BATTLE PRACTICE

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2156, 23 May 1914, Page 6

BATTLE PRACTICE

BY HARBOUR FORTS S.S. DEVON UNDER FIRE CAPITAL SHOOTING STORM CURTAILS PROGRAMME. Owing to the extreme violence of the weather, tho programme of big gun practice'at tho forts yesterday had to bo considerably modified and . reduced. Before General Sir lan Hamilton arrived at Fort Dorset it'seemed very , a possible that all tho shooting would • have to be abandoned, because a heavy ' squall, with mist and driving rain, obscured tho wreck of the Dovon from view. This squall cleared away, however, and tho light improved, although tho wind remained very strong and very gusty. A less number of rounds than }ia'(l been arranged for were fired at r.pT Devon, and also a less number from JV'r 1 , Ballanco in this uncertain light tincl treacherous wind, but after midday tho clouds disappeared, and as the Ngahauranga Battery did not fire until 2.30 p.m., the gun-layers there had . the advantage of very good light. The delay was caused by tho fact that tho heavy i weather made tho manipulation of tho Hong Kong targets no easy matter. •' To man tho guns, 1 No. 3 Company Garrison Artillery paraded at Fort Dorset, along with two gun crews from tho R.N.Z.A., No. 9 Company Garrison Artillery at/Fort Ballance, and No. 5 Company at' Kelbume. General Sir lan Hamilton was accompanied by' his staff officers, BrigadierGeneral Ellison, Major Ashmore, and lieutenant Rhodes. Officers of the New Zealand Staff Corps present included: The Commandant, General Godley, Colonel Heard, . Colonel Robin (Quartermaster-General), Colonel Chaytor (Commanding Wellington .District), and Lieutenant-Colonel Johnston (Director of Ordnance). About twenty other • Staff officers and Territorial officers were present. ' The Hon. J.'Allen (Minister •cf Defence) and the Hon. R. H. Rhodes I tiko accompanied the Inspector-General I on Ms round of the forts.

Trie Marker the Ounne'rs." The wreck of the Devon, now a sadly battered remnant of-the good ship that went ashore under the-lighthouse at Pencarrow Head, aboiijt nine.months ago, made an excellent target. She is lying with her stem inshore, pointing directly to the lowJevel light,- and about 850 feet", distant from. it. Heavy seas bioko over her incessantly yesterday, throwing clouds of foam and spray over her whole length, but although this obscured the'snip' at intervals the gunlayers had a fairly good view of their target. Probably a third of the hull has disappeared, .-so that there is but little of the ship remaining abaft of the funnel. Tho. fort was probably as much exposed to,.the forco of the wind as any'.point on tho coast in the storm that was raging at 10 o'clock yester-' day morning, and the guns' crews manning the two .six-inch Mark VII guns, had to faco the full force of it. This made things a great deal more difficult for tho guri-layors. At shortly after 10 o'clock tho It.N.Z.A. men,' under Lieutenant Thrine, fired the first shot. The shell dropped several hundred . yards short,* but the next, though still short, was very much nearer. After this every one of the eleven shots .fired by the R-.N.Z.A. men found the target, and most of tho shells struck : something solid enough to causo the lyddite charge to burst on board. None of tho effects of the bursting sliell could bo seen from tho fort, but tho tongno of flame on impact, the rising of a cloud of smoke, and tho loud "boom" a few secondsafterwards told that the shell had fulfilled its errand. After the guns had got warm it was found that tho range was 3975 yards, and that the amount of deflection to bo allowed was thirty minutes right. . After this the Garrison Artillery fired nine rounds. They had an advantage in beginning after the range ' had been found for them, and they made no bad misses. One shell appeared to drop astern and another go high, hut whether it passed through any of tho light superstructure or not could not bo seen. In tho nino rounds, however, tho Territorial gunners • made two of tho most, spectacular hits of tho shoot.

•'•• "You Did Very Well." More than twenty rounds wbuldhave i been nred, but for the adverse weather /conditions. After the shooting, General Hamilton inspected tho parade, and after he had looked tho men over, ho said: "Well, men, you could not have had a worse day for tho shooting. All I can say is that I would rather have been serving the guus-tlian have been aboard tile ship. It seems to me you did very Well"—and the last sentence of his remarks was quite inaudible, blown down the wind.

At the Other Forts. Then tho Inspector-General and the other officers went by motor-cars to Fort Ballance, arriving there at 11.15. Tho parade of No.. 9 Company, under Maior A. Humo was inspected on arrival, and then the order "Action 1" was given, and the men manned their several guns. The armament of this fort consists of' one 8-incli B.L. disappearinggun, two 6-inch B.L.'disappearing-gims, two twelve-pounder R.F. guns, and two six-pounder Norderfeldts. Tho S-incn gun and the Norderfeldts wero not manned, as it was not tho intention to shoot with theso guns that day. It had.been suggested early in tho morning;that all shooting for the day except at- tho Dovon might bo abandoned, but when tho Inspector-General arrived at Fort Ballanco'the Janio Scddon was steaming slowly in front of Soames Island with a couple of Hong-Kong targets in tow, and it was decided to try the gunners. Six rounds wero fired from the six-inch guns, .and with the exception of one shot, all appeared-to scoro _ hits. Later, the Ja'nie S"eddon was signalled to bring tho targets into tho 12 poundors' course, and after a delay of perhaps half an hour theso quick-firers were tried. Of course they are more difficult guns to handle, and tho shooting was not nearly so accurate. '

This practice from Fort Ballanco was all ovor at 12.45, and it was decided then that the two six-inch guns in tho Ngahauranga_ Battery (Fort Kelbnrne) should be tried, and that their shooting' should bo observed by tho InsnectorGenefal from Fort Ballanco. The-ex-tremely severe weather to which the Janin Seddoh and the targets were exposed mado it a difficult matter to' dispose the targets for the Fort Kelb'nrno .(juris, but this was finally accomplished, and tho big guns fired twenty rounds or so. It was not accomplished, however, without mishap, for the tow-ropo drawing the targets broke. This caused General Hamilton to abandon his idea of observing the shooting from Fort Ballance, and he went round to Ngahaur.inga to inspect the company there. He saw the men working at the guns, hut ho left at 2.15 before the shooting commenced. The shooting from this battery was good. ': ■ ( .' . - ' The Offiors In Charge. Lieutenant-Colonel Johnston, as Director of Ordnance, suoervised all tho

shooting of the-day. At Fort Dorset Mr. 'Diving was in charge of the detachment of tho R.N.Z.A., and Captain Brown' was in command of tlio 'J'crritoi'ials. At Port Ballanco Major Hume had control of the six-inch gnu battery, and Captain Mnnro of tho twelvopounders. Major Mollis commanded No. 5 Company at Ngahauranga. Tho range officer, stationed on tho Janio Seddon, was Captain Scantlebury, Special Rescrvo, Royal Garrison Artillery, Cork, attached to tho R.N.Z.A. tor 27 days' annual training.