DIRECTIONS FOR BUILDING A BATTERY. 417 



fourteen to sixteen inches wide, can be used at the 

 foot in place of the double foot wing. Sometimes 

 an additional row of lead is put on about the middle 

 of the platform as an additional breakwater. 



The battery is anchored at both ends. From the 

 head of the fender a sort of bridle, a short rope tied 

 into the two corners, is fastened at the center or 

 bight to the anchor rope. A small grapnel or light 

 anchor is used at the head, as it is important that it 

 should not drag, while at the stern, to a rope led 

 through a hole in the foot board, a stone is fastened. 

 This is arranged in this way as it is occasionally 

 necessary to haul it in and throw it out again on a 

 change of wind. The entire surface of the battery, 

 wings and all, is to be painted a dull blue, as near 

 the color of the water as .possible. The necessary 

 iron decoys, to bring the whole structure down to a 

 level with the water, are set upon the platform, and 

 the stand of stools, not less than a hundred and 

 fifty, and double that number is better, are placed 

 around the battery, mostly at the foot and towards 

 the left side if the shooter is right-handed. A bot- 

 tom board of half-inch stuff, with half-inch cleats 

 under it, is put in the bottom of the box for the 

 gunner to lie on, and all is ready for the exercises to 

 begin. A sink-box made on this plan will stand 

 quite a heavy sea, but care must be exercised in tak- 

 ing it up that the wind does not get under the fen- 

 der when it is being hauled aboard the sailing vessel, 

 that is ordinarily used in this kind of shooting, for 

 if it does, and it is blowing at all hard, the fender, 



