Arnold inspected the weapon with a careful eye and then fiddled with a couple of the rifle’s mechanisms to prepare the weapon for the demonstration. While doing so, Arnold explained some of the features. “The rifles we own are Austrian-made from an inventor by the name of Girandoni.[1] He designed the rifle in 1779. As you see, the barrel is octagonal with a tubular steel magazine on the side, where twenty bullets are stored. These use thirteen-millimeter rifled bullets that Bruno and I hand-mold. We have the tools for that of course. This piece of shaped metal,’ he pointed to a lever on the top of the firing chamber near the hammer, ‘is called a transfer bar, which is spring loaded. This lever transfers the bullet into the firing chamber.”
Bruno interjected, “What should we use as a target? Preferably something more than an inch thick.”
Fritz answered, “I’ll go see.” And he excitedly bounded toward the bow where he knew the carpenters were working. He was back in minutes with just the right size board, which he handed to Bruno. Bruno rigged the piece of wood against one of the thick bulwarks at the bow. As he was returning, he told several sailors along the way to clear the area for the shooting demonstration. Upon his return to the group, Arnold had the rifle ready.
“Herren, this rifle is a breech-loaded design able to fire all twenty bullets within a minute by an experienced operator. However, I will only shoot five shots to prove the capability of the weapon.”
The men were immediately shaking their heads in doubt. They looked at each other with expressions of disbelief.
Knowing full well the men did not believe what he said; he looked at his cousin and raised his eyebrows and grinned. Bruno offered back a tight-lipped smile; he looked forward to proving the point.
“Before I fire, gentlemen, let me explain about the reloading lever because once I start firing, there will be little chance to see the bullets being loaded into the chamber – it is so quick.”
Pointing to the mechanism, “After each shot, I will push the transfer bar all the way to the left, inserting the next projectile. The lever is spring-loaded and will close once the next bullet is loaded, forcing the bullet inside the chamber.”
Showing the rifle butt, Arnold explained that the air propelling the bullet was compressed inside the rounded reservoir by hand-pumping full of air.
“All right, Herren, I believe we are ready. It looks like the target is a hundred- and fifty-feet distance, is that, about right?”
Everyone looked at the targets, and Fritz answered, “Your estimate is close enough.”
“I will try to hit the middle of the board in quick succession.”
“You sure you don’t want to move in closer?” Fritz asked. “That is a long distance to hit a target with five shots so quick.”
“Nein,” Arnold stated casually. “I want all of you to be convinced of its power and accuracy.”
The See Wolf’s men were impressed by the rifleman’s confidence.
“All eyes then to the target, mein Herren,” Arnold suddenly said.
Everyone turned their focus to the target as Arnold swung the rifle to his shoulder. Within a second, a hollow thump sounded, and then a hard-cracking noise, followed immediately by metal grating metal and another thud, another crack, a total of five times in quick succession. Arnold had to tell everyone that he was through firing. The men looked at him with amazement that he had shot five times in that short span.
“Let us look at the target. I believe all the shots are no more than six inches from each other,” he said with confidence.
While they walked, Bruno told about the benefits of an air-propelled weapon versus a black-powdered musket.
“In Germany, the weapon is known as the “Windbüchse” – wind rifle. The rifle fires with much less noise than a standard musket. It is not completely silent; however, it would be difficult to locate the shooter in the heat of battle. No smoke and flash resulted from the shot, and the rifle will not foul by getting wet. The accuracy is good to a hundred and fifty yards with lethal penetration. As you just witnessed, the five shots took less than nine seconds to fire for someone well-trained.”
The See Wolf’s men were astonished when they got to the target and saw five holes, all of which had penetrated the one-inch thick board. Arnold was true to his word; all the shots were within a six-inch circle.
Otto for a moment was at a loss for words, and then blustered out, “This is magnificent! A small army could annihilate a much larger foe with guns like these.”
“Such a weapon fired from the riggings to the deck would be lethal would it not?” asked Heinrich.
“Jawohl, captain. That is exactly how we have used it aboard other ships,” Bruno answered.
“Why do not all armies carry these into battle?”
“They are expensive, and for whatever reason, no country sees the need for them as a standard arm. I believe the main reason for not being in higher volume is because these rifles are not as sturdily built as muskets are. They cannot stand much abuse. It would damage the rifle if used as a club as one uses a musket at times. It is too fragile.”
“Are they used for special fighting units?” Heinrich reflected.
“Indeed, captain. You are correct. Only certain military units have been armed with air guns in war,” stated Bruno. “The weapon is currently in service with Austrian army units.”
Arnold added, “Bruno and I, with luck, have been able to get our hands on seven of these rifles. A king would pay a hefty ransom for that many. We, however, have had the opportunity to take these off dead comrades in battle some years back and been able to hold on to them.”
“Sehr gut,” Otto said. The two Germans had indeed convinced him of their worth.
Heinrich said, “Very impressive show, Herren. Otto, please see to it that these two gentlemen are registered in the ship’s log.”
“Most definitely. Fritz, please see to this at once, while I question the other men.”
Otto waved the next sailor over and continued the selection process. Heinrich, satisfied that things were going well, went to inspect the weapons that had been purchased. He deemed them reasonable in quality, but he would leave the ultimate say-so to Reiner and Conrad, who were the consummate experts. For that matter, the Spaniard Cordoba, he assumed would also be able to judge these expertly.
While Heinrich inspected the weapons, his thoughts turned to their use. He believed that any armed opponents lurking out there had a vast knowledge of weapons and knew how to use them effectively. He remembered the incident with the Spanish pirates, whose ship he now commanded. They had done all the right things to win over those scoundrels, but Heinrich was not one to be so overconfident to think that all conflicts were that simple. Too many variables were at play in such situations. One thing that he did believe with strong resolve was that he wanted his crew trained as good as any military sailors; navy men. He believed it was better to be overly trained, if that was possible than to be under-trained. He wanted his crew prepared for the worst scenario that could befall them.
After inspecting the weapons, he checked on the status of the new recruits. He found Otto just finishing.
“We just gained twelve good men. I am impressed with our boatswain’s choices,” Otto stated.
“Ja, in der Tat – yes, indeed. And the new weapons seem to be in order. I will have Reiner, Conrad and Diego Cordoba look them over tomorrow to confirm.”
They walked across the main deck as the sun was setting on the western horizon in a hazy reddish-orange glow as its rays flickered through the clouded sky. The expectation was set for another muggy night.
* * *
Sitting in the captain’s cabin, Otto and Heinrich discussed the day’s events.
“All the new sailors seem well qualified,” commented Otto.
“And three are experienced military men and can help Reiner train the others. Once we depart Charleston, we’ll continue weapons training. There is much to accomplish in a very short time. Let’s make sure the entire cre
w goes through the first phase of training before we reach the Caribbean,” Heinrich said. “The more training, the better.”
Otto nodded as he took mental notes. He was trying to support Heinrich and added, “If Diego proves out, he would be the second fighting squad leader. Depending on how good the two former German Hessians are, they both may be leaders as well.
“We may just have found our unit leaders, Otto. Conrad and Manfred are first-rate gunners. They’ve shown us their cannon skills. If they can get their men up to speed as we’ll have both sides of the ship’s cannons at the ready. With as much firing practice as we plan to do, we will have to ensure we can replenish our ordinances in Savannah. We are still short on weapons for the entire crew. I want the very best product. No second-rate equipment. We will pay a hefty sum if we have to, but I insist on the best.”
“It’s your money, Heinrich. I will make sure we get the best then.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
STOWING of WEAPONS
Heinrich awoke out of a restless sleep early in the morning. What had him uneasy was whether or not they had enough weapons and ordinance once they reached the turbulent waters of the Caribbean. Knowing it was useless trying to fall back to sleep; he put his boots on, grabbed a light coat, and left his cabin.
This was the only part of the day when Heinrich had free time to think in the quietness of the new day. He took in the wide bay stretched out before him as faint light began to appear as the sun was coming over the horizon. He viewed the sloped deforested spit of land on which the township of Charleston was built. Wooded terrain surrounded the city as far as his eyes could see. Compared to New York with its monstrous industrial complex, this colonial settlement was more of a pleasant sight to him. Although the harbor was busy, the size of the place made him feel more familiar.
Right then Heinrich decided to use the day as one of rest and recreation. “Ja, why not go into town to sightsee,” he thought. He deserved a day off after such a long journey. He made his usual rounds of the ship before he left on his field trip. Suddenly he was aware of more noise around him as the morning had snuck up while he was in deep thought. He had spent a longer time pondering away near the railing than he wanted to as the morning’s activity aboard ship was now in full swing. Sailors were scurrying about doing what was required on board a large sailing ship. A thorough check of all the ship’s rigging and structural integrity was a daily chore. It was a must to inspect everything onboard to keep a vessel in tip-top sailing condition. From the bowsprit, which was the boom extending forward at the bow to the shrouds that supported the masts and all the way back to the stern boom, where the last sail was attached, the crew was seen busy with tasks.
He suddenly remembered he had to find Marten Bauer; the master carpenter and have him take a look at the weapons room, which needed to be reconstructed to hold more weapons. The room was quickly running out of racks, cabinets, and bins as more weapons were being bought. It was a matter of utilizing space better.
He also wanted Marten to make the forward house just aft of the forecastle deck toward the bow into a secondary armory. The housing was only a tad smaller than the afterdeck house and held several rooms. One was the galley, adjoining that was an eating room, another stored food supplies, while two larger rooms held a myriad of sailing equipment. With sailors working in different areas onboard, having the armaments close by was a crucial strategy. It made no sense having the men standing in a line fighting each other to get to their equipment and gear. Heinrich’s idea was to store cannon ordinance and hand weapons so that the crew could access these items quicker by having them at both ends of the ship. Not all the weapons and ordinance could be stored below deck. A Man-of-War was specifically built for battle and thus had multiple ordinance storage locations on each deck. Schooners did not. They were made to run supplies. The See Wolf, however, had been modified by her former owners to perform both tasks, hence the cannons. Given her massive size, she was able to permit such modifications without much interference to operate the ship.
He found Bauer and explained his idea as the two men walked to the forward house, which butted up against the forecastle and had several doors to each room. Making cursory measurements of this section, the carpenter envisioned a design that would work best to house enough equipment and at the same time to ensure the new armory would not impose an obstacle for the crew to maneuver around it in their daily work regimen.
“Captain, access to the housing is only from the main deck as you can see; the forecastle deck to the front of it is too high to allow entry. But I will add a second doorway to the armory room to speed up the process of getting in and out. I will need to add more shelves for the equipment room to store the additional amount of gear taken from the what will become the second armory.”
“I like it just fine, Marten. When can you get started on it?”
“I suspect you want it right away, ja?”
“Ja, you’re right. As soon as possible.”
“I thought so. Well, looks like I’ve got to make a trip into town right away to pick up the materials I would need. Please show me how and where exactly you want everything stored inside so I can make one trip for all the supplies I will need.”
The two went inside the housing and Heinrich explained what particulars he desired. Bauer made notes and explained that he could only reconfigure it a certain way due to the existing walls and ceiling height. They spent another half hour revising the plan before Heinrich was satisfied with it.
“After I take the measurements, I will put together a list of supplies. Shouldn’t be that hard to figure out, captain.”
Bauer went to work, while Heinrich left. He had full confidence in the carpenter’s abilities to make the necessary changes. Within the hour, Marten gathered his assistants and prepare to head into town. They would have to work fast to locate all the required materials and get it onboard ship before they set sail again. He could then start the work project along with his carpentry mates and if need be, finish building it while at sea.
Heinrich went back to his cabin to change his clothes for his trip into Charlestown when a new thought occurred to him. He sat down at his desk for a few moments. What prompted the idea were the wooden belaying pins arranged along the bulwark railings around the ship. Why not place selected hand weapons attached on all the railing stanchions low near the chock rails to fend off boarders in assaulting an attacking ship? It made sense to him to disperse specific types of weapons along both sides of the ship on all the decks closer at hand for his men to grab. That way the weapons were at the ready at any time all along the ship’s rails within easy reach. An attacking ship would be seen long before it could come close enough to board. The weapons could be put into these hiding places from the armories before the two vessels closed on each other. Of course, Heinrich had no intention of allowing an enemy ship to get that close. The See Wolf had the advantage of speed and maneuverability over most other vessels unless the opponent had a smaller craft with more speed and nimbleness to pull it off. Heinrich thought otherwise. He could think of no ship that could do that. But then again, several ships may be able to coordinate an attack and trap him enough to fire cannon shots at him.
His mind jumped back to the use of weapons. He got up and went out to the deck, looking at the bulwarks; he began to pace back and forth. He also visualized bows and crossbows attached and dispersed just below the belaying pin fly rails in between the cannons. The shooters in the rigging could take out as many opponents as possible before the actual boarding attempt would be attempted, together with groups of men with long guns set in pre-arranged deck locations around the vessel. This could lessen the number of enemy sailors the See Wolf’s boarding teams would have to assail before their actual crossing over the rails to the enemy ship.
Heinrich thought further ahead as he visualized the image of his boarding teams forcing the attack upon their opponents rather than the other way around. It meant his men had to have the ability and more so
the resoluteness of heart to surge with utmost tenacity. It was one of the main if not the most crucial segment of the battle. His men had to have the determination and not hesitate in their surge across to the enemy ship. This aspect of the fight still stood in question. Would his crew be able to storm aboard a ship with a fierceness that would drive their opponents back? It seemed a daunting task without ever having done so, while the pirating ship’s men had most likely shed blood before and had smelled the scent of death and tasted fear. His crew never had before, and this worried him to no end. There were too many ‘ifs.’ And certainly, avoiding the subject was entirely out of the question when death stood impatiently waiting for victims to fall into its grasp if or when an attack happened. Damn these pirate vultures. All he wanted was to ply a business venture, not take part in fighting armed men. But it wasn’t his call to make. It was the plight of this region.
What more could be done to provide his men with the upper hand and keep the advantage when it came down to combating others? The storming of his armed boarders had to have the momentum to charge forward doggedly; this facet was vital to keep the enemy on the defensive to snuff out any resistance. What gives a man the backbone to obstinately keep charging ahead in a fight in spite of the aspect of death? Was it instilled in the training or ingrained only after actual combat, or a bit of both? Or was there a third reason? To Heinrich it seemed like a matter of the human will to survive mortal danger, but could he be certain other men apart from him would react or more so, act in the same fortitude of the will?
He could not simply have his men fight a battle of attrition by exchanging a kill for a kill. That just made for no sense at all. No one won that way; it was a losing proposition. The thought drained him, and he finally decided to better meet with his …, his what? His mind whirled around and a bitter taste stuck in his throat caused by the thought of his men failing in a fight, and the feeling made him nauseous.
Winds of Fury Page 17