Democratic Sentinel, Volume 21, Number 15, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 April 1897 — Disappearing and Rapid Fire Cuns. [ARTICLE]

Disappearing and Rapid Fire Cuns.

Charles Rawson Thurston thus describes one phase of Modern Harbor Defenses In St. Nicholas: Various plans have been devised for the building of coast defenses of this kind. Even fighting turrets, like those on monitors, have been suggested and built. Some of them rise into sight only preparatory to the firing of the guns which they contain; Others are somewhat raised above the surface, and the guns disappear for loading. In either case, though, very ponderous and expensive machinery is required for them. A disappearing gun set up in a pit similar to the mortar-pit is more in favor. There are several styles of these with various powers to elevata them, but all are lowered by the recoil of discharge. The Gordon counterpoise carriage is perhaps the most novel. It is fitted for a ten-inch breech-load-ing rifle, the weight of which is about 67,200 pounds. It has an advantage over other patterns in that while being loaded it affords greater protection to itself and to the gunners than the other styles; and this is an important feature. It Is operated by either hand-power or electricity. With the former it has fired thirty-two shots in about an hour; which is considered remarkably rapid firing. But this 1b not all that is needed to make a bay or harbor defensible. These large guns would not be very dangerous to an enemy’s fleet of torpedo boats. These move and tiirn very quickly, and, once past the great guns, the torpedomines might be disposed of without much difficulty. To prevent such action by the enemy, batteries mounting rapid-fire guns are employed. The torpedo boats can change their course with such rapidity that big guns cannot be trained on them quickly enough to be effective, and alongshore—opposite portions of the channel where torpedomines are planted—are needed batteries of these Bmall spitfires. With such a quadruple defense as torpedo-mines, mortar-batteries, disappearing guns of long range, and batteries of rapid-fire guns, a fleet of hostile ships would find it a very difficult task to enter any bay or harbor along the coast. Church cars are a recent Russian improvement. They are Intended for the Siberian Railroad