Current History: A Monthly Magazine of the New York Times, May 1918: Vol. VIII, Part I, No. 2Various
History
Current History: A Monthly Magazine of the New York Times, May 1918: Vol. VIII, Part I, No. 2
Various
World War, 1914-1918
Portions of exploded shells examined in the Municipal Laboratory of
Paris indicated that the calibre of the new German gun was a trifle less
than nine inches, and that the projectiles, weighing perhaps 200 pounds,
contained a comparatively weak charge of high explosives, arranged in
two chambers connected by a fuse, often causing two distinct explosions
a minute or more apart. It was stated later by German military
scientists that it took each shell more than three minutes to travel
from the mouth of the gun to Paris, and that on its way it had to rise
to a height of more than twenty miles from the earth. Three Paris
experts found that at least two of these great guns were being used.
According to German prisoners, one of the guns exploded on March 29,
killing a German Lieutenant and nine men.
In their jubilation over the new weapon the German newspapers stated
that the first bombardment of Paris had been witnessed by the Kaiser and
by the builder of the long-range gun, Professor Fritz Rausenberger, who
is an artillerist, manager of the Krupp Works, and builder of the famous
42-centimeter (16½-inch) gun used to demolish the Belgian forts at the
beginning of the war.
The violence of the concussion of the new weapon was indicated by the
statement of American scientists that every shot was found to be
recorded by seismographs all over the United States; in other words, the
shock of each discharge caused the needles of earthquake detectors three
or four thousand miles away to record small dots on the smoked paper
used in these instruments.
Paris, though embittered by the new form of attack, refused to be
frightened by the long-range shells. The attendance at the churches on
Easter Sunday was even larger than usual. The police authorities issued
an order on April 4 that theatre matinées and afternoon entertainments
of all kinds should be temporarily discontinued; but, owing to numerous
protests, this order was modified next day, and the usual daytime
performances in the theatres were allowed on condition that the
bombardment had not begun at the hour of assembly, and that the place of
amusement be evacuated immediately if the shelling began during the
performance. In the weeks that followed the bombardment became more and
more desultory and ineffectual.
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