The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-07-02
GREAT FORCE OF pRoJEcTILEs.
Shell That struck the Texas Illus
trates the Terrors of Modern War

the BalttUlOtN gun.
On BoarI the United States Battleship
Texas, Guantanamo Bay, June 23.-When
i wrote my description of the landing of
the army al Baiquiri l mentioned incident
ally that the Texas took part in the STRAIT
egic movement intended to cover the land
ing The duty assigned to the ship was
that of Smelling the western batteries at
the entrance to Santiago harbor. This duty
was undertaken single-handed, and in half
an hour the batteries had ceased to reply
In the hurry of CATCHING the mail steamer
l had not time 10 ascertain whether any of
the enemy's projecules had hit the Texas,
and besides l was ten miles away to the
eastward.
To-day the Texas came into Guantana-
mo bay 10 transfer eight wounded men to
the hospital ship SOiace and then learned
that for once the Spanish gunners had
made d hit. They had succeeded in plant
ing she'll on board the Texas. The pro-
jectile killed one man and wounded eight
others and did considerable damage to the
vessel herself
BY the courtesy of Capt. Philip 1 was per-
mtted 20 go on board the Texas and see
the effect of the Spanish shell. The Tex
as, 1t may be mentioned, is a sccond-class
battle ship built with some notifications
to designs prepared by MIR Laird Cloves in
competition with other naval experts.
Lieut.. Ha5lar conducted me over the
ship, and pointed out the havoc wrought
by the Spanish shell. The projectie was
a steel sX-inch she'll, fired, it is believed,
from one Of the high power ships guns
that have been mounted on the Santiago
fortihcauons since Admiral Cervera's fleet
was blockaded in Santiago harbor. 1t
struck the Texas on the port bow, between
the gun deck and the spar deck bursting
in the forward compartment where there
are six 6-pounder guns three on either
side. The crews of all these guns were at
quarters and there were besides a number
of other men in the compartment at the
time.
1t is miraculous that only one man was
killed and eight were wounded The part
of the ship hit is outside the central cita-
del and above the projected deck. The sides
of the ship at the point Of impact consist
ed of a steel plate one and quarter inches
thick. The shell pierced this like so much
paper, hit a metal stanchion amidshps and
exploded about seven feet from the plat
ing on the starboard side A noteworthy
feature Of the steel plating was that It af-
forded no SplinterS or debris to carry in
board. 1t was torn into ribbons and folded
back In a way that gave the impression
that the tough metal had been half melted
10y the impact and passage of the projec-
tile.
The shock of striking the plating was not
sufficient to explode the shell, and had it
missed the stanchion II would have passed
through the starboard side and possibly eX-
ploded outside the ship Unfortunately, the
stanchion was directly in the path of the
SHE'LL and the heavy metal column offered
enough resistance to explode it, The effect
was terrific.
Although the shell was only a small one,
six inches in diameter, and, therefore, not
weighing more than about 70 pounds, 1t
practically wrecked the big compartment
in which it burst, while the smoke from It
forced itself down the ammunition HOSTS
and into the forward compartments Of the
ship, so that for few minutes the crew
We're almost suffocated The stanchion was
shiVercd into atoms for two feet of it's
length, and the fragments of the shell,
flying forward against the starboard side,
bulged the stout steel plates outward TO a
depth of three inches. Just at this point
one of the big dOuble-headed angle irons
of the ships frame was situated. This great
rib of steel, nearly twice as thick and
heavy as railroad rail, was cut through
in two pieces, as if it had been made of
cheese, and nearly two feet of it was car
rled away bodily in minute pieces The
base of the shell ploughed a furrow down
the steel deck just as a plough would cut
through the soft soil of a fallow field
1t hit and broke another rib of the ship,
and breaking its self in two, both pieces
lodged in a cable reel standing close TO the
starboard side. The core of this reel was
a prism of oak over two feet in clrcumfer-
ence, and there was wound on it AT the
time a coil of hemp hawser that made
cylinder about four feet in diameter. The
hemp rope was cut through to the wood
and the stout oaken prism was shivered
to splinters. This one fact alone would
be sufficient to give an idea of The appal-
ling energy of modern projectles.
Showers Of steel splinters, resulting from
the exploded shell itself and the torn stan
chion and angle irons, swept along the
starboard side for about thirty feet, cut
ting off heads of bolts, breaking gun fit
tings and stripping off the paint as If
score Of men had worked for hours with
steel chisels.
Every man in the shells path was
wounded. one gunner was hit with no
fewer than fifteen pieces of steel. each
about the size of hazel nut. At the
moment the shell exploded another man
was standing right in its path. Herwas lit
orally blown to fragments. He was talk
ing TO comrade and, strange as it may
seem, the latter although less Than arms
length away, was unhurt, save for being
knocked down by the shock of the expo-
sion. others Of the men, thirty feet from
the fatal shot, had a dozen pieces of the
shell plunged into their bodies
A remarkable feature of the explosion
was the smallness of the pieces into
which the shell burst. 1t shivered into
fragments weighing about an ounce. The
only piece Of any size picked up was
rather less than half the base, just enough
to enable it 20 be ascertained that it had
been a siX-inch shell. fired from a high
power breech-loading gun, and exploded
by percussion fuse fixed in the nose.
When a small siX-inch she'll Is sufficient
to'cause all this havoc which / have en-
deavored 20 describe. one stands appalled,
at the thought Of what viii be the fate
of a ship that is hit by a huge twelve or
thirteen-inch shell fired with high explO-
sives If the people who clamor so loudly
for war and pFate Of the romance and
glory Of battle could only be made 10 real
ize what are the possibilities OF modern
ordnance and prOjectlles they would hard
ly be so inhuman as TO hazard even their
enemies niue HESS their own sons and
brothers, before them in action.
Quitmnn's Midsummer Carnival.
Waycross. Ca. July IA rate Of one
fare for the round trip VIII be given from
WaVcrOgg and Othar pi9ceg In gouth (.aor-