The Coalville times. [volume] (Coalville, Utah) 1894-1923, 1898-06-24
.THE EVOLUTION OF The fighting TOP.
For Centuries Before the Christian Era They We're
Used Egyptians and the Military Mast

An a place of peril inc fighting top
OF q modern mnn-of.war o. the most
oHpos "a position ln o. heated action.
cut on as ~ occupants are from all
tholttrlng armur and pol cd high and
clear na a tempting target for an en-
omy's qulck-frinr guns let that
mast be torn away and swept over
board by the tempest OF small shell
that ships OF to-day can bring 20 bear
upon unarmorod parts NJ a Zoe. and
the brave defenders must 30 Co ccr-
tain death without the chance Of a biz
u floating spar. a. In the oldon days.
TO hold them mp till Huccor come at-
ter the fierce rush Of conflict
The story Of the nghtlng top reaches
way back centuries before the Chris
tlan era. In fact. back TO the earliest
time when war craft might pardunably
be called ships by virtue Of their sue
oessful struggle with wave and tenn
pest. and. amid the rapid changes Of
to-day, Il ~ hard 10 trace the conncc-
tion between those ancient craft with
their rude equipments aud the modern
battlcahip. fierce and strong, by right
OF the power she has plucked
from the bowels Of the earth
and turned 10 her own purposes OF
might and majestic dominance.
The carvings and drawings Of the
war craft of the ancient Egyptians and
Aslatlca. two thousand years before
Christ. bear the embryo Of the milf
tary top perchod at the masthead Of
the single spara that bore their sails
then. Il was merely a rough basket
like arrangement In which one or two
men might stand and agrall the war
riora OF the foo whore they crouchod
behind the aheltcrlng bulwarkH N
bucklera huns against the aldoa Perch
ed high above, the men In the "gn-
bic" as later II was called. picked on,
like aharp-shooters. the enemy before
no could come aboard or tempted him
into open exposure and The conso-
quenccs such rashnoas brought
Down upon the foes deck tho hurt
ling spear was Hont. while the top
men rested far above retaliation save
from the cnomy's topmcn, " be- had
any. During tho time " the naval
struggles between the Greeks and the
Romans. the lighting tops disappeared.
for Il was customary then to lower the
lmaata and trust only to the great
sweeps or oars when going Into ac-
tion. si..,-- AZ Il may seem the mor-
chant .sfI- alone carried nghting
tops thcu lt for the purpose only
OF meotih the attack OF pirates. with
whom me- J every sea was then In.
Tested. Those tops were not unlike
casks. and. with two or three mon In
them. could be- holatod VOL up and
into position IN time 90 be- OF service.
Many Of our large merchant lln'rs aud
all whalorn carry a somewhat similar
arrangement well up ON their masts
to-day, and. from the crows nest. aa
Il 10 now called. most Of the lookout
duty a. now done The Japanese have
adopted something OF the Kind Tor their
modern naval vessels ana The cut OF
the ChitosoH mast n typical
40 the ships grew In pnwor their
maata had 90 be- heightened hy splicing
on additional spara. and TO give spread
for the stays and Hhrouda that held
them In place. platform was built
at the top NJ the lower mast There
the archer and Hpcarman found ample
room for hla work, and the Saxon
chronicles Of that lusty writer. SIR
John Frolsaart 10 the lattor part OF
the fourteenth century rIyc as some
very interesting accounts of the dam
are inflicted upon the French. The
Spanish. ana the GonocHc hy The top