NAVIES OF EUROPE. 



581 



34,000 foot-tons. Two shots were fired, the 

 first with the Whitworth compressed-steel pro- 

 jectile, and the second with the Gregorini cast- 

 steel. The former penetrated the plate only 

 8 inches, and was itself shortened 16 inches, 

 bulging out in spherical form ; the latter pene- 

 trated 13 inches, and then broke off, being also 

 badly blunted. The result of these experi- 

 ments was to turn the scale, for the time at 

 least, in favor of the resisting power of ar- 

 mor-plates, as against the penetrating force of 

 ordnance. 



HANDLING THE GUN. On the following day, 

 at Spezia, there was another important and in- 

 teresting series of experiments in the trial of 

 the new Armstrong breech loading 100-ton 

 guns intended for the Italia and Lepranto. 

 This monstrous piece of ordnance is composed 

 for more than half its weight of steel, the rest 

 being wrought-iron. The inner tube and the 

 nest tube which embraces it are both of steel, 

 and on the exterior of the gun are rings of the 

 same material. Its principal dimensions are 

 as follow : Length over all, 468 inches ; length 

 of bore (26 calibers), 442 inches; length of 

 rifling, 335*4 inches; diameter at muzzle, 33'3 

 inches; diameter at breech, 65'5 inches; di- 

 ameter of bore, 17 inches ; diameter of powder- 

 chamber, 19*5 inches. One of the most inter- 

 esting points with regard to the gun is the 

 method of mounting it. The usual trunnions 

 are entirely absent. The gun lies imbedded 

 on a sort of sledge-carriage, which is a mass of 

 steel weighing about fourteen tons. Project- 

 ing rings, which form part of the gun, rest in 

 grooves, and prevent any backward or forward 

 motion of the piece on the carriage, and rota- 

 tory motion is prevented by strong steel straps. 

 Thus the gun and carriage are securely bound 

 together, having their axes parallel, and recoil 

 together in the same direction. The carriage 

 rests and slides upon the planed surface of two 

 cast-steel beams of about ten tons weight each. 

 They are held together by the recoil-press, and 

 their front ends pivot vertically on a massive 

 hinge. Thus the axes of the gun, the carriage, 

 the recoil-press, and the slide are all parallel, 

 whatever the elevation, and the difficulty of 

 restraining the rotatory motion caused in other 

 systems by recoil is completely got rid of. The 

 whole weight is taken by two powerful hy- 

 draulic presses, which work always together, 

 being acted upon by one common supply-pipe. 

 If the muzzle of the gun is to be elevated, the 

 hydraulic rams sink, and the slide, pivoting on 

 its front end, is lowered in rear, carrying with 

 it recoil-press, gun, and carriage. The reverse 

 takes place when the gun is to be depressed. 

 By this simple arrangement a host of difficul- 

 ties are at once eliminated, and some terrible 

 strains removed from the system. And not 

 only is there the advantage of harmonious re- 

 coil, but the pivoting on the end of the slide 

 enables the gun to be fired through a very 

 small port, which it would fill almost com- 

 pletely. The loading arrangements are also 



extremely simple, and present some features 

 of novelty. With the exception of bringing 

 up the ammunition and ramming, which are 

 performed by another hydraulic apparatus, the 

 whole business of opening and closing the 

 breech is performed by two levers close to- 

 gether, which are worked by one man. He 

 can not make a mistake, for nothing can be 

 moved out of its proper order, and, whatever 

 position a lever may be in at the end of its last 

 movement, the next act is performed merely 

 by pushing or pulling the lever to the opposite 

 side. One pair of levers works the whole 

 breech-closing apparatus, prepares the gun for 

 loading, or opens the breech after discharge. 

 Another pair of levers runs the gun out and 

 in, and elevates or depresses it. It is impossi- 

 ble to run it back or forward too far, and the 

 whole mighty mass of metal may be managed 

 by the hand of a lady, who can not possibly make 

 a mistake. All the movements involved in open- 

 ing the breech, withdrawing the breech-screw, 

 replacing and closing the breech, can be per- 

 formed in less than one minute. No damage 

 can be done in the heat of action, and the gun 

 can not be fired till the operation of loading 

 and closing the breech has been completely 

 performed. 



The motive power in the processes of load- 

 ing and laying the gun is hydraulic pressure, 

 the mechanism for which is not attached to 

 the gun itself. The hydraulic pumps are 

 worked by a small steam-engine, which is 

 governed in its rate of work by the pressure 

 of water produced. It never ceases work, 

 but, when no movement is required of any 

 of the parts, its action is feeble, and only- 

 keeps up a certain normal pressure. But if 

 any motion of the system is required and the 

 touch of a lever opens the way for water to 

 create that motion, the engine instantly sets 

 off briskly and continues to act till the cessa- 

 tion of movement tells it that its services are 

 no longer required. It then drops back at 

 once to its slow and feeble action. The en- 

 gine is seated on a tank, from which the 

 pumps draw their water, and to which the 

 water is returned after being exhausted from 

 the various cylinders and pipes. Behind and 

 across the breech of the gun, but entirely sep- 

 arate from it, is a slide-bed similar to that of 

 a lathe, and on this bed moves a saddle which 

 carries the loading-tube and a rest for the 

 breech-screw when drawn out of the gun. By 

 touching the levers for elevating and running 

 back, the gun is brought into the loading posi- 

 tion exactly. A touch of another lever brings 

 the saddle into its proper position, unlocking 

 and turning the breech-screw as it comes. A 

 touch on the third lever brings up a piston 

 from the rear and makes it engage a catch in 

 the breech-screw. The same lever moved in 

 the opposite direction draws out the breech- 

 screw upon a bed made to receive it on the 

 saddle, which is then drawn out of the way by 

 a reverse movement of the lever which brought 



