The daily morning journal and courier., 1900-04-09
GUNS TO USE IN AFRICA.
Interesting Facts Regarding the Ar
 tillery of Briton and Boer

Interesting Facts Regarding the Ar
 tillery of Briton and Boer.
 The prevailing ignorance regarding the size and nature of the various pieces of ordnance in use on both sides
 in South Africa makes especially time
 ly review of the propreties of the
 different weapons. Taking the Brit ish first, we find the Howitzer, short
 gun, with a sharp twist of rifling, de-
 signed to throw comparatively heavy
 shell with a low-muzzle velocity. The
 charge behind the shell is very small
 and the trajectory is very curved. Di-
 rect fire, that is, fire from guns with
 comparatively high velocity and corro- spondingly fiat trajectory, is chiefly of
 use against objects which can be seen, ] Against objects behind the cover of earthen or other parapets it's very di
 rectness makes it of but little use. But the howitzer pops it's shell, as it were, over all such obstacles and plumps it down immediately behind them, once the range has been ac
 curately found.
 The 6-inch howitzer in the British siege train weighs without its car riage,, 30 cwt. Its carriage allows of the howitzer being fired at angles of elevation up to 35 degrees. This cor responds, according to the charge used, to ranges of from 1000 to 5000 yards. | The projectiles in use with the 6-inch | howitzer are common she'll shrapnel and cast shot. The shell in use in South Africa weighs 11S pounds and is 1 filled with a heavy charge of lyddite. The 6-inch shells use three or four different sorts of fuses. For what may be called langrdge effects there is direct action fuse, which explodes the shell immediately on striking an ob- sject For the preaching of thick para pets there is direct action delay fuse the object of which is to delay the ,burstng of the shell for some five seconds or so after the moment of com pact For use with shrapnel shell there is a time and percussion fuse; while for star shell there is a special sensitive fuse. A few rounds of case shot complete the equipment of the six inch howitzer which is for use against troops at short quarters Each shot weighs little over 30 pounds and con- tans more than 200 quarter-pound cast iron balls, The effective range is more than 800 yards. The accuracy of shooting of the 6-inch howitzer is as remarkable as the destructive effects of it's shell. At range of two miles half the rounds will fall in a space of 21 yards long, yards broad and g yards high Even at such an extreme
 
 may be relied upon to fall In space of 67 yards long by 12 yards broad
 The next piece to consider is the E. inch breechloading gun, which also forms part of the English siege train. It weighs two tons and is capable of giving accurate shooting up to ranges of five miles, or some S770 yards, for which it is sighted. The muzzle velo- city is 1,750 feet per second. It is mounted on a carriage known as the carriage disappearing eight feet para pet The gun is fired from behind a parapet, giving good cover to the working numbers and eight feet in height The carriage is so constructed as to raise the gun at the required moment to height sufficient to fire over this parapet compressed air being the power employed. When the load ing has been completed, lever is turn ed and the gun at once rises. The shock of the discharge acts upon a ram which stores, by compression, a supply | of pneumatic force to raise the gun for the next round. The projectiles | used with the 5-inch gun are common | and shrapnel shell and case shot, all l weighing about fifty pounds. The | shrapnel shell is powerful one, con- taining 296 bullets of more than one | ounce in weight apiece. The case shot, for use at close ranges contains 450 sim l liar bullets The fuses are the di- rect action for common shell and the time and percussion for shapnel. The charge is 4 pounds IA ounces of cor dite of the size known as ' 1-2.
 Another piece in the siege train is the 4-inch breechloading gun. It weighs some twenty-six hundred weight and is mounted on what is known as a six foot siege parapet car riage. This differs from that of the 5-inch gun, inasmuch as there is no mechanism. The gun it. self is always up aloft, sufficiently high to nre over the SIX leet parapet Wnlch protects the carriage and guns crew. The 4-inch gun nres shells of 2 pounds weight with a muzzle velocity of 1900 feet per second. They are commonly filled with either black powder or lyd- dite shapnel and case shot. It is fitted with telescopic sights and ranges up to 7,700 yards. The remaining velocity of the shell at this eXtreme-range is nearly 600 feet per second. The accura- cy is good at 5000 yards half the rounds falling in a space 40 yards long by three yards broad, The shapnel contains 29S bullets at 22 1-2 to the pound.
 These three weapons constitute the main armament of the British siege train Other pieces employed in the