z-z-z-ip

Updated: August 26, 2026

Before they reach the bottom they are an excellent target, and for the first time that most blood curdling of sounds the half-singing, half-hissing z-z-z-ip of the minie-ball numbs the ardor of the bravest. It is such a malignant, direct, devilish admonition of murder; it comes so unexpectedly, no matter how well you are prepared, that Achilles himself would feel a spasm of fear.

Henry F. (Henry Francis) Keenan - The Iron Game: A Tale of the War