April 9, 1 88 5 J 



NA TURE 



53i 



visited, where they enjoyed the privilege of carrying on 

 their investigations within the works. " It may be dis- 

 tinctly asserted that the experiences enjoyed by the Board 

 during its visit amounted to a revelation " (page 633). 



"The distinguishing characteristics of the Whitworth 

 fluid-compressed steel are homogeneity, strength, and 

 ductility. It is made of various tempers to suit all pur- 

 poses, particularly where it is exposed to sudden and 

 violent strains. . . . No other metal possesses the same 

 endurance" (page 633). Sir Joseph Whitworth is said 

 to have remarked that, " Guns of enormous size are now 

 being made at Woolwich at an enormous expenditure. . . . 

 But if monster guns were wanted, they could be made at 

 far less cost by means of the Siemens-Martin process and 

 fluid compression. Supposing a hoop was wanted, say, 

 20 tons weight, the time required for its production would 

 not, commencing with the raw material, he believes, be 

 more than one-tenth the time required by the forging, coil- 

 ing, and welding processes. . . . The Board witnessed the 

 operations of casting followed by that of liquid compres- 

 sion, the enlarging of hoops, the drawing out of cylinders, 

 and the forging of a solid ingot. The unanimous opinion 

 of the members is that the system of Sir Joseph Whit- 

 worth surpasses all other methods of forging, and that it 

 gives better promise than any other of securing that 

 uniformity so indispensable in good gun metal " (page 

 642). 



In France, as in England, the most friendly welcomes 

 were tendered to the Board. The Government lias ob- 

 tained an immense increase of its resources by encoiu 

 private industries. The foundry at Ruelle has become the 

 principal, if not the only, establishment for the manu- 

 facture of the larger calibres designed for the navy and 

 coast. 



" It contains the most remarkable collection of tools of 

 the age. They are designed for guns of 34 cm. (l3'4 in.) 

 and upwards, and have a capacity for handling guns of 

 160 tons in weight and 60 feet in length " (page 688). 



" It seems as if in France the happy mean his been 

 reached by which the Government and the private indus- 

 tries can work harmoniously towards the accomplishment 

 of a national object. In a combined system of this kind, 

 it is very important to be assured that there exist mutual 

 checks which act to prevent one party imposing improper 

 or hard terms on the other" (page 689). 



For tubes and hoops for large guns the supply is limited 

 to the works at St. diamond and at Le Creusot ; the 

 former having a steam hammer of 80 tons and the latter, 

 one of 100 tons. At Le Creusot are situated the most 

 important steel-works in France. " Ai no other place in 

 the world is steel handled in such masses, and it is safe 

 to say that no proposed work can be of such magnitude 

 as to exceed the resources of the establishment " (page 

 693)- There is assembled an array of steam hammers not 

 equalled in the world. They have three cranes capable of 

 sustaining 100 tons, and one 160 tons. For the prepara- 

 tion of metal for cannon and armour-plates Le Creusot is 

 thoroughly equipped. 



Little need be said of German}-, as that country depends 

 almost entirely upon Krupp's establishment for the supply 

 of its guns, and the Board were not allowed to examine 

 his works, for they were informed that the works at Essen 

 cannot be seen, as " these are closed to all but those who 

 have special business of inspection of war material on 

 order." Krupp enjoys great advantages in having practis- 

 ing grounds at Meppen ioi miles long, and at Dalmen of 

 4\ miles. Xear thirty years ago Krupp planned his 50-ton 

 hammer. He is constructing a 121-ton 16-inch gun of 

 35 calibres length for the Italian Government. 



The Russians formerly patronised Krupp, but of late 

 they have begun to manufacture guns at home, with the 

 assistance of private firms. Like many of the great steel- 

 works of Europe, the establishment at Aboukhoff is in a 

 transition state. They possess ten steam hammers, vary- 



ing from a i-ton to a 50-ton. The most important im- 

 provement which has recently been introduced is Sir J. 

 Whitworth's system of liquid compression. 



Certain recommendations are made respecting the pro- 

 duction of guns for the United States. As examples of a 

 practical partnership between a Government and a private 

 company, in working towards a national object, the ex- 

 periences in England and Russia are very instructive, and 

 warn against the adoption of such a system. As an 

 example of depending almost entirely on private works, 

 Germany is a perfect instance. As an example of depend- 

 ing alone on Government works France was a perfect 

 instance before the Franco-German war. " How entirely 

 France has now altered her system is shown in a previous 

 part of this report ; her present practice is theoretically 

 perfect, and it has proved to be practically efficient. Her 

 Government establishments are still retained, but as gun 

 factories simply, in which the parts are machined and 

 assembled, but for foundry work she depends upon the 

 private industries of the country" (page 843). But still 

 the Government is careful to secure good advice in con- 

 trolling these private establishments, for on one occasion 

 it was considered desirable to require the steel to be 

 supplied to be subjected to additional tests. When the 

 steel manufacturers at home resisted this the Government 

 gave the contract to a foreign firm which was willing to 

 comply with their requirements. 



An inquiry, instituted in 1S82, showed that the cost of 

 steel construction in Europe was then as follows :— Krupp, 

 5 1 to 60 cents (26^. to 30^.) per pound ; Whitworth, 38 cents 

 (i9</.) per pound ; Woolwich guns, 30^ cents (15^.) per 

 pound ; Land service guns (France) 48 cents (24//.) per 

 pound ; but, it is added, the price of French construction 

 has been greatly reduced (page S52). 



From the short extracts we have been able to give from 

 this most important and instructive work it must be 

 apparent that the private firms in Germany and France 

 are much in advance of those in England in respect of 

 the magnitude of the steel- works they are able to execute, 

 but only in consequence of Government encouragement 

 and patronage. There are in those countries steam 

 hammers in operation at least double the weight of any in 

 use in this country. And yet, it must be remarked, these 

 hammers are of English invention, and that the best 

 armour-plates manufactured on the continent are made 

 according to an English patent. The Bessemer process 

 and the Siemens furnace are there much used. But it is 

 equally plain that we have at Manchester and Sheffield 

 several firms capable of successfully competing with the 

 world, if they receive that support which a Government 

 only can give. 



After the failure of the no-pounder B.L. Armstrong 

 gun above noticed, it is remarkable how suddenly the 

 system was abandoned. It was quite plain that the evil 

 arose from the obstruction to the initial motion of the 

 shot, and from the enormous friction all along the bore. 

 But there seems to have been no real effort made to 

 remedy this evil. If the lead coating did not prove satis- 

 factory, why not rifle a condemned gun on the shunt 

 principle and try studded shot? The original B.L. guns 

 seem to have been much better proportioned guns than the. 

 M.L. guns which superseded them, for in a lecture de- 

 livered before the Koyal United Service Institution about 

 1873, it is remarked that " A long B.L. 40-pounder con- 

 verted into a M.L. 47-pounder is remarkable for the small 

 amount of resistance it gives, and for its great accuracy of 

 fire. . . . The regularity of the resistance of the air is also 

 very remarkable," i.e., when compared with the shooting 

 of service M.L. guns of the same date. There is no 

 known reason why this gun shot so well, except from its 

 1 :i.' length. But the hint was not attended to. And the 

 shortness of the English M.L. guns has been often re- 

 marked. Thus at the famous contest at Tegel, in 1868, 

 between a 9-inch i2i-ton M.L. "Woolwich" gun costing 



