Rockingham post-dispatch. [volume] (Rockingham, N.C.) 1917-1965, 1918-05-09

ducks a1Vunu me traverse nearest TO
them. They don't like the looks and
sound of the burning fuse. When that
fuse begins to smoke and "sizz" you
want to say good-by to 1t as soon as
possible, so Tommy with all his might
chucks 1t over the top and crouches
against the parapet, waiting for the
explosion.
Lots of times in bombing the "jam|
tin" would be picked up by the GER
mans, before 1t exploded, and thrown
back at Tommy with dire results.
After lot of men went West in this
manner an order was issued, reading
something like this:
ITO all ranks in the British army i
After igniting the fuse and before
throwing the jam-tin bomb, count
slowly one! two! three!"
This in order to give the fuse timel
enough to burn down, so that the bomb
would explode before the Germans
could throw 1t back.
Tommy read the order-he reads
| them all, but after he ignited the fusel
and it began to smoke-orders were
forgotten, and away she went in record
time and back she came to the further
| discomfort of the thrower
Then another order was issued to|
count, tone hundred! two hundred \
! three hundred" But Tommy didn't
care If the order read to count up tOI
! q thousand by quarters, he was gotlgl
to get rid of that "jam tin," becauseI
from experience he had learned not
to trust it.
When the powers that be realized
that they could not change Tommy
they decided to change the type Of
bomb and did so-substituting the
chair brush" the "cricket ball." and
later the Mills bomb.
The standard bomb used in the Brit
ish army is the mills" 1t is about the
shape and size of large lemon. AL
though not actually lemon, Fritz in
sists that 1t is; perhaps he judges 1t
by the havoc caused by its explosion.
The Mills bomb is made Of steel, the
outside Of which is corrugated into AZ
small squares, which, upon the explO-
sion Of the bomb, scatter in a wide
area, wounding or killing any Fritz
who is unfortunate enough to be hit
by one of the flying fragments. !
Although very destructive and eff
ficlent bomb the mills" has the con-
fidence Of the thrower, in that he
knows it will not explode until re-
leased from his grip.
It Is a mechanical device, with 3
lever, fitted into slot at the top,
which extends half way around the
circumference and is held in place at
the bottom by fixing pin. In this pin
there is small metal ring, for the
purpose Of extracting the pin when
ready to throw.
You do not throw bomb the way a
baseball is thrown, because, when in
a narrow trench, your hand is liable
to strike against the parados, traverse
or parapet, and then down goes the
bomb, and, In a couple of seconds or
SO, up goes Tommy.
In throwing, the bomb and lever are
grasped fl the right hand, tne left foot
is advanced, knee stiff, about one and
q half its length to the front, while
the right leg, knee bent, is carried
slightly to the right. The left arm Isl
extended at an angle Of As Degrees
pointing IN the direction the bomb is to
be thrown. This position is similar
to that Of shot putting, only that the
right arm is extended downward. Then
You hurl the bomb from you with an
overhead bowling motion, the same as
in cricket, throwing 1t fairly high In
the air, this in order to give the fuse
a chance to burn down so that when
the bomb lands, It Immediately ext
| piooes and gives the Germans no time
to scamper out Of Its range or to re-
turn 1t.
As the bomb leaves your hand, the
lever, by means Of a spring, Is projected
into the air and falls harmlessly to
the ground few feet In front Of the
bomber.
When the lever flies off 1t releases
a strong spring, which forces the firing
pin into percussion cap. This ignites
the fuse, which burns down and sets
on the detonator, charged with fulmi-
nate Of mercury, which explodes the
main charge Of ammonia.
The average British soldier is not an
expert at throwing; it is a new game
to him, therefore the Canadians and
Americans, who have played baseball
from the kindergarten up, take natu-
rally to bomb throwing and excel in
this act. A six-foot English bomber
will stand In awed silence when he
sees little five-foot-nothing Canadian
outdistance his throw By several yards.
have read few war stories Of bomb.
Ing, where baseball pitchers curved
their bombs when throwing them, but
a pitcher who can do this would make
"Christy" Mathewson look like piker
and is losing valuable time playing in
the European War bush league, when
he would be able to set the ''bis
league" on fire.
We had cushy time while at this