the latter p seconds
With the barrel moving in train and ele-
walton eco rounds were fired in 80 seconds
without any interruption. In these expe-
riments two men successfully operated
the crank. To determine how quickly
damaged parts of the mechanism could be
replaced. a test ensued of taking out an
old and putting in a new lock: the time
was % seconds. The board fired the gun
- times with one lock removed. No inter-
ruption occurred. but two unfired car
tridges were thrown out. Some IN luck
attended the second attempt to fire the
gun continuously for five minutes. A bull
let became damned I'm one OF the barrels
and In one chamber two cartridge cases
were found one against the other thes
heads OF both having been pulled on. The
jams were but temporary. The record Of
the five minutes firing was $50 shots 40
OF which were satisfactory hits. The
range was 500 yards. With the range at