The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1898-09-17
DISAPPEARING GUNS.
THEIR GREAT ADVANTAGES OVER THE
FIXED TYPE


and Sand-.Msthod Of Loading and Firing.
A young woman visiting at West
Point was describing to the command
ant of the post a wonderful model she
had seen in the ordnance museum. 1t
is beautiful, Colonel, beautiful! Let
me see, they call 1t a-a-oh. yes,
retreating gum" My dear young lady"
exclaimed the shocked officer. the
guns in our army never retreat"
What this enthusiastic young person
tried to name was disappearing gun,
suc6 as appears for moment above
huge bank Of sand until discharged,
and then sinks with roar from sight
only to appear few minutes later to
repeat the operation. And it Is on &C
count of this temporary vanishing that
disappearing guns are SO valuable. AS
it costs thousands on thousands of dol
lars to build modern, high-power gun
of large size, it's brief exposure to the
fire of an enemy is very desirable from
an economical standpoint alone. The
carriage upon which it Is mounted
costs much more than the old type,
which elevated the guns at all times
above the parapet, thus making fair
target for the opponents gunners.
However, as matter of property-in-
surance, the disappearing carriage Is
more than worth the difference In
cost.
Then, too, it would be almost impos-
sible to silence battery Of such guns
when well protected by concrete and
sand. In truth, it is asserted that no
naval attack can do this. This is no
part due to the fact that since the In
PRODUCTION of smokeless powder, the
position of the battery will not be indi-
Gated by dense pail of smoke. 1t can
readily be appreciated how difficult 1t
is to hit gun which appears but for
a moment at an unknown distance.
England made an interesting expert
ment some years ago to determine this
very point. A dummy gun mounted
on a disappearing carriage was put in
sand pit dug in an open field near the
seashore. The appearance of the gun
was accompanied by puff of smoke,
to initiate war conditions. H. M. s.
Sultan then stood out at sea and turn
ed all guns, heavy and machine, upon
the target. but was unable to damage
1t. The weather was good and all the
conditions were as favorable as posi-
BILE. 1t was concluded from this that
battery of disappearing guns, well
organized for defence, could not be
silenced by fleet. The only attack
then to be feared is one from the land,
and this must be provided against.
The gun In the position OF load y
hidden behind the parapet, and the
gunners work there in comparative
safety. The aiming is directed by Of
ficers stationed in observing towers at
some distance On either side. By
means of range finders they determine
the position of the hostile ship, and
then telephone the directions and eIc-
walton necessary 10 the officer In
charge of the gun squad. The gun is
quickly aimed at the unseen enemy,
released from the catches which hold
it in position, and rs soon Us it reaches
the position for firing, is discharged.
The shock of the discharge is taken up
and distributed by hydraulic buffers,
and is so great that the gun is thrown
back behind the parapet, where auto
matte catches hold 1t in place until the
firing is to be repeated
The best type of disappearing gum
carriage is that made on plans design
ed by two of our own ordnance officers,
in whose honor it Is called the Crozier-
Burlington carriage. This has proven
q practical success, not only for the
smaller calibres, but also for the larger
ones, which seems remarkable when
the strain upon tho carriage is consid-
cred. The gun kicks back upon dis
charge, with q force that makes the
earth quake for hundreds of feet
around. Yet this carriage takes up
the shock and. by means of its n.y.
draulic buffers, transmits 1t gradually
until the gun comes quietly to rest in
the position of load. Large guns Of
this type have recently been placed at
Forts Schuyler, Hamilton and Wads-
worth. The largest mounted is ten
inch rife, and will use "a projectile
weighing LOCO pounds. In four seconds
from the moment of discharge this
mass of steel will pass over mile and
be capable of piercing ten inches OF the
best armor-plate. The largest gun in
the world of this class has just been
completed by our government and will
coon be shipped to Sandy Hook. The
calibre is twelve inches, and it is If
ty-seven feet long. The gum and car
rage weigh 175 tons. When fired the
force of its recoil is equal to that
necessary to stop large train of Pull
man cars within distance of five feet
when going fifty miles an hour. 1t
takes ATS pounds of powder to pro-
duce this great result.
In an ordinary drill with the large
guns of the seacoast defence, the firing
must be simulated, as it costs some
thing between $500 and $1,000 every
time one of these mammoth guns Is
fired. Then, too, It would prove dam
gerous to shipping in this busy harbor.
But the best kind of drill goes on In
spite of this drawback at our forts. For
instance, at Fort Hamilton, tho men be-
ing in position, the officer in the obscr-
walton tower sights some vessel in the
offing and telephones directions for the
aiming of the gun. This is done as
carefully as in time of war. The gun
g. $1,o~, roloacod op1 nc II rfcoc RI tho