The Works Of Messrs. Schneider And Co.

XXXIV.—MORTARS AND HOWITZERS FOR NAVAL SERVICE. THE details of modern naval armaments frequently comprise a certain number of guns of the howitzer and mortar types, for firing projectiles charged with high explosives under great angles. Such pieces are specially designed for the attack on annoured decks which, while forming one of the vulnerable parts of modern men-of-war, usually escape owing to the flat trajectories of quick-firing guns. On the other hånd, trials have been made for armament successfully designed to meet these particular requirements. The problem presented itself several years ago, in con- nection with the Schneider-Canet guns, and was solved by placing in service a series of varions types, each one corresponding to a distinct purpose. Their main charac- teristic is the réduction, by means of special arrangements, of the percussion produced by firing, the shock being Fig. 766. K Fig. 767. -/ zoo Mountings for Mortars and Howitzers. arming light-draught ships with a single-quick firing gun of medium calibre and high power. In both cases, special arrangements are necessary, so that the shock resulting from firing these guns may not be a cause of injury to the decks and their framing. It might be possible, it is true, by placing suitable stiffening pieces directly below the gun, to employ mountings of the usual type for this service ; but in many cases this would not meet a large number of conditions that have to be taken into account when designing the internal arrangements of warships. It was, therefore, most important to be able to rely on a type of reduced to a proportion consistent with the normal résistance of the deck to which the armament is attached. These mortars and howitzers, as regards their design and their breech-closing arrangements, form part of the Schneider-Canet current series. The mountings can be divided into two main classes : i. Beam Mountings. -In this type, an oscillating slide is used, which is made to turn round horizontal trunnions; as it recoils during firing, it operates a hydraulic brake and recuperator, which run out the piece to its