The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1914-07-29
NARROW EScAf
Hudson Maxim Has Figured
Some Peri!ous Incidents
LUCKY AT. CHEATING DEk

On One Sun resting Uccaslon
den impulse to Run, Which He q
ed, Was the Means Of Saving
Life-A Magazine That Got itsH'
ond Wind.
One of the most thrilling adFetN
in my experience took place at h&
ernment proving grounds at S
Hook, n. J., when the United ~
government was testing ma1imiaS
fore adopting it
Near a light frame building in n
1 was filing shells with maximii
ten inch gun was being tested An
Der of shots had been fred fro%
big gun. Just as l had concaud
work and started for the wharf @
the government tug for New Ye$B
signal was sounded for ;anothe
I was walking along stretch @
way track directly behind the gu
At that instant I remembere&
several years before, when oneo
guns was being tested, the bree
had blown cut, passed fhroug
bombproof and Killed ofhcea
men, but argued wit ..Sseif
chance was Infinitely remote tt III
breechlock would be Eiown out s
present gun on this discharge #
very instant I was in range, but
a sudden impulse ran with 2
might. S
The gun was discharged. z
round just in time to see The
breechlock pass through a build
the one in which I had BEEN 4
It came up the tack, striS
breaking one Of the rails over
had passed. It ricocheted again
top Of the old granite fort and gsS|
high into the air. q shower OF 81
and debris fell over wide area
many fragments struck the gr'
close to me.
walked back to the scene OF fnl
cident and found that the window
the little building where I had Z
filing maximite shells were eomNt
riddled with partly burned cyhnde
smokeless powder that had beensbl
from the gun. s
I once had another curious ez
ence at Sandy Hook during some t
Of the Maxim automatic machinef
Among the severe tests to whiG
gun was subjected was one intend!
simulate what might occur n ul9
a landing upon the seashore, whaS&
mechanism of the gun might getS
with sand. The test is known az
sand test" e
The gun being tested at the tins
Of the kind using black gunpd
cartridges. for it was before the II
duction Of smokeless powder: Il
was so much energy in the rec#
the barrel that q great deal OF
could be thrown into the mech@|
without interfering with the wd
Of the gun. b
The commanding officer did M
rive to see the gun fred until aft
board in charge had completed th
He then appeared and demandeS
the firing should be continued f
benefit. The chairman of the eli
mental board demurred, saying#
the gun had passed through tt1@
admirably and that it was too b
fire 1t more than was absolutely ii
sary. with its mechanism filed
sand. But the commander insist
A schooner was approaching
the line Of fire. The commander
he only wanted to see few Ell
fred and that the firing would be-
pleted before the schooner would a
within range. Accordingly a bS$|
333 rounds was inserted, and the f
begun. After perhaps fifty rounds
fred the command was given : tx %#
firing" but the gun kept right OH
afterward proved that the trigge&
blocked by sand, SO that 1t was n
sible to Stop the gun. The schs
came into range, and the bulletS
over and around her. e
My assistant, who was firing the
did his best to work the trigge4
stop it. 1t did not occur to him M
instant to unlimber the gun ard #
it round so as to bring the SCI
out Of range. As the gun fred
rate of $50 shots a minute the &
was all over inside half minute M
Fortunately no damage was &
When the same gun was underso
sand test at Annapolis, Md, ! II
very near being killed by it
The gun had passed successS
through severe sand test. but
officer in charge wanted to see wS!
er he could put enough sand sntf
gun to stop it., So he had the guIE
filed full. The gun fred abouT
rounds and then stopped. My assiN
threw down the safe-that is to&
locked the trigger, so that it could
be pulled-and began clearing theS
box.
Thinking that the gun was sas
was just about to step round in +
Of it.: Suddenly it fred a dozen
more shots so close to me that
clothes were scared by the poR
gases.
One of the tests made at Annal
was to fire Il Maxim gun yertid
into the mir. We had fred coupg
hundred shots in this manner, "
something struck very near us.
then occurred to the officer in chs
that what goes up must necessa
come down. Firing ceased, and
sought cover for i few minutes
avoid the leaden rain.-Fudson Ma:
in Youths Companion.
The best remedy for wrongs done
is to forget them.--Syrus.