A KRUPP HAMMER.
TRANSPORTING CANNON AT BREMERHAVEN.
In the construction of the guns for the United States navy, as in the new steel guns now being manufactured in England, the theory of the built-up system is practically conformed to; more so than by Krupp or the French artillerists, who use a thicker tube than is considered judicious at Woolwich or at the Washington navy-yard. Any increase of thickness of the tube beyond what is necessary to receive the initial pressure of the charge is open to the objections made to the gun with a solid wall, the proportion of the strain communicated to the hoops is reduced, and rupture may ensue from overstraining the tube. The thicker the tube, the less appreciable must be the compression induced by the tension of the encircling hoops.
BREECH-LOADING RIFLE AFTER RECEIVING JACKET AND CHASE HOOPS.
BREECH-LOADING RIFLE WITH JACKET, CHASE HOOPS, AND JACKET HOOPS IN PLACE.