Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1916-10-20

A Cheer Burst From the Gun Crow
Of the Arizona.
the turret and the yellow light of the
battle lanterns. He took his place at
the real of the guns, and as his men
went to their stations he gazed through
the telescope p~eriscope which let him
look out above the top Of the turret
toward the upper works of the enemy's
vessels far off to the east. He found
himself repeating his directions in a
voice not strange, 1--WE fire at the rear
ship in the Incl"
At his command he felt the mighty
turret revolving slowly beneath him;
the turret trainer and the gun point
ers. at their places at the per1scope
sights, were bringing the three mon
ster guns to bear. Every man was try
ing to be as calm as though the COM
mand which had been repeated was
simply Fire at target No. s." But not
even Holt. the turret captain, who had
made the record for his ship at the last
gun trials on the ranges, was entirely
steady. II Wendell were killed there
was no other officer In the turret to
succeed. The nearest would be Wayne,
the ensign, In the handling room be-
low. Holt set his lips and clinched his
powerful hands. The heat In the tur-
ret was sitting. Fans sucked at the
air, but sweat streamed over the bare
bodies Of the men standing idle-the
sight settlers, the gunner's mates, the
strikers" and the firing pointer, with
the electric buzzer strapped over his
bare chest. rising and falling as he
painted for breath. The sound Of the
Pennsylvania guns came. mufded,
into the turret, but envy for the sister
ship was gone. The Arizona loon
would be in action and would show
them. At the call to battle stations
the Arizona was only a couple Of
thousand yards astern the Pennsyl-
vania, which had just come within ex-
treme range of the enemy But the
enemy's ships were withdrawing. Had
they begun to fee so fast that the Art-
zona would not have a shot?
"Stand by"
Now, initial range twenty thou-
sand; DETECTION, five four!'
The voice which first gave 1t spoke
on the telephone circuit; simultaneous
ly the visual signal clicked and the
range and the DETECTION stood out in
sharp figures in yards and points
100000" DETECTION "k A"-meant four
points to the right A voice, clear and
slow, sounding from the speaking tube
which needed 10 dependence upon
electric circuits-repeated the instruc-
ton.
But the sight settlers, helmeted with.
the telephone headpieces strapped over
their ears, already were making their
adjustment. The distance vas greater
than that at which even first ranging
shots might be fred, but the Arizona
was closing with the enemy, the Car
thage and the two Peras were offering
themselves yet, and the range was
shortening.
"Loadr'
Wendell had heard moments before
the rumbling below, which told that in
the handling room the shells and the
powder bags for his three mighty guns
were waiting upon the cars. He turn
ed from his p%ertscope as the steel traps
to the handling room opened and the
ammunition cars came to place behind
the open breeches of the guns. The
crews, sweating and silent, rammed In
the monster shells, thrust the great
powder bags In behind and closed the
breech of each gun. The ammunition
cars, empty, dropped below, the trap
doors closing above them. At each
gun the plugman put In the primer.
The three f~ourteen-inch guns were
ready, each separated from the next
by a steel bulkhead to limit as much
as possible an accident In the turret-
A few yards farther forward and low
er the three great pieces of No. 1 tur-
ret, too, were ready, their muzzles lift
ed to extreme elevation toward the
eastern sky.
Range, one, nine, o double OF De-
fection five fourT' the telephone said.
The visuals displayed the figures In
black and white again. Commence
firing with one guny' the order came
IN the telephone as the sight settlers
sprang to their sights. The voice tube
repeated the order, and the firing
pointer, holding his electric button in
hand, stopped and strained at his tele-
scope to follow closer the pointing of
the guns. Up and down, up and down,
up and down, as the waves passed IN
der the ship the deck moved, but as 1t
moved and as the ship steamed for
ward and the target ship also moved
the trainer and the gun pointers work
ed ceaselessly turning the turret and
e~levating and lowering the guns to
keep the sights steadily ION" the tar
get, but as the firing pointer crouched
at his telescope the cross hairs which
divided his field Of sight rose now
above the tunnels of the third ship on
fho horizon. Now M tha p1In drOnnad