Literary notes about Countermine (AI summary)
Literary usage of "countermine" is multifaceted, appearing both in a concrete military context and as a metaphor for counteractive schemes. In many works, it denotes physical devices—explosive charges or engineered tunnels designed to foil enemy mining operations—as seen when characters deploy gun-cotton bombs or dig countertunnels to neutralize hidden threats [1][2][3]. Concurrently, the term evolves into a figurative expression for undermining or outmaneuvering an adversary’s plans, whether in political intrigues, secret plots, or personal vendettas [4][5][6]. This dual application enriches the narrative, offering both a vivid account of warfare tactics and a subtle commentary on the complexities of opposition and counteraction.
- —Countermine:—500 lbs. of gun-cotton, enclosed in a 3/16" iron case.
— from Torpedoes and Torpedo Warfare Containing a Complete and Concise Account of the Rise and Progress of Submarine Warfare by Charles William Sleeman - One evening we put up a mine; the next afternoon the Germans put up a countermine, and accompanied it with a hail of trench-mortars.
— from Nothing of Importance A record of eight months at the front with a Welsh battalion, October, 1915, to June, 1916 by Bernard Adams - A countermine was dug, and the Persian miners being captured they were taken into the city and beheaded on the battlements.
— from Bleeding Armenia: Its history and horrors under the curse of Islam by Augustus Warner Williams - "I wonder if this is a countermine, a cord set to entangle our own net," meditated Giacinto.
— from The Mystery of the Lost Dauphin (Louis XVII) by Pardo Bazán, Emilia, condesa de - And shall there be no attempt to countermine, no sally made, no arm raised, in a forward movement for the truth as it is in Jesus?
— from Unitarianism Defended A Series of Lectures by Three Protestant Dissenting Ministers of Liverpool by John Hamilton Thom - ’Tis hard for man to countermine with God.’
— from The Odysseys of Homer, together with the shorter poems by Homer
