The San Francisco call., 1908-05-28
BIG GUN FAILS TO
DESTROY MONITOR
Turret of Florida Withstands
Terrific Impact of Ex-
pIosive Shell

OLD POINT COMFORT. Va, May "a.
The biggest naval gun, the heaviest
poyectile and the highest explosive
known. combined with close range and
deadly aim, were allowed to work
their full havoc on the turret plate
Of the monitor Florida The result is
declared TO be victory for turret
construction, and this notwithstand-
ing that the IL inch hardened steel
plate was blackened, broken, the
seams Of the turret sprung and the
rsvets and screws loosened and
twisted.
II was not Eve minutes after the
terrible impact that the finely bal
anced mechanism of the turrst was
being worked with perfect ease, and
the IL inch gun on the left side was
trained at will. Inside the turret. where
stand the gunners and gun crews, the
havoc was much less apparent than
from the outside. Examination
showed that OF the many delicately ad-
Justed instruments for fire control,
II any were out of working order.
III this had happened in battle the
Florida would be hshting yet" said
one Of the rear admfrals with enthu-
siasm.
MAST STANDS cANEoEADE
Then followed a futile attempt TO
destroy the newly designed woven wire
lighting mast on the stern OF the
Florida After Eve shots of the guns
had gone Though 81 the mast stood
firm Forty shots would not bring
IL down and no enemy would waste
ammunition and time shooting at It"
was the expert comment 1t was pre-
dicted that all new ships would be
equipped with battle masts OF this de-
scription.
The scene OF the demonstration was
Hampton roads The Florida, which
had been IN the hands OF experts for
some time. lay with steam up. it's
nose pointing through the Virginia
capes near Thimble shoal light and
about four miles from Old Point
Comfort. Just s43 yards on the inside
OF the Florida lay it's sister ship. the
Arkansas
This is such a test as would never
occur in actual warfare" remarked a
rear admiral as the big party of ofiicers
boarded the Arkansas. The aim will
be perfect; the distance is so close that
the impact viii be at it's full velocity
and the part OF the Florida TO be hit is
weakest"
A strip OF canvas was stretched be-
tween two stats on the turret Of the
Florida The Arkansas fired Ii inch
pro3ectile at the canvas TO get the
range There was a crash, a roar, the
monitor kicked back into the water
and sprang up again, and when the
canvas target came into view il had q
hole through its lower half. Then the
turret Of the Florida was swung around
so that her guns and those of the
Arkansas looked souarely at each
other.
FIRE BIG PRoJECTTLE
At 1912 the big noise" came, two
crashes so close together that they
sounded like one. The IL inch projec-
Z tile had hit it's target II was a crash.
fash and a cloud OF yellow smoke
quietly drifting away over the top OF
the Florida What was left was big
black wound.
Just to the right Of the right gun
there was what looked like a hole The
officers went to the Florida, but before
they got there crew OF 20 or 80 sea-
men from the receiving ship Franklin.
oficered by Commander John G. Quinn
by Lieutenant Joseph Z. Tussig and
a gunner. had come up from the hold
and were looking over the damage
The plate had been broken through
above and just below whore the shell
struck. The broken piece had been
driven into the turret several inches
but not the thickness OF the plate, SO
that no hole was actually made OFF,
GERS entered the turret at once and its
mechanism was operated. the turret
being swung completely around each
way and the left hand gun trained.
But the turret bore evidences of q
fight. The paint along the seams had
disappeared, many OF the seams were
sprung, bolts were ioosened and slivcrs
OF the plate lay around. A board
dummy on the inside was intact and
the opinion Of the officers was that
even with the terrific impact the gun
ners in the turret would not have been
injured The mechanism in the tuIret
bore no outward evidence of the shock
IL had sustained