It is in Verne's "From the Earth to the Moon" that we are treated to the continuing struggle of shot to pierce armour and of armour to withstand shot - "Now if Barbicane was a great founder of shot, Nicholl was a great forger of plates; the one cast night and day at Baltimore,the other forged day and night at Philadelphia. As soon as ever Barbicane invented a new shot, Nicholl invented a new plate; each followed a current of ideas essentially opposed to the other."
Here is an actual account from those days, when shot had just attained mastery in the form of the armour-piercing shell. From The Argus (Melbourne) Friday 4 January 1867 (and no doubt many other papers of the period). A marvellous contrivance, indeed, is the PALLISER shell - so very much so that it is quite possible it may make an end of this new fashion of ships in armour, and drive the nations back again to wooden navies - a consummation devoutly to be wished. It has been matter of doubt for some time whether the ingenuity exercised in improving projectiles, or that displayed in increasing the strength of the war-vessel's coat of mail, would finally gain the victory. The contest is an exciting one, and it now appears likely that the artillerists will remain masters of the situation. The most important experiments which have been witnessed for perhaps twenty years, took place at Shoeburyness in September last, when the power of penetration and destruction possessed by the cliilled shot and shell lately introduced by Major PALLISER was found to exceed the capacity of resistance of any armour which a ship can possibly carry. A target was formed on the same principle as the sides of those plated vessels, only much stronger and thicker. It is stated to have been two feet three inches in depth, the metal on the surface being eight inches thick, backed by eighteen inches of teak, with another iron skin inside. But the new shot went "through and through the target," so that a hat could be passed through the hole thus bored. The gun which effected this is described as a nine-inch muzzle-loader of wrought iron. The charge of powder was 43lb., and the shell of 250lb. was made of "chilled "metal." The gun being of moderate size, its power can be further increased; while, on the contrary, the target on which it so suc- cessfully operated had double the strength of anything at present afloat, or which, in the opinion of the critics, can be floated. It is not very safe to speak positively on a subject which - as we see - admits of the most extraordinary and unexpected developments, and in which one wonder follows so fast on the heels of another; but now that a projectile has been contrived which renders it useless, it is evident that this system of plating cannot continue, unless, indeed, by some new scientific device it be made more impenetrable without being rendered heavier, which is scarcely to be expected. The PALLISER gun, which performs such miracles, is more portable and less expensive than many of the other new artillery inventions. It can be carried by any ordinary war-ship, and of course will forthwith be produced at Woolwich in any quantity, so events would certainly seem to say that we are on the eve of one more naval revolution, which may amount to nothing less than a return to the old fasliion of uncoated oak or teak ships. In that case the ironclad fleets, which have been constructed at enormous expense, will be so much worthless lumber. England alone has already at sea over twenty of those huge and hideous monsters, the building of which has run up the navy estimates to an unprecedented figure. The worst of these experiments is the complete uncertainty which attends them. Nobody can foresee how long they will last, or how soon they may be superseded by some fresh invention. And though there is this doubt of their retaining a practical character, the cost which they involve cannot be helped, for when one nation proceeds to adopt them the rest must follow suit. It will be a ruinous spectacle if these ironclads, after occasioning so much outlay, should be discarded within so very brief a period. It will be one more bitter proof to the nations of the serious price which they have to pay for the absence of any mutual and trustworthy understanding, and which makes peace always an armed peace, and sometimes as expensive as war.
Though it is rather aggravating, to find that what you have been put to so much trouble to provide is in the end worth nothing, yet it must be acknowledged that the discarding of this invention of ships in armour, if it does come to be discarded, will be no great loss to the world, as regards the prospects and real interests of humanity. The more costly, complicated, and elaborate the machinery of war, the more it strengthens the hands of despotism. Indeed, the first introduction of gunpowder, in contributing to a monopoly of military power by the absolute Governments which then ruled throughout Europe would, in all likelihood, have postponed the growth and spread of liberty, had it not been for the nearly simultaneous discovery of printing, the position of czars aad autocrats is rendered all the stronger and more irresponsible by the possession of appliances which make their huge armies and fleets more formidable than before. As for the ironclad ship, it could not fail to introduce a very artificial as well as entirely new state of things in naval warfare, in which seamanship' and manhood would be of much less account than of yore. Such vessels could never frequent the open ocean, though at necessity and occasionally they might be made to perform long voyages. Their encounters, too, would be decided by artillery, by "long shot," and not by the cutlass and boarding-pike, the hereditary weapons of the English sailor.
The old "salts" will be heartily glad to get rid of these "hogs in armour." The substitution of steam for canvas was a sore trial to them, but a trifle in comparison with being cooped up in these metal cases, from which you can only take aim at your enemy, with no chance of meeting him hand to hand, as in the bygone days of "the saucy Arethusa," of "noble HOWE and gallant JERVIS." The old man-of-war's men were a magnificent lot - NEPTUNE'S own sea-dogs, stalwart semi-tritohs - who towed BRITANNIA'S car in triumph over every sea. They filled the brightest pages of England's history, and it is not pleasant to see them shoved aside by stokers and landsmen - to see a state of things arise in which the knowledge and the prowess of the hardy mariner are in any degree thrust into the background. England has no reason to love any of these recent marine changes. They have already bridged over the sea which surrounds her shores, and they have given any nation which has money to build them the opportunity of acquiring powerful fleets. Her special advantage - the possession of the world's best seamen would be almost superfluous for the manning of unwieldy machines, whose main voyaging-would be short channel trips and creeping coastwork. We sincerely trust that Major PALLISER, and his "chilled shot," will effectually knock these ironclads out of fashion.
Ah yes, "the cutlass and boarding-pike, the hereditary weapons of the English sailor," were indeed foredoomed, the author's nightmare had just begun and the ironclads were destined to come ashore as well.
