Engineering Wonders of the World
Volume I

448 ENGINEERING WONDERS OF THE WORLD. SKETCH TO SHOW HOW GUN-FIRE IS CONTROLLED. The observer aloft gives the range and marks the shots; the captain decides the moment for firing. in each, barbette fire one shot each a minute. In practice they had done three a minute, but “ Control and reserve your fire ” is the order from the powers-that-be in the conni'ng tower. Then comes a terrific blow on the immense steel hood of the barbette, an intense roar shakes the very firmament, and a deep bulge, glowing with heat, appears inside the huge steel plates. A shell from the enemy has hit the shield —a large shell—and has exploded. The lieutenant in charge had been glancing through the sighting-hood : he drops a Hit like a log, his hands over his eyes, and his nose and ears bleeding. This is the penalty of war—he is deaf for life. Two other men have fallen around the gun. A few bolt heads have been crisply shorn off by the immense jerk of the impact, and fly with the power of rifle bullets across the confined space ; thus one poor fellow is killed, and a second has a leg broken. No matter—it is the price of Admiralty, and a midshipman “ carries on ” the work of {Photo, S. Cribb.) FIRING A BROADSIDE FROM THE AFT BARBETTE OF THE DREADNOUGHT.