Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1914-09-11
WORK OF SARAPNEL
One Of the Most Dreadful |nstru.
ments Of War.
Properly Fired, Il Distributes a Large
Number q P-oJeetiles, Each One
Of Whiec 70 Capable Of Kill
Inu q Man.

Of Whier 10 Capable OF Kill
Ing a Man.
The shrapnel vies with the rife bull
let in the European catastrophe. II
is one OF the dread Instruments OF bat
tie. Its wounds are uglier than those
made by bullets flying at ripping
speed from the barrels OF high-power
rifles. It may not kill 80 many men
as rifle bullets, but it is deadly enough
1t is a mankiller that represents the
highest art and attainment In heio
cannon ammunition. and where 1t does
not kill it's threat is 80 menacing tnat
1t tends to break down the morale OK
seasoned troops.
The popular understanding OF
shrapnel, at least in the United States
where military education or 1nstruc'
ton has been limited to small part
Of the population, is meager and de.
fective. The average man has heard
of grape and canister. The genesis OF
the shrapnel may be found in those
forms of ammunition. Canister was
fred from smoothbore guns and the
dispersion Of the shots began direct
ly on leaving the gun, 50 that 1t was
effective only at short ranges. The
shrApnel is effective OF any range
within the power of the gun, though
its maximum of effectiveness depends
on the interval Of the burst. the height
of burst and the angle Of fall. Inc
height OF burst can be controlled at
the gun and the slope Of fall Is de-
pendent on the range, the slope IN
creasing with the range.
Capt William l. Westervelt of the
United States artillery, In little pub
lication issued by the war department
entitled "Gunnery and Explosives for
Field Artillery Officers" says:
The attack Of personnel would be very
difficult matter without shrapnel. The
high explosive effect Of percussion shell
10 restricted to a very small area, where
as the shrapnel burst properly In air,
distributes a large number Of projectiles
each one Of which Is capable OF killing
man or horse at reasonable distances
from the point Of burst.
The shrapnel case il the vehicle for the
transfer Of the shrapnel balls from gun
TO bursting point. At this, point the pow
der charge In its base Ii ignited ana the
balls are driven out with increased Velo-
city and initial direction. The projectile
has a motion Of rotation due to which the
bon from the tra1eC-
tory which the shrapnel would have fol-
lowed had it not burst in the air. The
path Of all the shrapnel balls taken col
lectiyely form cone called the cone OF
dispersion. The ground section OF thls
cone is an irregular oval with its longer
axis approximately in the plane OF fire.
The dimensions Of this section Will vary
with the angle of fall. the height OF burst
the slope Of the ground and the relation
between the linear and rotational Veloci-
Ties at instant of time OF burst.
The shrapnel case Is Of steel, with
solid base. Around it is copper band,
called the rotating band" which,
when the case is forced through the
gun, takes" the rifling Of the gun and
gives to the shrapnel the rotary mo-
ton which keeps it true on its course.
In the base of the steel case, which Is
cylindrical with pointed head, is
charge OF powder called the bursting
charge In front Of that is thick
steel disk called a diaphragm, and In
front of that are 252 lead and anti
mony balls, each Of 167 grains weight.
These balls are imbedded in a matrix,
once called a Smoke producing ma
trix," that the point Of burst might be
seen from the gun, but lately that
matrix has been replaced with one OF
q high explosive.
In the head of the steel case Is
mechanical fuse, known as ring or
dial fuse, In which the time train Is
set by turning a graduated ring which
carries part Of the time train. The
time action of the fuse Is set in oper-
alton by the firing Of the gun. Run
ming through the center Of the mass
of balls and their matrix from the
bursting charge In the base OF the
case to the fuse is slender steel
tube. When the time train in the fuse
has burned the number of parts of
seconds required for the given range,
flame passes back through the steel
tube, igniting the bursting charge.
which forces the steel disk forward,
carrying the shrapnel balls before It
and stripping of the fused head of the
shrapnel case. If the fuse has been
set for q greater number of sixths OF
seconds than required for the flight
from gun to target the shrapnel bursts
ON impact with the effect, or nearly
the effect. OF high explosive shell.
The matrix around the balls which a
few years ago was naphthaline, pro-
duclng ball Of dense, white smoke 1T
the point where the shrapnel burst, is
now a high explosive called trinitro-
toluol, an explosive formed by acting
upon toluene with nitric acid.
The shrapnel may be burst at any
part Of it's path desired, but 10 most
effective If burst three yards high at
1000 yards range. six yards high at
1000 yards, nine yards high At 5000
and IL yards high ut 1000. The front
swept by the balls is 20 yards wide
and the depth Of the zone covered de-
ponds on the steepness with which the
shrapnel is coming down at the end of
It's path and that steepness increases
AZ the range IL heightened. The burst
ing charge In the shrapnel balls gives
to them a velocity Of about 400 SEQ,
ond more than the unbursted shrapnel
had, so that the velocity of the balls
at the end Of the longest range Of the
gun Is great enough to kill a man or