The evening tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 189?-190?, 1897-01-21
BIG GUN TO BE TRIED.
lT is TO BE TESTED WITH THE HIGH
EST EXPLOSIVES KNOWN.

Has Been Msde For tho Purpose OF Ex-
psr,nenting with Decorating Projeo-
, ef1es-sbouId the Tests He Successful the
sPnsumatic Guns VIII he Useless.
The most powerful piece of ordnance
tver manufactured in this country has
Just been completed at the Washina aton
gun foundry and will socn be in posi-
lion at the Indian Head ,roving station,
where it is proposed n give 1t such a
trial as perhaps no ga in the navy has
yet been subjected 10. There will be
great danger atten ing the tests, for it
Is proposed to fire from this new gun the
highest explcc yes known to modern
warfare. Tho gun has been built with
the object cf experimenting with all
high explcaives, except dynamite, that
the inverl ors may think can be carried
In shell sent from rified guns and the
authorities have made the walls Of the
pie unusually heavy in order to guard
af,.-inst possible serious accident in event
III premature explosion before the pro-
jectile leaves the piece. In all respects
excepting the bore the gun is 13 inch
rifle, the caliber being that Of IL inch
piece. 1t has all the steel, the same
weight of jackets and other heavy parts
Of a 18 inch gun and could not be dis
tinguished from one by comparison.
After the tests are completed the gun, If
1t stands them without strain, is to be
converted into 13 inch gun at the fac
tory here by boring out an additional
inch, when it will be placed ON one Of
the battleships now building.
The manufacture Of this piece was be-
gun about nine months ago, in accord
Ance with provision in the last naval
appropriation bill authorizing $50, 900
for testing high explosives in modern
guns For years the navy has known
that it can fire gunpowder in moderately
thick projectiles, and that the walls of
these shells need not be thicker than Is
peoessary to penetrate eight or nine
Inches Of the best armor plate. But
some of the ordnance experts believe
that gun cotton and perhaps other forms
Of high explosives are superior to pow
der and propose determining the whole
question with the gun just finished.
Some years ago the naval ordnance
bureau, under Commander Folger,
made some interesting tests with bag
containing 200 pounds of dynamite hung
within half an inch of steel plate rep
resenting portion Of vessels side,
and the effect produced could scarcely
be noticed. Yet it was estimated at the
time that had this amount Of dynamite
gone off inside q vessel it would have
demolished things pretty generally. An
other test with the same amount of
dynamite was made by placing the bag
ON an armor plate and firing the ex-
plosive. The effect this time was to
cause the plate to bend in, but still not
sufficiently to have done any serious
harm had it been ON ships side.
Naval officers have no doubt that
modern rified guns are just as efficient
throwers Of high explosives rs the pneu-
matte guns at Sandy Hook, which have
q range Of not over two miles, but
the chief danger is in the detonator be-
ing disturbed in the fight Of the pro-
jectile and cause premature explosion.
Explosives that are to follow impact,
they say, can be fred readily, but it
seems to be the impression that what
the navy wants Is a projectile carrying
. high explosive that can pierce armor
before the charge goes of. For this
reason, it is contended, time fuse pro-
jectile must be used, and to get one that
won't fire up too promptly is what the
navy proposes discovering with the new
gun. If it is shown that gun cotton can
be fired with safety from navy guns, it
r. contended that the pneumatic guns
will be Of little value, for the army
could readily deliver high explosives
from it's coast defense guns and secure
far greater range and finer accuracy of
hre.-New York Sun.