THE (SMagff gralg IHiiifj. " Inveniam viam aut i'aciam." DUNEDIN, MONDAY, JUNR 30, 18(52.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 184, 30 June 1862, Page 4

THE (SMagff gralg IHiiifj. " Inveniam viam aut i'aciam." DUNEDIN, MONDAY, JUNR 30, 18(52.

Someho.w or another New Zealand seems to be always behindhand in its notice of subjects, the importance of which takes the rest of the world by storm. The neighboring colonies are generally very pronip, in applying to tlieir own circumstances the information to be gained from the experience of others. Thus we find Victoria already keenly alive to. the importance of, the recent experiments in the means of offensive and defensive warfare ; and already it has decided on memorialising the Home Government on the subject. The'news by last mail tells that the most absorbing attention is being turned in the direction we have mentioned—the whole art and science of warfare seems to have been revolutionised by the result of recent events. In England, by a very judicious arrangement, the progress of the two arts of defence and offence is left to separate departments. The Admiralty has the first, the War Office the last. In consequence, there is the keenest rivalry constantly going on between them ; and for the last few years tliere has been a constant alternation of victories. When the Armstrong gun were begun to be understood, invulnerability was thought to be at an end. Nothing of stone could stand against it; and nothing of iron was thought to be able to dqso. The Warrior was constructed, and then the art of defence was admitted to be in the ascendant. From the iron plates of facsimile sections of the armour-coated vessel, the huge balls glanced off, powerless to penetrate. Ironsided steamers were supposed to be invulnerable to all that the most approved ordnance could effect. But "when, in addition to their defensive power, tlie experience of the Monitor and the Merrhnae showed that they possessed unexampled powers of offence, the feeling approached to one of enthusiasm. 'JL'he Monitor was fitted in a hundred days, and cost only £60,000. It is " something between a craft and a diving bell," its deck ia only two feet above the water in perfectly calm weather, and in stormy weather is partly submerged. Its power of attack is something prodigious. :It crushes into ships- infinitely its superior in size, and cuts them down. Any wooden vessel coming in contact with it, is doomed. The .Merrimac, another iron plated vessel, but of different construction, was alone able

to hold her , own against the Monitor; for several hours these vessels \Vere engaged together but with no definite results. Another contest was anticipated and such was the interest felt in it, that an English and a French man-of-war were cruising in Hampton Koads, waiting to view the eugagement between the Iron-clad vessels.

Meanwhile the intelligence -of the success of the iron vessel:? created a perfect furore at home. The construction of wooden ships was suspended and the works on several of the coast fortifications were stopped. The Times thundered, as oniy it could thunder, in favor of the immediate construction of a fleet of "Ironsides" as numerous and as effective as those of our transatlantic cousins. " The con- ' dition of our national existence" said Hie Jtpitc) Tonans, "is that we shall be at any "<ri\en moment in possession of tne most 1 effeetne fleet. We may have to break it up, "leconstruct it, turn our sailing ships into 1 sica ners, our steamers into Ironsides, our 'lionsidesinto ram*, and our rams, if you 1 please, into electric batteries/ or instruments 1 for concentrating sunbeams, or any other "wild imagination to which the future may ' give reality. But, whatever the strongest " engine of warfare at any moment miy be, of ' that we ought to have tlie greatest force. If "we cannot afford to do this, we cannot afford ' to keep up our position in the world." v , We may make experiments' at our "leisure, and we may arrive at last at the " \eiy best model for aguardship and a seagoing man-of-war ; but meanwhile we must " hold our own/ So thundered the Times, and so urged tlie House of Commons and the llouss of Lords. And in obedience, directions were at once given to proceed with the construction"^ Ironside vessels. Curiously enough in that same article, in tlie rimes occurred this passage. "Perhaps. "we shall hereafter find out some means of "piercing these Ironsides, and.sanding these '! hard shells to tli3 bottom at one blow. We "can place no limit to the discoveries of sci"encc. We cannot tell but what a fleet of "Ironsides may six months hence be as help"less against some newly-invented engine of '" destruction as the whole of our English fleet "of wooden nien-of war would be at this mo"- --" ment under the attack, of the two American "vessels wliich fought for fire hours- in " Hampton Roads." Within ten daysthat prophecy was fulfilled, at the first trial of a 'new gun constructed by _Sir W. Armstrong. The principle of its construction was very simple. It rested solely on this, that its inventor had come to the conclusion by careful observation that the force of the projectile from a gun depended gon the amount of the charge. The more the powder the greater the. force. Following this principle, he constructed a gun capable of bearing a heavier charge of powder than was ever before attempted to be used. The gun is 14 feet in length, it weighs 12 tons and its. diameter at the muzzle is 10£ . inches. It is calculated to throw a solid round-shot of 158 lbs, or, if rifled, an elongated shot of 300 lbs. Par parenthese we should say, that rifle shots have a less velocity than shots.from smooth bores, but they will traverse a far longer distance owing to their overcoming with greater ease the resistance of the air. For instance, with the old smooth bore, shot after 500 yards begins to lose its velocity, and falls to the ground in 3000 yards;whilst on the other hand, the Armstrongriile shot retains, almost the same velocity it commenced with for 7000 yards. The velocity of the Armstrong gun is 11,500 to 12,000 feet a second, whilst with the old smooth bore it was 16,000 feet a second. For short distances, the smooth bore is far more effective; and in his new gun Armstrong employed the smooth bore with 156 lbs. shots, in preference to the rifled bore with 300 lbs shots. Should it be desired to command a long distance—of course the latter plan can be adopted. To return to the trial then, we cannot do better than quote the powerful description of the Times :

" The great interest was concentrated on the effect of the first shot. With the high speed which oiir Wauio.s are known to possess, ancl therefore the quickness with wbich they can steam past batteries or iron ships, it was reasoned, with perfect truth, that it was next to impossible in a running fight that they could be hit twice iv the same place. If the target kept out one shot, there was every hope of a ship keeping out all. The first 3hot, a 156-pounder was fired with a charge of 4()lb. of powder, at a distance of 200 yards. This solved all doubts. With an indescribable crash that mingled fearfully with the report of the gun, the shot struck upon a comparatively uninjured plate, shattering .the iron mass before it into little crumbs of metal, splintering the teak into fibres literally as small as pins, and, though not passing, quite through the side, yet bulgr ing ancl reuding the inner skin of the ship in a way that would have rendered it almost impossible to stop the leakage. The second shot (still with a 401b. charge) struck close by the side of the first, making the previous damage tenfold fvorse, if possible. To those who did not actually see the experiments it would be difficult to describe the manner •in which the iron opposite the missile was broken into minute fragments like glass ; how the teak was so utterly disintegrated that it more resembled tangles of fine twine than even the remains of woodwork; and how, above all, the inner iron skin was ripped into gaps like torn paper. , These two shots were quite conclusive as to the power of the gun. Had- they struck an iron frigate at the water line, no means could have prevented her from sinking in half an hour. ■ Still, however, the shot had not gone completely through the side, which it was the great object of the experiments to accomplish. The charge of powder was, therefore, increased from 401b. to 501b., and the gun levelled at the uppermost plate of the target which had been left untouched in previous tests. On this plate a white spot was painted to guide the artillerymen, and so true was their aim,—so exactly was tiie centre of the mark struck,—that every vestige of the paint was obliterated. With this increased charge the shot passed, not only through armour plaic, teak, and inner skin, but buried itself iv tbe massive timbers that support the target, and even loosened the blocks of granite by whicli tlie whole is backed up. Had it been tlio ride ofthe Warrior against whicb this missile was directed, it would not ou'.y have gone through the side, but nearly through tbe opposite side as well. Another white mark was then made on the lowest plate of the target, and again the artillerymen hit it with tho same marvellous precision and with the same result. The shot weut through everything, and even the fondest believers m the invulnerability of our present ironsides were obliged to confess that against such artillery, at such ranges, their plate a and sides wore almost as penetrable as wooden ships are now to the plain old-fashioned long 325." Siich was the result of the trial; the only difficulty remaining is to construct ships capa-

ble of carrying such heavy guns. Sir William < Armstrong says this must be done, as pieces"of less strength and weight would not carry such heavy charges. Otherwise the . victory in favor of offensive against defensive means was conclusive, since vessels c.nild not be made to float with iron plates materially' thicker than those tested. Still, though iron-sides were proved tobe not invulnerable, the Times quite truly says that, " the controversy, if it " can still be so called, remains where it was. I "•' An iron-plated ship may appear .less abso- '• lutely. efficient, but p. wooden ship is compaj '' ratively as unserviceable as before."

The Committefe'of the Victorian Assembly, appointed to, examine into the means of defending thiit colony, have recommended, an entire -suspension of the works previously commenced, and in their place the obtaining from home a floating plated battery, of the most approved discription. If a battery cannot be provided, it advises that the armour be asked for, and that the terms be left to the Home Government to decide on. - This it must be confessed was a prompt and energetic recommeiidzition, but certainly not more so. than the circumstances warranted. It happens by good luck that the New Zealand Legislature is now sitting, and it is to be hoped that a similar application will be sent home for the means of defence of the chief Harbors of the two Islands. Instead of stationary batteries, swift steaming ones will be required after the model ofthe Warrior—supposed to be the fastest vessel afloat. The now proved to be useless vessels on tho station can then be dispensed with. The Federals are constructing iron-plated vessels for their Pacific seaboard, aud it will be only a measure of necessary precaution tliat the British Government sbould be provided with them in the Southern Pacific.