directing the helm.
See after CON v.2
Hence Conning-tower, the pilot-house of a war-ship, esp. the shot-proof pilot-house of an iron-clad; so conning-shield.
1870. Daily News, 31 Aug., 2. A ‘conning’ tower is likewise being constructed of thick armour-plating, from which the officer in charge of the vessel will issue his orders during the time the ship is under fire.
1881. Specif. J. H. Johnson’s Patent, No. 655. The ship … has in addition to the turrets, what I term a conning shield or observation turret.
1884. Sir E. J. Reed, in Contemp. Rev., Nov., 623. [Other shells] pierced the conning tower and blew to pieces the admiral commanding.
