241 
THE EIG-HTY-TON HUH, OR WOOLWICH INFANT. 
Br Captain C. 0 . BROWNE, R.A. 
[PLATE CXXXYII.] 
T HE appellation of the “Woolwich Infant 5 ’ was originally 
given to the first 35-ton gun. We are now about to con- 
sider a “ new arrival ” of not only vastly greater power, but one 
which, starting in certain respects, as it does, on new conditions, 
may be regarded as the herald of a race of giants. 
The circumstances which have called the 80-ton gun into 
existence are those under which the struggle for supremacy 
between guns and armour is now carried on. It becomes 
necessary, therefore, to glance briefly at the stage of development 
to which this branch of warfare has been pushed. 
Our first armour-plated vessel, the Warrior, was commissioned 
about 1861. She carried 4^-inch plates on the greater part of 
her sides, with 1 8 inches of teak backing and j-inch inner skin of 
iron. This was found to resist fairly the attacks of 7 -inch 
Armstrong breech-loading guns and 68-pounder smooth-bores, 
except at very close distances. Gfreat strides were shortly 
made in the manufacture of guns ; but at the same time the 
naval constructors arrived at such forms and designs for vessels 
as enabled them to carry much heavier armour, decreasing the 
surface of the side to be plated by lowering the freeboard, by 
shortening the entire vessel, and further by greatly diminishing 
the size of the batteries requiring to be surrounded, as it were, 
with an iron wall. This was done by drawing the guns into a 
centre battery, or placing them in turrets on Captain Cole’s 
system. Thus it has come to pass that in our fleet, at this 
present time, we have on the one hand the Warrior and the 
Minotaur or Northumberland class of ships, with 4J inches of 
iron and 7-inch (Woolwich) guns of 64 tons weight, aud on the 
other hand the Devastation , Thunderer , and Glatton , with 14 
inches of plate and 35 and 38-ton guns ; while the Inflexible is 
now being constructed with 24 inches of armour laid on in two 
plates of 12 inches each, and is to carry 80-ton guns. So rapid 
VOL. xv. — no. lx. n 
