I
shall say nothing of boilers and magazines, but shall state simply the
damage to guns and gunners.
A target was built representing the side of a certain class of unarmored
ships of war; behind this target, as on a deck, were placed some
unserviceable guns, mounted on old carriages, and surrounded by wooden
dummies, to represent the men working the guns. The attacking gun was a
twelve-ton nine-inch muzzle-loader, of the old despised type, and the
projectiles were shrapnel shell. The charges were reduced to represent
the striking force at a range of 500 yards. Two rounds did the following
damage inside, besides tearing and ripping the ship's side in all
directions.
1st Gun.--Seven men of detachment killed.
2d Gun.--Carriage destroyed. Six men blown to pieces, all the remainder
of the detachment severely hit.
3d Gun.--No damage to gun or carriage. Five men killed, one blown to
bits, and one wounded in leg.
4th Gun.--Gun dismounted. The whole of the gun detachment blown to
pieces.
That is the amount of destruction achieved in an unarmored ship by two
rounds of shrapnel shell.
* * * * *
OSCILLATING CYLINDER LOCOMOTIVE.
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