The Raymer enterprise., 1915-10-14

tiie Tor, even II the defense is not penetrated
'"e resultant shock is as serious as puiie'
wound II is therefore this glancing surface
winch should be studied II armour Is to have any
place in modern warfare. and metal OF high
temper and light in weight should be employed
IL Is unthnkabe that such defenses will ever be
onlcially recognized for, II issued on large
scale. they would greatly impede the mobility OF
troops already carrying more dead weight than
ala the soldier OF the sixteenth century in his
suit OF halfarmor II such contrivances are pur,
chased privately exhaustive test should be in.
sisted upon and proof should be recorded By
some responsible body. 1t was In the days Of
Charles !. when the Armorers company OF Lon.
don were ordered 10 carry out such tests and
stamp all armor that satisfied the conditions
with their mark II these defenses are care.
lessly made of Indifferent material they will as.
suredly be far more of danger than a protec.
ton.
II is impossible to criticize the modern produc.
tions without seeing them in actual use in the
trenches. but it would seem that the pistol
shield with crossed bars is in direct opposition
to the theory that the "glancing surface is OF
Importance, for here wherever the bullet strikes,
II will deliver the full force Of its blow and will
not fly of at a tangent as 1t would from Henry
Wits pistol shield which is preserved in the
Tower. The plain skull-cap seems to fulfill the
required conditions. except that II should be
provided with brm curving outward. like the
chapel de fer of the sixteenth century The
French helmet appears to provide some lodg.
ments for the bullet in the straight brim and
high comb. but again It should be noted that 1t Is
impossible to criticize practically until the de.
tense is seen In action.
Besides the ordinary body armor of the iate
seventeenth century In the Tower collection
there are few interesting specimens of siege
implements which were the precursors of modern
contrvanees. The chevaux de frise of the days
of Wellington are series Of sergeants' pixies
Joined by horizontal rods, and arranged that
they can be stretched across road or the breach
in wall as protection against eavalry-an an.
ticipation of the present barbed wire entangle.
ment The sappers' mantes of leather and iron
have continued in use from the time of the Ro.
mans up to today. and the weighty trappings
that were used in the middle OF the seventeenth
century show that even then armor was serious.
ly used in the trench work. Several OF the eight.
eenth century muskets in the Tower of London
have brass cups liked to the barrel or butt from
which grenades thrown necessary precau.
tion when the fuse used was the slow match
Step by step we can trace the evolution OF mill
tary invention, and 1t is peculiarly interesting
to find that today. in the light of all our scien
tihc knowledge and experience we are suddenly
forced back to make OF appliances OF four
hundred years ago which we had but recently
stigmatized relics of barbarism.
The facts show that from the stone age onward
armor never became extinct. 1t has always been
worn. At the present day. to be sure. 1t appears
less for service than as q uniform of the body
guard OF royalty And you recall that corselet
and steel headpiece are still seen in St. James
park or In Potsdam. or indeed In Republican