New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1908-12-06
SUBMARINE MINES
IN WARFARE
By Edwin Tarrisse

A GOOD deal Is read these days Of the mar
veloI,slv constructed submarine mines
that the nations OF the earth are ever 1lEe1tIrlg
10 employ against one another, should occasion
therefor arse. These terribly IN gealOuS engines
Of var are no new thing They were extern
sivelv used II our own Civil " AZ, and by the
French in their war with the Prusslarls n 1871.
These. however, would be as playthings COM
pared TO like instruments OF destruction pos
eeSsed bv the Powers n 1908.
The simplest form OF al Is the contact mine,
which e11lodes the moment II Is touched, how
eyer lightly In construction It Is simplicity
itself lust an iron case containing four or
+iz-a hundred pounds Of explosives and 3 cable
attached TO an anchor that keeps It IN position.
This case has . number OF projecting points. on
The end OF which are firing pms. men a Vessel
strikes one OF these pins, Il Is driven IN eNl3lodeS
q percussion cap, and thus bursts the cil'iIS
o g1lnpcwdeT or dynamite
In a-chorinq these mines, great care Is taken
not to place them too near the surface at 10"
tide Generally, an immersion OF At least Ten
feet i necessary, and Is strong current may
force them down so far as to render them use
less. ground mines are often placed on the D't
tom These contact mines have a trick OF
GOING ad-1ft IN which case a sad ending awaits
he 'lnlucllv vessel that comes upon them.
Another form IS the obserNauon ;lllIle' II
which the firing mechanism and the NINE
- 70 IN seI1arate cases. Should q vessel
tic this kind OF mine, the firing pm closes
the signal circuit so that bell Is Ichs. Al .llo
station on shore. There the ouseTNt :
= a keyboard, on hearing a certain bell ing
L--7rv-s that the buoy above the corresponding
-7i-7 his been struck and Immediately touches
-77e proper KEY, thus closing the hrlng circuit
and causing the mine 10 explode
Sometimes submarine mines are pl.iCeu
-erI-e-yyIze In several rows and groups q from
i've "a seven mines each. 50 that i vessel get9
safely between two groups on the l!TsI me II
viii almost certainly encounteT the Iillle9 HI ''o
OF other Of the succeeding lines IL.
Mining casernates are nothing more Dro''oIE
speaking than well protected magazines ~.
shore. where the wires and INSTRUMENTS WI
the chart Of the torpedoes Pla'lled- ere -Ie1!
From this building the field OF loFPe,p.e9 y
operated. and, as each NINE IS oiret'Iy COL
-er+ed f,y wires leading to the swltchpoaTd' any
l,.r,--ste mine or group OF mines may DC O.
77IGEed II VIII Of the operator
T-1e~--ocon+act mines are also tlred by an
electric cable leading from the shore. "hei
IN ,--e-7z Is N sight and friendly ships are
-,.s-i-7g IN and out 81 the harbor, the mime
- ff 20 arranged that il It IS struck It VIII
-7,- e>r,1o5e. This j. done by using fIrlnS pms
-, z-,-II-7gs which cause them to return to the
r,-,.-1e- r)6eition # accidentally driven N
,t-r---,5 mines are fired by very simple
and ingenious system. Two observers are en-
- 70 determine when the enemy Is exactly
I,-er a nine. Each has a separate station pro
,-;ded with a telescope, which swings on q Vel u
,sl pivot toward any point Of the hoTiz"ii- M
IA. instrument j. so arranged that Wheli II
75-7+z toward the mines the break n the cleo
-. current 1t that station VIII re closed