The record-union., 1898-07-24

number of scientific subjects: they are
capable of describing the principle of
initial tension in a gun or why one-half
the cube Of projectile's diameter is
the approximate rule for finding the
weights, they can explain the principles
OF electricity or run q dynamo: they
are thoroughly familiar with the diff
cult and dangerous art OF diving. and
they can hit targets bulls eye with a
thirteen inch shell at distance of sew
eral thousand yards, yet in rank they
are merely petty officers, their pay that
of a laborer ashore and the extent of
their promotion the position of a gun
Captain or gunner
The seamen gunners of the service
represent only part of it, The fight
ing force of ships company includes
the great majority of the crew At
each eight-inch gun for instance. are
stationed twelve men-first Captain.
second Captain, sponger, elevator.
loader, trainer. shellman and powder
men-each having his own duty to per-
form. The gun Captains do the sight
ing and firing, as a rule, but every
man Of the guns crew must take his
turn at target practice.
He must fire an actual shot during the
great gun practices every quarter and
do something at sub-caliber practice
every week. He may be i'm rank n
seaman. an ordinary seaman, appren-
tlce or landsman, but the United States
Government, which he serves, wishes to
know # he can hit an object With a
projectile. or if not, to so train him that
he will place that projectle as near to
the mark as possible
Much can be made out of even ordi-
nary material by hard. constant prac-
tice. A boy from a farm or the envir-
ons of city enters the navy as an
apprentice. He has never fired any
thing larger than a Chinese cracker or
a toy pistol. He is taken in hand and
trained, and trained week in and week
out, until he finally pulls the lanyard
that sends a shell into the vitals of
Spanish man-of-war
This former farm boy or city lad did
not Go it by accident. either. He meant
the shot to go there and he aimed his
siX-inch or twelve-inch gun so that the
proJectile would reach the given spot.
1t was no clever trick. or. as Hume i'm
his History of England" puts it. "a
had been taught 10 do it by the best
naval gunnery training system on this
wide earth
The system begins at the Annapolis
Naval Academy. There target prac-
tce IS very frequent. The embryo Of
ncers, who are ultimately to have the
training Of the seamen gunners and
the splendid marksmen Of the navy.
are drilled in great guns on the Chesa-
peake and in rifle firing at well-ar-
ranged butts. They learn to handle
rapid firers with amazing accuracy.
and when they finally get their commits
sions as Ensigns they are capable OF
carrying into effect the American gun
merry system.
The target practices on board ships
are both thorough and costly. Each
vessel is supposed to fire six shots
from every gun each quarter These
include all calibers, from the 5-inch to
the 13-inch guns of the Indiana and
her class. The cost of firing a 5-inch
gun at target practice is $17 each shot
The value of the shell and charge of
the 13-inch shot is S322, not counting
the wear and tear of a gun whose life
is measured by so many rounds.
1t would seem to the average lay
man that 81 ,932 is a rather expensive
price to pay every three months for
each l3-inch gun in the service, but
il means unerring Skill in gunnery
bought cheaply. The American Gov
ernment thinks so highly Of this skill
that it cheerfully eXpendS close to a
million Of dollars every year to teach
its naval officers and men how to shoot
The Government does not stop at
Sreat-gun practice, either. There is a
system in vogue in the service called
sub-caliber practice. 1t is efficient, and
permits of almost daily firing at
minimum cost. An ordinary canvas
target is anchored at a given distance
from the ship, and the guns crews
are trained 10 hit the bull's-eye by
means of a 4o-caliber bullet fired from
a four, six, or eight-inch breech- h-Ioading
steel rifle. 1t seems strange that
great gun like the S-inch breech-loader,
weighing fifteen tons and with a length
Of twenty-eight feet, or the width from
curb to curb of the street in front of
your house, can be used in firing an
ordinary rifle bullet. but it is accom-
plished many times every week in the
year in our navy.
The modus operandi is this-a mech
ansm holding a rifle barrel is placed
in the breech of q large gun with such
mathematical nicely that when bullet
is fired from the smaller barrel it
would strike in the same place as would
a shell of the regulation size. 1t will
easily be seen that the required result
is obtained at a far less cost 1t is
considered necessary, however, to fire
at least six service projectiles every
quarter from each gun to familiarize
the men with actual service. IL guns
Of greater caliber, such as the ten
twelve and thirteen inch, One-pounder
cannon are used instead of the small
rifle.
The results obtained at the quarterly
target practices are really eXtraordi-
nary. 1t is no uncommon thing to have
the triangular canvas target demolish-
ed at the first shot, and if it is found
necessary to hoist in uninjured tar
get at the end of the practice the ships
company feel disgraced. OF naval
marksmen and sharpshooters there are