Page 4 Advertisements Column 1

Kumara Times, Issue 1048, 9 February 1880, Page 4

A TORPEDO FIGHT AT PORTS MOUTH. With a view of testing the value of torpedoes and giving to the public service some experience in their use, there has been a mimic fight off Portsmouth, which all the population of that district turned out to see. Fort Monckton, which is in the vicinity of Portsmouth, and an important feature in its defence, was occudied by three mounted field pieces from Hilsea and companies of infantry armed with the Martini Henry rifle. The night was dark, and the people ashore could see but little, while those afloat in the Medina, which had the foreign attaches and officers of different countries on board, were not much better off, except when occasional flashes of the electric light disclosed the advancing boats, which had a difficult task before them. Prior to getting to Monckton they had to encounter formidable, because unknown, dangers. The torpedo mine-field extended over a surface of 800 square yards with a boom running due north and south, protected with network and divers impedimenta, which would be likely to catch the screws of the enemy’s launches. This dangerous field comprised thirtytwo electric contact mines and forty-nine others to be fired from Fort Monckton. The fort had two electric lights, a Siemens, representing 14,000 candles, and a Gramme, representing 26,000. To avoid accident, the blowing charges consisted of only Boz. of powder. The object of the operation was to demonstrate the possibility of forcing a position, carefully prepared beforehand, for submarine deence, a torpedo party having to attempt to destroy submarine defences oft Fort Monckton, and a defending party being detailed to resist them from the fort. The operations of the attack were limited to destroying the electric cables, breaking booms and obstructions, and. running lines of counter mines; the operations of the defence being limited to capturing or putting out of action the attacking vessels. The enemy’s fleet, advancing from the southwest, attempted to force a passage through a channel running between the coasts, and extending from Gillkicker Fort to Haslar Military Hospital, with an imaginary shore line. The fort at Gillkicker and all the batteries that might have been on the imaginary shore were supposed to have been silenced by the fire of the enemy’s ironclads, the only heavy artiilery remaining for the defence of the mines being the guns inside Fort Monckton. At the moment of the attack the enemy was supposed to have cleared through the advanced mines a passage of 120 yards wide, and to be intending to send boats forward to remove obstructions, and to make, by counter-mining or other means, a passage for the fleet through of part the remaining portion of the inner channel. The attacking force consisted of the Bloodhound and Vesuvius, representing gunboats, the torpedo boat Lightning, six steam launches, and five guard boats ; while the defending force bad orders to meet the counter-mining resources of the attack. The channel was supposed to be 120 yards wide, and to have been cleared by the counter-mines, so that it might be made use of by the boats of the attack. At nine o’clock the experiments commenced. The boom was soon forced, after a boat or two were placed out of action, but the navy held her own. It had several reverses, for boat after boat was declared beaten ; but the boom having been forced was as great an encouragement as could have been desired. A few of the rockets had certainly gone off, showing that the army were winning; but No. 20 boat of the Vernon began to steal about and cut mine after mine, and the others followed suit. A tremendous shock was felt as the boom was forced. A movement which was cleverly executed resulted in a great victory for the navy. As soon as this was effected the boats dodged about in all directions, ond defied the effects even of the electric light, which followed most perseveringly every move that was effected by the enemy. It was scarcely half-past nine when the boom had been fired, and the enemy began to feel the odds against them. But they were undaunted, Their countermines were admirably laid. Number twenty boat had done her work. She was, in the opinion of the umpires, blown up by the torpedoes, but she had done her work. Six out of thirty-two mines fell to her share, when nine boats were deputed for that service, and when she was placed Ims d combat , she had the satisfaction of knowing that her work was well done. Before eleven o clock all was over. The enemy had exploded the mines, the defenders submitted to a landing effected, and it only now remains for the the umpires to decide that the navy were victorious.

“ A Vicar ” confides ruefully to the Times that the “ offertory ” at his church is full of “ threepences,” which are in special demand by his congregation for the express purpose of the Sunday offertory. When paying a bill at his grocer’s in threepenny i ieces the other day, the shopkeeper remarked, “These threepennies are such a convenience to me, as 1 can now oblige so many of your congregation who come to me for them on the Saturday.” Some time ago a country parson gave satisfactory report on an experiment of buying up all the threepenny pieces and groats in his village. He ultimately invested L9O, and the resu't was a considerable increase in his collections. It is doubtful, however, whether enforced generosity should be a minister’s ideal —Sixpenny pieces are the coins most in request in Greymouth on Sunday morning. A clergyman, still living, and well known in this town, used to export all the sixpences to another part of the Colony for some time, but gave it up at last, as he said it did not increase the number of shillings in the plate, notwithstanding all his trouble.