________________________________________________
_ In a large building, not far from the lens-house in which Roland
Clewe had pursued the experiments which had come to such a
disappointing conclusion, there was a piece of mechanism which
interested its inventor more than any other of his works,
excepting of course the photic borer.
This was an enormous projectile, the peculiarity of which was
that its motive power was contained within itself, very much as a
rocket contains the explosives which send it upward. It
differed, however, from the rocket or any other similar
projectile, and many of its features were entirely original with
Roland Clewe.
This extraordinary piece of mechanism, which was called the
automatic shell, was of cylindrical form, eighteen feet in length
and four feet in diameter. The forward end was conical and not
solid, being formed of a number of flat steel rings, decreasing
in size as they approached the point of the cone. When not in
operation these rings did not touch one another, but they could
be forced together by pressure on the point of the cone. This
shell might contain explosives or not, as might be considered
desirable, and it was not intended to fire it from a cannon, but
to start it on its course from a long semi-cylindrical trough,
which would be used simply to give it the desired direction. After
it had been started by a ram worked by an engine at the rear end of
the trough, it immediately bean to propel itself by means of the
mechanism contained within it.
But the great value of this shell lay in the fact that the moment
it encountered a solid substance or obstruction of any kind its
propelling power became increased. The rings which formed the
cone on its forward end were pressed together, the electric
motive power was increased in proportion to the pressure, and
thus the greater the resistance to this projectile the greater
became its velocity and power of progression, and its onward
course continued until its self-containing force had been
exhausted.
The power of explosives had reached, at this period, to so high a
point that it was unnecessary to devise any increase in their
enormous energy, and the only problems before the students of
artillery practice related to methods of getting their
projectiles to the points desired. Progress in this branch of
the science had proceeded so far that an attack upon a fortified
port by armored vessels was now considered as a thing of the
past; and although there had been no naval wars of late years, it
was believed that never again would there be a combat between
vessels of iron or steel.
The recently invented magnetic shell made artillery practice
against all vessels of iron a mere mechanical process, demanding
no skill whatever. When one of these magnetic shells was thrown
anywhere in the vicinity of an iron ship, the powerful magnetism
developed within it instantly attracted it to the vessel, which
was destroyed by the ensuing contact and explosion. Two
ironclads meeting on the ocean need each to fire but one shell to
be both destroyed. The inability of iron battle-ships to
withstand this improvement in artillery had already set the naval
architects of the world upon the work of constructing warships
which would not attract the magnetic shell--which was effective
even when laid on the bottoms of harbors--and Roland Clewe had
been engaged in making plans and experiments for the construction
of a paper man-of-war, which he believed would meet the
requirements of the situation.
When Clewe determined to follow Margaret Raleigh's advice and
give up for a time his work with the Artesian ray, his thoughts
naturally turned to his automatic shell. Work upon this
invention was now almost completed, but the great difficulty
which its inventor expected to meet with was that of inducing his
government to make a trial of it. Such a trial would be
extremely expensive, involving probably the destruction of the
shell, and he did not feel able or willing to experiment with it
without governmental aid.
The shell was intended for use on land as well as at sea, against
cities and great fortified structures, and Clewe believed that
the automatic shell might be brought within fifty miles of a
city, set up with its trough and ram, and projected in a level
line towards its object, to which it would impel itself with
irresistible power and velocity, through forests, hills, buildings,
and everything, gaining strength from every opposition which stood
in the direct line of its progress. Attacking fortifications from
the sea, the vessel carrying this great projectile could operate at
a distance beyond the reach of the magnetic shell.
Now that the automatic shell itself was finished, and nothing
remained to be done but to complete the great steel trough in
which it would lie, Roland Clewe found himself confronted with a
business which was very hard and very distasteful to him. He
must induce other people to do what he was not able to do
himself. Unless his shell was put to a practical trial, it could
be of no value to the world or to himself.
In one of the many conversations on the subject; Margaret had
suggested something which rapidly grew and developed in Roland's
mind.
"It would be an admirable thing to tunnel mountains with," said
she. "Of course I mean a large one, as thick through as a tunnel
ought to be."
In less than a day Clewe had perfected an idea which he believed
might be of practical service. For some time there had been talk
of a new railroad in this part of the State, but one of the
difficulties in the way was the necessity of making a tunnel or a
deep cut through a small mountain. To go round this mountain
would be objectionable for many reasons, and to go through it
would be enormously expensive. Clewe knew the country well, and
his soul glowed within him as he thought that here perhaps was an
opportunity for him to demonstrate the value of his invention, not
only as an agent in warfare, but as a wonderful assistant in the
peaceful progress of the world.
There was no reason why such shells should not be constructed for
the express purpose of making tunnels. Nothing could be better
adapted for an experiment of this kind than the low mountain in
question. If the shell passed through it at the desired point,
there would be nothing beyond which could be injured, and it
would then enter the end of a small chain of mountains, and might
pass onward, as far as its motive power would carry it, without
doing any damage whatever. Moreover, its course could be
followed and it could be recovered.
Both Roland and Margaret were very enthusiastic in favor of this
trial of the automatic shell, and they determined that if the
railroad company would pay them a fair price if they should
succeed in tunnelling the mountain, they would charge nothing
should their experiment be a failure. Of course the tunnel the
shell would make, if everything worked properly, would not be
large enough for any practical use; but explosives might be
placed along its length, which, if desired, would blow out that
portion of the mountain which lay immediately above the tunnel,
and this great cut could readily be enlarged to any desired
dimensions.
Clewe would have gone immediately to confer with the secretary of
the railroad company, with whom he was acquainted. but that
gentleman was at the sea-side, and the business was necessarily
postponed.
"Now," said Clewe to Margaret, "if I could do it, I'd like to
take a run up to the polar sea and see for myself what they have
discovered. Judging from Sammy's infrequent despatches, the
party in general must be getting a little tired of Mr. Gibbs's
experiments and soundings; but I should be intensely interested
in them."
"I don't wonder," answered Margaret, "that they are getting
tired; they have found the pole, and they want to come home.
That is natural enough. But, for my part, I am very glad we
can't run up there. Even if we had another Dipsey I should
decidedly oppose it. I might agree that we should go to Cape
Tariff, but I would not agree to anything more. You may discover
poles if you want to, but you must do it by proxy."
At this moment an awful crash was heard. It came from the
building containing the automatic shell. Clewe and Margaret
started to their feet. They glanced at each other, and then both
ran from the office at the top of their speed. Other people were
running from various parts of the Works. There was no smoke;
there was no dust. There had been no explosion, as Clewe had
feared in his first alarm.
When they entered the building, Clewe and Margaret stood aghast.
There were workmen shouting or standing with open mouths; others
were running in. The massive scaffolding, twenty feet in height,
on which the shell had been raised so that the steel trough might
be run under it, lay in splinters upon the ground. The great
automatic shell itself had entirely disappeared.
For some moments no one said anything; all stood astounded,
looking at the space where the shell had been. Then Clewe
hurried forward. In the ground, amid the wreck of the
scaffolding, was a circular hole about four feet in diameter.
Clasping the hand of a man near him, he cautiously peered over
the edge and looked down. It was dark and deep; he saw nothing.
Roland Clewe stepped back; he put his hands over his eyes and
thought. Now he comprehended everything clearly. The weight of
the shell had been too great for its supports. The forward part,
which contained the propelling mechanism, was much heavier than
the other end, and had gone down first, so that the shell had
turned over and had fallen perpendicularly, striking the ground
with the point of the cone. Then its tremendous propelling
energy, infinitely more powerful than any dynamic force dreamed
of in the preceding century, was instantly generated. The
inconceivably rapid motion which forced it forward like a screw
must have then commenced, and it had bored itself down deep into
the solid earth.
"Roland, dear," said Margaret, stepping quietly up to him, tears
on her pale countenance, "don't you think it can be hoisted up
again?"
"I hope not," said he.
"Why do you say that?" she asked, astonished.
"Because," he answered, "if it has not penetrated far enough into
the earth to make it utterly out of our power to get it again,
the thing is a failure."
"More than that," thought Margaret; "if it has gone down entirely
out of our reach, the thing is a failure all the same, for I
don't believe he can ever be induced to make another." _
Read next: CHAPTER XVI - THE TRACK OF THE SHELL
Read previous: CHAPTER XIV - A REGION OF NOTHINGNESS
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