The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1912-11-15
LOADING BIC Guns
They Get Quick Action ON the
Modern Monster Warship.
STORY OF A PRACTICE DRILL.
What Happened After the Order to
"Fire!" Was Very Different From
What Would Have Occurred Had
Cordito and ProjeotiIes Been Used.

| The order Is given to load. Some one
touches lever, and with hiss mass
OF bright steel turns and twists back
and the breech Of the gun gapes open
Another touch on the lever, and frorl
beside you hydraulic ram shoots out
like golden tongue into the breecn
and Immediately shoots back again,
All is clear. Now, at your very feet,
hole gapes I'm the floor of the turret,
there Is a slat and crash Of metal, and
as you look down into the hole you see
small lift travelling up with incred-
ible rapidity and internal clatter bear
ing on 1t the immense projectile, weigh
ing more than seven hundredweight,
and, I'm another compartment, the two
cartridges Of cordte.
Up comes the lift locks itself with a
crash and spills out the projectile on n
metal tray In line with the open breech
The golden tongue of the rammer
shoots out again and pushes the pro
jectile into the gaping breech. extend
ing itself apparently indefinitely until
lift shifts little. bringing into line
with the gun It's other compartment.
which contains the two half charges,
each a cylinder holding 1870 pounds OF
cordite. Out shoots the ram again,
with no more respect for them than II
they had been sponges, and pushes
them steadily home behind the projec-
tile, and, having done It's deadly bust
ness, retires again out of the way to bs
ready for another cycle Of the same OPP
erations.
Half a turn Of the wheel, and the
breech block swings home with sigh
and a click. Right gun loaded, sir"
Now you wait In suspense, and a voica
In the coming tower gives the range
$500 yards. The gun layer In his quiet
eye from the glass. He turns one
wheel, and the whole turret swings
round over the ships quarter; he turns
another, and with little hiss and sigh
of imprisoned water the whole mighty
tonnage Of the gun, sweetly balanced
on its trunnlons, rises and tilts itself
to the push of the hydraulic press.
The range Is decreasing by some thir-
ty yards n second. since the target Is
a ship approaching us ut a speed equal
to our own-fifteen knots-and as the
falling ranges are given the gun metal
wheel Is turned an eighth or n quarter
Of an inch, and the muzzle Of the gun
sinks down little rs gently as a fan
ing leaf: The sights are reported on
the gun laid, and the word we have all
"Flrev' The gun layer pulls trigger
no bigger than that Of pistol and
The projectle was a dummy one
made of wood covered with leather,
and there was no cordlte I'm the car
tridges. If II had been otherwise the
pictures that adorned the commanders
room, the mirrors and toilet accesso-
ries on the cabin tables and the va
rious elegant adornments Of the cap
tain's suit would unless they had been
packed away have come
crashing down from their places, and
the navigating commander, who hap
pened ut the time to be explaining to
an unwilling listener on the quarter
deck by what skill and foresight hs
had avoided setting the ships stern on
have been blown Off the deck.
These things were unnecessary, for
| quite understood. The click and 81
lence that followed the word "Firev'
were quite eloquent enough to me Of
all the shattering damnation they rep
projectile weighing $50
pounds hurtling to It's mark at the
rate Of almost thousand yards sec
Dnd.
But we In the turret would have :,
known nothing, for before II had reach
ed the target the breech block would
have opened to the screech OF the air
blast which cleans out the burning
fragments OF cordite in the breech. the
rammer would have shot In with its
mop and out again. the ammuniti'
hoist would have come Gathering and
up, another proiectile would
have rolled into the tray with another
.wo hundredweight of death packed
behind Il, the rammer would have
pushed IL home with n kick. the block
would have swung to again the great
gun would have been sighted and
swung In the air. again the word would
nave been given. and again the frag.
nent Of concentrated power that men
had toiled In factories and drawing Of
ices. In laboratories and foundries to
perfect would have been sent winging
through the sea air to spend itself In
destruction.
And only one man in the turret would
nave seen Its fate; only he with his
,ye to the telescope, who had seen the
null Of that ship In the distance cover
ng the threadlike cross on his glass
Is he pulled the trigger, would see and
yuess when the distant target would