The times., 1899-10-22

rent at once The powder is first turned
out in string form and then cut up into
lengths, each one being approximately
perfect cylinder. After being cut up it is
put into receptacle along with powdered
black lead or pIumbago such as is used
III lead pencils, and then the mass is thor
oughly shaken together. so that the plum
bago forms coating on the little cylinders.
1t IS this coating which gives them their
blue black color, and it is applied for the
same reason that plumbago is used some
times as lubricant in machinery because
il is slippery Ii is the theory of the Gov
ernment in coating its climbers OF smokelsss
explosives with plumbago that so coated
it is less likely TO generate heat from fric-
tiOn when roughly handled. and so less liza
bic to unexpected explosion. Powder of this
sort for the larger guns is plainly cylindri-
cal in appearance, the cylinders being about
half an inch in diameter and of the same
length. II is more than probable that there
will be many changes in the composition OF
the smokeless powder used by the United
States Navy, but the last word has been
said, apparently, with regard to its form
the plumbago o-coated cylinders being much
more easily manipulated than any other
form yet devised.
Every home station of the United States
Navy has distributing magazine, but that
at Fort Lafayette is the largest, undoubted-
ly, its stock of explosives being exceeded
only by that of the great storage magazine
located near Dover among the New Jersey
hills, miles from the sea and all possible
danger from hostile feet in case of war.
Gunner Dugan, who saw service in the
civil war, as Gunner Kuhlwein saw it in
the Spanish war, has charge of the Dover
magazine, and there are times when he has
a round million pounds of powder in stock
enough, it would seem, to blow all the
northern part of Jersey into kingdom come.
Naturally. the most important work at
Lafayette is loading shells and cartridge
cases and assembling ammunition. Loading
shells is simple, black grain powder being
used altogether (for smoke at the point Of
explosion is not Objectionable) and black
powder can be poured in with little scoops
Loading cartridges with the old style pris-
matte powder is more tedious work, the oc-
tagonal grains having to be piled carefully
in a brass FORM so that each cartridge for
a heavy gun presents a good part Of an
hours steady and skillful work. Loading
cartridges with the new plumbago cylin-
ders is as simple as loading shells with
black powder, for cylindrical powder can
be poured. The big strip of powder for
heavy guns is bundled into bags and this
is simple operation also, but loading the
small strip powder into cartridge cases is
another matter. This has TO be broken up
as loaded, and there are few persons, un-
used to seeing high explosives handled with
seeming carelessness, who can watch the
cartridge leaders without momentary feet
ing of fear
The ordnance men who do this work are
all experienced hands not enlisted men.
but mostly old en-of-war's men who
have served in the navy for years and been
hOnOrably discharged. When loading car
tridges half dozen or more of them sit
about a long table formed OF boards rest
ing on trestles with an open box of the
powder handy. Enough explosive mater al
is weighed out on little scales for a charge
first in each instance, and then, if the
strip powder is being used, the ordnance
man takes handful in his hands and
breaks it up into pieces that look more
like the preparation OF potatoes called
Saratoga chips than anything else after
which he stuifs the cartridge case full with
apparently as little caution as if he were
handling Saratoga chips in very truth
In the majority OF cases he has TO jam the
stuff into the case with a short stick of
special shape and sometimes he has TO
pound it in with a small mallet. But the
Carelessness is only apparent, for the NAL
let is of wood, which will not strike sparks,
and the scoop with which small pieces are
taken up is also wooden, while the metal
pan Of the scales is covered and no par
ticle Of iron or steel with which the pow
der might come in contact is allowed in
the room.
In this respect there has been great i'm
provement at the Fort Lafayette maga-
zine since the Spanish war. Then the
floors were uneven and in many places the
nails which held the floor boards to the
joists projected above the surface. Long
ago this was changed by driving ali the
nails down below the upper surface of the
floor boards, after which the holes We're
filed with putty After that the floor w&5
covered with thick linoleum which was
cemented down. not nailed, cement being
applied also at all the seams. Today it
would be impossible for spark TO be
struck by the contact of iron in any of the
parts OF Fort Lafayette where powder is
stored or loaded, for all the floors are limo
leum covered and no one is allowed to en-
ter the storage rooms in the classmates or
the loading and assembling rooms on the
ground floor wearing anything but maya
zine shoes, which are sewed and contain
no nails. OF course no smoking is allowed
and the only explosives which could be
set of by a blow the primers and detona-
tors. containing illuminate Of mercury are
stored outside the walls OF the fort prop
er, in a structure built specially to hold
them.
In spite of the fact that enough high
grade powder to destroy a feet frequently
passes in a single day through the hands
Of each ordnance man employed at Fort
Lafayette they are a cheerful lot, telling
stories to one another as they work and
cracking jokes exactly as they would were
they handling the most harmless sub
stances, and the storage rooms, containing
tier on tier of ordinary looking packing
cases, would suggest nothing so little as a
powder magazine to most persons were it
not for the frOwning appearance of the
arched windows, pierced through stone
walls six feet and more in thickness.
GRAND LARCENY THE CHARGE.
John Wilson Accused of Stealing
n