Show bombardment NOT HOT IMMINENT some of the eastern papers have teen been talking of the danger of the bombardment of now new york in the event of war with spain they have drawn gloomy pictures of the havoc which could be wrought by a lent of spanish warships warship 0 or r the great indeL indemnity anity they could exact as the price of forbearance these newspapers have overlooked a few obstacles which would have to b confronted by the dons before they the could get close cloe enough to do any effective work or in fact io do anything more than blockade the port bew N ew york harbor is not one that can safely be entered in the middle of a dark night with a blind man for a pilot on the contrary it is filled with difficult shoals and currents current and its pilots have 0 to o spend years in ba bacovin comin acquainted with them before they become qualified and commissioned where would they get their pilots agaid agnin every at aid to navigation such as buoys would be removed the channels would be obstructed and the harbor filled with mines lon long 0 before the bancro dan dangerous cro channels and shoals are encountered however a powerful enemy beyond bayon d whom it would be almoite ihnot if not quite impossible to pass pas would have bave to he be with sindy sandy hook is twenty one miles from the battery the defense w works ork s there are filled with the best class of armor piercing guns having an effective range range of from ten to 0 o twelve miles mile and inor mortars tars that could li trally rain shells of high explosive power upon the leek deck of any vessel attempting to pass the tea kea at every everywhere w here within n ran range p of these guns has been surveyed as a accurately as a land survey surrey and platted off into squares of one hundred yards the expert with his bis range tinder fluder is located at a safe gate di distance sance out of the smoke and by telephone conveys anfor in ro r as to the number of the square unon which a vessel is ia located this indicates the tha particular segment of the guns circular sweep in which it must be pointed and the muzzle elevation necessary to convey tile the projectile to the desired spot t tire the gun is loaded and aimed before rising from its bomb proof casement to be discharged and the grio gunners ners are always in safety if handy look is avoided and the sound route taken in preference the same pame difficulties or worse must nr be encountered as tile the long lona island coast and the narrows are at least equally well protected every part of the coast could be covered with Xi linski guo guns capable of throwing a quantity of bynam dynamite i alte to sink the largest at a distance di tance or of ta or miles there are all or of these apparently insurmountable obstacles to con col I 1 tend with before a vessel could get close enough tile the great greatest elst range of a warships guns will not exceed eight miles as the works for their protection will w ill not vermit a greater elevation for effective work to py cay nothing of the coast defense moni tors more effective than tile greatest battle ship and the mines and torpedoes they would have to encounter we ve have an immense ia mense coast line and if iann an invasion was intended a landing place could no doubt be found but bul our principal har barboric harboro boric are to so well defended that no great coast city is in jaeger danger I 1 and the invasion of a nation of seventy four million inhabitants by bv one of seventeen millious millions is out of the question |