The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1908-01-11

less than four minutes. the number OF
shots being six The following day a
battery of 12inch guns performed the
same feat, punching the shots more
closely than did the ten-nch guns.
The shots of both batteries We're so
close together at the target that they
might have been inclosed in rec.
tangle ten by 20 feet
Battery Parrot, Capt, kilborn, at
Fortress Monroe, recently was called
upon to fire at moving target an un.
known distance away. Actually it was
about three and onehalf miles away.
Pyramidal in shape, it looked as it
moved across the water about as
leg-o'mutton sail on a skiif would APP
pear at a distance of four miles.
Every shot was hit. and the fourth
and last destroyed the target The
entire round was fired in one minute
and nine seconds.
One of the firing tests is called
fire command" In this test the gun
ners are expected to change the hre
from one target to another of the
it without changing the speed OF the
fire. The targets are supposed to rep
resent the vitals of a warship. This
mythical vessel is considered to have
a frceboard, or height out of water, OF
"a feet In estimating the hits, the
basis is that of "A representative bat
tleship. A shot which does not actual
~ hit the target, but which would have
pierced Il vessel had il been where tho
target was is counted hit Otiicers
on the tug towing the targets work
out the score by means of the range
rake" This is an implement which
looks like a garden rake with short
handle The spaces between the
teeth each represent given number
of Yards When shot strikes the
officers sight along the handle and
note how many spaces to the right or
left of the center the shot hit
A gunner of the old school would
turn gray if he had suddenly TO adapt
himself 10 the new methods in the
face of the enemy. EIairlinc telc.
scopes, surveying instruments, barom-
etcrs. thermometers, thermometers,
weather vancs, tide gauges and stop
watches are required to secure the
requisite results The accuracy of the
fire is obtained only by taking into
consideration such details as the curry
ature of the earth the speed of the
target or the hostile warship the
1 ,,.,, ig nf
from the gun, the pressure or
density of the air, the speed and direc
tiOn of the wind, the temperature and
age of the powder when placed in the
gun, the height Of the tide at the mo
ment Of firing the shot and the 'drift'
of the projcctile There can be no
guesswork in securing such artistic
results as making hits with successive
shots
The effect Of all Of these factors
in the combination under all possible
conditions has been worked out by
experiments and computations and the
result utilized in deyisng apparatus
which automatically registers the in
formation which is essential at such
speed that half a dozen halfton
shots can be thrown into ship from
single battery in the space OF less
than four minutes The drift" of the
shot Is the distance TO the right
which a revolving projectile from a
rihed gun will 90 in the course OF a
given distance The range and the
point where a vessel will be at the
moment shot could reach it are rcck-
oned in actual practice at least once
| in every 20 seconds The establish.
ment Of 20 seconds as the interval
when fresh survey shall be- taken Is
/ based upon the fact that no boat could
/ change it's speed or It's course SUN
I cieutly in that space Of time 70 affect
/ the probability Of a shot hitting IT,