The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1902-04-25
NAVY TARGET PRACTICE
NEW POWDER AND NEW KIND Of
MARK NOW USED.


dlture IA Target Practice ia the United
States Service VIII soon Approximate
$1,000 .0OO-Good smokeiess Powder.
Il is announced on high authority
that In the recent quarterly target prac-
tlce Of the North Atlantic Squadron
the ammunition employed footed up to
an equivalent Of S1780O0, or in other
words, more ammunition was fred
away in gunnery training than was
expended in the battle Of Manila. 1t
was this prolonged and even excessive
firing that was maintained by the
ships Of the feet that caused certain
weaknesses to develop in the deck
supports Of the battleship Alabama.
The buckling Of beams and angle
irons on that vessel was in no sense
due, It is declared. to the premature
| explosion Of shells In the thirteen-inch
guns, but was caused by an inherent
weakness Of structure which only
heavy firing was able to develop.
The premature explosion Of thirteen
inch and six-inch shells on various YES
sells Of the fleet has been followed by q
rigid inquiry into the causes Of such ac-
cidents, and ordnance officers are now
satisfied that the trouble has been due
to ineffective gas-ftting devices about
the shell bases. 1t was at first feared
| that the walls of the common shell
were not sufficiently strong, and that
fragments Of the wall were detached
! from the interior at the instant Of fir
ing and projected through the powder
charge. Experiments and tests carried
out at Indian Head have given every
assurance that the shell walls possess
| requisite strength. Equally gratifying
results were reported from the fuse
! tests, for in order to make sure that the
premature bursts did not emanate from
/ the detonators, exhaustive trials were
conducted with view Of detecting the
slightest weakness, if any existed, in
the fuses The fuses were found be-
yond shadow of doubt to be absolute
ly safe and thoroughly reliable in ac-
! ton.
With the shell walls and fuses proved
satisfactory, the only conclusion open
pointed to defects in the shell bases,
and under hydraulic pressure it was
found possible in a number of instances
/ to force water through the screw
heads. In firing work the pressures
in the chamber of the gun mount as
high as seventeen tons per square
! inch, and evidently where water can be
! forced gases will penetrate under such
! enormous pressure. The opinion now
holds among the ordnance officials that
| the premature explosions on the Ala
bama were due to gases e1fecting an
entrance into the shells around the
base plugs-a defect that can be easily
remedied in future shells
1t is estimated that the annual eXpen-
ditures in target practice in the United
States service will very shortly ap-
proximate $1,5O0O00. Prior to the
Spanish-American War the heaviest ex-
penditure was in 1897, when nearly
100000 was used up in gunnery train
ing. Now, as then, the ammunition
allowance per man is greater, it is be-
lieved, in the American Navy than in
any service afoat.
Radical changes have been made of
late in the forms of targets employed.
Prior to 1898 the triangular target sup
ported on spars dashed to three barrels
was in common use, whereas to-day, a
rectangular target built of wire netting
and supported on a raft is the popular
form. The rectangular target may be
taken in tow and a speed Of ten knots
secured without fear Of towing the
raft under or capsizing it on short
turns, provided always that some adj
ditional spars are taken in tow to
serve as holders-down. Red, it has
been found is the best color to paint
the wire netting, and at considerable
distances a shell hole in the target
shows up very distinctly.
The splendid qualities of the new
American Navy smokeless powder
make possible the continued and long
firing on the part of our guns, some-
thing which is not possible with cord
lite and some other smokeless powders
now in use in foreign services. Sub
calibre tubes are employed on United
States ships; but generally speaking
target practice is with full charges
With the machine and smaller guns
Of the secondary battery there is prac
tically no limit to the ammunition
expenditure permissible A limit is
fixed on the heavy guns, but from
what can be learned the greatest lib
erality seems to exist, and some Of
our commanders are complaining OF