The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1898-06-24
W DIRK OF VESUVIUs.
Test Of the Dynamite Cruiser Of
Santiago u Quite SAT-
Isfactory. I sS

Test Of the Dynamite Cruiser OF
Santiago u Quite SAT-
isfactory. $ 5=55
New York, June 1.-THE United
States cruiser Yesuyius evidently began
= new era In warfare when she made
havoc of the Santiago harbor fortifica-
i5tions Monday night with three Of her
giant shells. Army and navy men are
talking about her as reyerently as IL she
We're something supernatural. Citizens
generally compared her with Ericssons
monitor and said she is hundred times
more destructive. 3. ,yss:
De Borden Wilmot is the representa-
tive OF the Pneumatic Torpedo and Con-
IstructiOn company which designed and
built the cruiser Vesuvius and sold her
TO the United States government after
she had undergone q series Of severe
tests. 1.-THE Vesuvius," said Mr.. .Wilmot,
has a battery Of three pneumatic guns.
mounted in the bow at a fixed angle Of IS
degrees. The guns are IS feet long, IS
inches bore and built rigidly into the
| vessel: From all have read about Mon
day nights trial with three shells / am
convinced that she has not shown half
Of her ability. # - IL u. :,
..tsz. What Can She Dor
What can she do?
"She can drop 500 pounds of nitro
gelatin nearly two miles away with ac-
curacy. She can repeat this feat fifteen
times IN ten minutes. That means three
and three-Quarter tons of high explosives
thrown upon the enemy's ships or forts
or whatever the object of attack may be.
me destructive power of such a broad
side is almost beyond computation. : It is
enough to destroy city; to wine it of
the face of the earth and eliminate every
trace of it's existence. The nitro-gela-
TN Is half as strong again as dynamite.
Imagine the effect of three and three
quarters tons of it! The moral effect of a
commandment by the Vesuvius must be
tremendous. & 49, ", =
"By way Of illustration, let me tell you
one fact. The dynamite cruiser Nictheroy
without firing q shot. Her mere pres
ence was enough. Dom Pedro, the EN-
peror of Brazil, sent Admiral Salmada da
CANA of the Brazilian navy up here to
md out how the pneumatic dynamite gun
| pressed.
".I'd rather be with that gun than
AGAINST IT. he remarked to me, standing
Dy me gun OH the proving grounds at
Fort Hamilton, where he witnessed it's
| range, accuracy and destructive power.
Within short time Dom Pedro abdi-
| Gated, a republican form of government
was set up and Mello began his revolution
Admiral da Cana was his chief fighter
The Brazilian government fitted up the
dynamite gun, Her coming was report
ed by telegraph as soon as she approached
the Brazilian coast. She steamed into
Rio de Janeiro harbor cleared for action.
There was nothing to fire at. The mere
news of her advent put Da Cana and all
his men to flight. They abandoned their
ships. That ended the revolution.
dynamite gun but she has three big ones
The caliber is Is inches. I can give you
a suggestion Of their force. There are
three 15-inch dynamite guns at the Pre-
sidio near San Francisco. As test che
of these guns sent a projectile containing
200 pounds of nitro-gelatin across the
Golden Gate into the mountains one mile
crater in the solid rock 35 feet deep and
65 in diameter. OF course it must not
be forgotten that the Vesuvius is using
guncotton in her projectiles. Guncutton
is only one-ffth as strong as nitro-gelatin.
The Havoc is Awful.
"Where a shell strikes from one of the
guns of the Vesuvius the havoc is awful.
One of her projectiles dropped in the
midst of regiment would eliminate 1t
from the war. If any man in the regiment
was not torn to bits he would not be fit
for fighting.
against ship the Vesuyius would be
deadly. One of her big shells dropping on
the deck would crush through the armpr,
ship. If one. of these shells explodes IN
the air or in the water within fifty feet Of
a ship Of war it will crush her side or
bottom and sink her. If one of these
shells explodes within fifty yards Of a
modern man-of-war it will render her
useless for fighting, fol: the defamation
will throw the bearings of her engines
neatly fitting parts. Thus the ship will
become mere helpless target"
Many leading artillerists in the army
are greatly in favor of the use of high
explosives and in their official commune
cations to the war department have adj
vocated its more extensive use. The
only thing that has worried them is the
| ting means of firing it. The great dyna-
mite guns at Fort Hancock and the
Preside, San Francisco, are to a certain
extent regarded in the light Of experi-
! ments.
Holland is Enthusiastic.
John p. Holland, inventor of the sub
| marine boat which bears his name was
| enthusiastic over the favorable reports
received from the practical test of the
dynamite cruiser Vesuvius. He said:
"Now, perhaps, they may give the Vesu-
the strongest kind of prejudice against
her ID the navy just as there is against
my boat now. She never was given any
| sort of real test and was utterly con-
demned by the naval officers for no rea-
son ut all. 1t was only after the hardest
kind of fight that the government could
| be induced to build her and then she was
a step-child and was blamed with every
thing. About four or FIVE years ago the
board in Washington concluded she was
| useless and decided to tear out her dyna-
mite guns and turn her into little gun.
boat trs4..S. ,;.:,.:.
Fortunately, they had no money avail
able with which to dismantle and reft her
and she lay around awaiting destruction
until the war broke 5out and there was
such a demand for vessels of all kinds
that she had to be put into commission. I
hear that, even after she arrived at San
tiago, her commander! had to beg to be
allowed to have a shot at the Spaniards,
and he was finally permitted to fire just
three shots, one from each of her guns.
The results seem to have been remarka-
L
revolution in naval~varfare at least with
regard to vessels Of her size and kind"
Chief Engineer Albert Il. Dixon of the
naval auxiliary board, who is now in this
city examining yachts and tugs for the
coast defense feet, served for several
months on the Vesuvius. " :
"Most naval officers" said he, shave a
prejudice against the Vesuvius at first,
but after they have. once served OH her
they get to like her. I put in four months
on her. Our duty was destroying dere-
licts. She has three guns, or tubes, for
throwing dynamite. They are built into
the ship, extending through two decks
and coming out at an angle Of 30sdegrees.
They are 81 feet long, and Is feet Of that
length protrudes above deck. The load
ing device is peculiar. A section Of the
gun, including about ten feet of the
breech, slips down on ball and socket
joint and into this the projectile, contain
ing 200 pounds of guncotton, is pushed.
Then the section is raised into position
and the gun is ready to be fred. ;,
The range is obtained by. range find
ers, one on each end of the ship, and the
guns are aimed nv nointinp tho vessel in