The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1898-07-17
DAMAGE THAT
ARTILLERY DOES.
When Properly Used in the Field Its
Execution is Fearful.
BATTERIES IN CAMP AT TAMPA
An Interesting Account OF Their Ma
neuyres-They Would Render a
Massed Force Useless-The Ef.
feet of Shrapnel in Battle.

artillery when properly handled Is being
illustrated at Port Tampa every morning.
The evolutions and manoeuvres are most
interesting. for they show how perfectly
helpless a MISSED force would be within
two or three minutes after an artillery
command caught sight Of them or even
suspected their whereabouts.
There are ten batteries OF light artillery
and siege train OF heavy guns with the
| army there. Their drills are held very
early In the morning-tOo early, lin fact,
for the best Photographic results-for the
days become so terribly hot after the sun
gets well up that IL would be sheer cruel
~ TO work either horses or men unless
absolutely necessary.
At $50 the pealing notes OF an artillery
trumpet stirred the camp into busting
activity. Cannoneers daTted out of their
| tents and rushed TO the pieces and cais-
sons. Horses, apparently awaiting the
call. ready harnessed, trOtted around to-
| their places as well as the trained horses
OF fire department in a city could DO
| IT, and a great deal better than many OF
them do. They were quickly hooked up.
| the limbers were brought to place and the
| trail-pece of the field rife coupled on.
| Meantime the Captain had mounted his
| horse held by a mounted orderly and
had ridden TO the front Of his battery
| The orderly snatched the little red flag.
| or guidon, from It's place IN front Of the
| Captain quarters, and, affixing the low
er end of its stan in a thimble on his
stirrup. darted after his commander
Lieutenant Conkhn looked after some OF
| the minor details In a few seconds and
| assigned me TO a comfortable seat on one
| Of the caissons. Captain Grimes raised
| his gauntlet, and the trumpets sounded
| Prepare TO mount" The cannoneers
| sprang In between the wheels OF the gun
carriages. limbers and caissons. one on
| the right, one on the left, and tho third
on the right OF the rear. The first two
I'm position grasped ands. end when the
! call of mount" was sounded sprang
| nimbly into their seats on the broad lid
| Of the ammunition box I'm front of me-
| In second the entire battery, with its
| hundred or more horses and scores Of
! brightly uniformed men. who seemed as
| II they must get in each others way.
| but never did was on the march. taking
| up its way toward a broad, fat level
about a mile from the camp. and just
| opposite the inlet that separates the
| camping ground from Port Tampa piers.
The brake on the cassion ] rode was not
in order and the commander called
halt 70 adjust It. While IL was being
| repaired the other pieces in the battery
passed us. We got a quarter OF q mile
behind and that wasn't where we be-
longed When ready TO move again
was told that / would get a little taste
| OF high life / got It. Sometimes ] was
a foot high and sometimes II seemed
several yards. 10 might be stated that
the country down here IS overrun with
scrub palmetto. The plant which IS
dwarfed tree with limbs about as large
as a mans arms. creeps all over the
ground, and its limbs are completely hid
den by its spreading, tan-ike leaves.
They may have been invisible to sight
| but the wheels Of that caisSOn FOUND
| every one Of them l thought OF num-
Der Of brigt things TO tell about that
| ride while / was up, but when ! came
down they were all jofed out Of my
| mind II was fun for the cannoneers.
They hadn't had a tenderfoot out for
| ride IN a long time. but they were too
| we'll disciplined to say anything about II.
| If I had only known that there were
| forty-eight loaded shrapnel shell under
meath the lid l was humping. and their
non-explosion was due 70 the fact that
they were all we'll packed. I might have
had a far pleasanter time while l was up,
but would have tried to alight little
easier. A caisson blew up in Chicago
a few years ago, while crossing a railroad
track. and some Of the fragments Of the
men have not come down yet.
PERHAPS HE DID.
| Amid a wild whirl OF sand and dust the
| big horses dropped into a walk. when
| they reached their place, 50 suddenly
| that / almost parted company with my
caissOn. It was smoother riding after
that and in reply to the Captains query
rs TO how 1 enjoyed the ride l said IT
was fun. I Believed he thinks ] ned.
We trotted along through the sand for
half a mile and l was really enjoying IL
for l didn't know anything about the
shrapnel under my lid. Suddenly the
| CAPTAIN signalled an order 10 his trum-
peters, and they sounded. Right into
liner'
The black muzzled steel rifles dropped
| from the limbers in a second. The Gals
sons and hmbers whipped up and passed
| through the wheeling line OF guns until
their proper positions IN the rear were
reached.
| Loaf rang out the Captains clear
| voice and the gunners swarmed about
| their pieces like bees. The breech bolts
were drawn. the cartridges were passed
up, and in a jiny the gunner az each
piece had his eye ranging along The sights
| awaiting further orders
| Take that most prominent ship-tne
one with the smoke distance $500
yeards" cried Captain Grimes. and be-
| fore his voice had d1ed away the guns
were frowning at the peaceable trans
porst a mile and a quarter across the
| bay and fuzzy two miles from the battery.
where will you strike herr" ne asked
| OF the gunner at piece No. l.
"a little BAIT midship. sir" replied the
man
"A very good place" said Captain
Grimes. Disable her machinery and she
| IS helpless"
No. 2 had his eye on the quarter deck,
! or where the quarterback would have
been II the vessel had been a man-of-war
No. had another vital part OF the ship
spotted, and 50 had No. l.
had Just ranged my camera in position
10 catch the fring when the order rang
out to fire by piece.
mo. ]. fire.,
There are other things besides buzz
saws that are not good 10 become too
closely acquainted with, and field rifle
| is one Of them. ! moved further away,
but am glad / had the experience. for
1 am sure 1 have made photograph OF
artillery firing at as close point 10 the
| gun as any artist will care TO stand for
| some time In rotation, one after the
other. at scarcely appreciate intervals
| the big guns belched forth their great
| volumes OF smoke with a spiteful roar
! Firing by battery Is noiser and more
exciting. but there Is such cloud Of
smoke. that pbotographing is out of the
/ question.
RAPID MOVEMENTS.
After few minutes Of this hot work