Big Guns. 133 



We have "disappearing carriages," by means of which the gun 

 can be dropped down out of sight, and out of horizontal fire of the 

 enemy — Major King's counterpoise carriage for muzzle loaders, 

 and the Elswick hydro-pneumatic carriage for breech-loaders. 

 They are protected with armor-plated shields or turrets. 



We have the Gruson armored battery, with embrasures of chilled 

 iron, a model of which is to be seen at the Exposition building in 

 Cincinnati. 



To operate the very big guns, we require complicated carriages, 

 on which the gun is mounted with hydraulic jacks for liftmg, pneu- 

 m itic cylinders for checking recoil, and various levers for moving 

 the gun by hand, for opening and closing the breech, hoisting and 

 inserting the charge - machines which require for their manipula- 

 tion and repair a skilled mechanical engineer. 



Othef nations have tliese war appliances, and we are compelled 

 to keep pace with them or be at their mercy in time of war. 



The multiplicity of devices displayed in the War Department 

 Exhibit of the Centennial Exposition, demonstrates the necessity of 

 complete records, and of life study on the part of a certain set of 

 officers, whose attention is constantly directed to these subjects. 



.The big guns of our late war were not of long life. One thou- 

 sand rounds is considered the average life of such guns, but the 

 R fled Parrott Guns — too, 200 and 300 pounders — which we used 

 at the bombardment of Charleston,- S. C, many of them endured 

 not more than 100 rounds. The first 200 pound gun placed in tlie 

 Swamp Angel Battery, burst on the thirty-sixth round. 



On the south end of Morris Island 24 bursted guns lay in frag- 

 ments, and one a disabled Witworth gun. With many the butt-end 

 of the breech was blown out of the wrought-iron jacket or reinforce. 

 In others the body of the gun, owing to a transverse strain, was 

 split into fragments along the lines of the axis of the bore. The 

 gro )ves much eroded and the lands worn flat. These guns are 

 quite ex[)ensive machines, for the new steel guns of Krupp cost 

 about $1,000 per ton. 



The fuzes necessary to explode the shells on their striking the 

 point aimed at, are exhibited in great numbers, and are wonderful 

 in contrivance. 



We have three kinds, viz., time, percussion and concussion 

 fuzes. 



Among the best are the time fuzes, combined with the Laidley 

 friction igniter, as seen in the Eureka Fuse. 



