Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-03-31
Spectacular Feature of Mao
daIena Bay Firing.
AIR ALIVE WITH METEORS
"Tracers" Leave a Trail Of Fire Be.
hind Them.
aEPELLING TORPEDO ATTACKS
Gun Crews Working in Glare Of Re.
flectors-Search Lights Make
a Gorgeous Display.

MAGDALENA BAY, March 31.-The
night firing by the battleships of the At
lantic fleet Is a brilliant spectacle. 1t Is
the perfection OF pyrotechnics The
sweeping of the great shafts Of light from
the searchights. the bursting flashes of
fire from the gun muzzles. the spark
strewn pathways of the soaring and fam
ing shells. the ricochets that resemble
giant skyrockets and the tremendous
echoes of believing sounds that come
across the waters and over the silent,
fog enshrouded hills combine to present
scene that thrills long after the firing
has ceased.
1t is the work of repelling attacks of
an enemy's imaginary torpedo thrust.
Black targets with white centers are the
objects at which the ships are directing
their fire. Two or three ships may be seen
firing at a time Big searchlights of in
tense brilliancy and power of penetration,
high up in the fighting tops Of the main
mast and foremost. turn upon the tar
gets long before the ship comes upon the
firing radius.
Floating Fairyland.
The lights of the ship are all blazing
out. Every portfolio Is white light,
standing out in the inky darkness. Other
lights hang here and there on the lifted
gangways and other necessary locations.
The ensemble is of irregular outline,
bearing no resemblance to the lines OF
battleship. The red and white signal
lights strung up the halyards of. the fore
mast are alternating in their colored
flashes transmitting official messages to
other ships Heavy clusters of electric
lights are on the forward and after
bridges. the big refectors turned sharply
downward ten feet distant. where they
illuminate like day the breaches of the
guns. The gun crew WORKS In perfect
light. as though the sun were shining.
The ship steams on the range at rapid
speed. her powerful searchlights hung out
this way and that. Soon 1t passes a red
burning signal light: 1t is the standby
signal The searchlights are now concen-
trated upon the targets. tiny spots far off
the port bow
Flight of the Shells.
whistle is blown. an officer shouts the
sharp command Fire" The three pound
ers and three-inch guns go instantly into
action The exploding powder flashes out
from the muzzle in a puff of fame. and
the projectile leaps away toward the tar
get. 1t traverses the intervening distance
In an instant.
BY means Of what is known as the
might tracer the flight Of the she'll is
followed with the naked eyes. It is a
stream Of fire that shows in the wake of
the shell. Its operation Is a strictly mill
tary secret. The height which the leap
ing Shell attains is almost incredible. 1t
must sometimes be 500 feet.
1t is estimated by an ofhcer prominent
in the fleet that at target practice more
than sxtyfour tons Of ammunition has
been shot away 1t costs $S7 for the she'll
and $40 for the powder to fire single
III ha 3riv
practice Of a ship like those in the first
and second divisions Is estimated at ST.
OoO. or a total for the eight battleshps of
$4,000