The western Democrat. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1852-1870, 1864-12-06
WAR MATERIALS
Tile Mechanic Arts an the Confederate States.
From the Richmond Euqlaor

4 a-...4 -oii the hicnLhouu b1uqTer
! The mechanic arts have advanced rapidly within
the limits of the Confederate State since the be-
ginning of this war. A glance ut hhat has been
done in one department of the Cufederate Gov
ernment will serve to give an ideGoe the general
progress We select that known IS the Ordnance
bureau Of the War Department, Which is charged
with supplying arms, artillery ana other munitions
of war to the army. ....>
At the date of the organization of thA Govern
ment at Montgomery, carly 10 April 1861, there
were neither arsenaIs, foundries, powder miD nor
Government workshops Of any kind in operation
within the limits of the Confederate States. The
Iredegar Works, in this city, was the only canuNn
foundry. No firearms bad ever been made, e&
cept, perhaps, a few sporting guns made by bandN
20 powder had been manufactured for war pur-
poses; no gun-carrages built no material of war
had ever been prepared. All such work had been
done at the North. The South was ignorant of
these arts, and her mechanics were not numerous
Let US follow the progress of several important
branches of manufacture, beginning with small
arms.
The machinery at Ilarpers Ferry having been
secured III May, was transferred to two safe points
aud in September following, was producing small
arms Private enterprise was stimulated and
private capital induced to invest itself in the build
ing up of other establishments for making firearms
Nearly all Of these have passed into the hands of
the Ordnance Bureau; the difficulty Of command
ing labor and supplies having discouraged the ma
jorty OF contractors. The Government has, how
ever, prosecuted work on its own account at estab
lishments thus formed by private enterprise, and
has now no less than five manufactures Of arms
and three of pistols in operation.
When this war began all the arsenals of the
Confederate States contained, in the aggregate
l30 600 musk cts, chiefly smooth bore altered from
flint to percussion, and 10000 rifles. These, with
the arms possessed by the States, were the total
stock Of service arms. AT present all its armies
provided with the best rifes-the smooth bore
having nearly all disappeared Many Of these
rifles, nearly all the sabres, and good many of the
pistols, in the hands Of troops are the products
of our manufactures 1t is not too much to
assume that with proper application of the labor
still at disposal-should it become necessary,
by the closing of ports, to rely wholly upon I
oursevcs-the armies Of the Contedcracy could be
supplied with all the arms needu for an efficient |
prosecution of the war. But to tbs end it would
be necessary to retain skilled mechanics; and
it is a question we'll worthy # consideration,
whether steps should not be taken at once to Sc
cure to US the skilled labor, still remaining after
the havoc of sanguinary war, by attaching i: |
permanently to these branches of labor no~, in
stead of waiting until compelled b3 b3necessity to do
what may then be too late to do successfully. We
think, and have always thought, hat our best in
tercsts require US to husband our skilled labor and
place it in the workshops Of tie Government,
rather than risk its loss the battle field, and by
disease. Legislation to this effectwould be wise
fore caste
In the department Of 0nIlery, tie labors of this
Bureau have been even more successful than in
the production Of small arms Aifrst, there was
literally no artillery in the possession Of the Con-
federate Government. None had been accumu-
lated at any point, and the only artillery available
was few batteries in the hands ofvolunteer com
panes, and some old iron pieces, Owned chiefly by
the State of Virginia The field artillery of the |
armies of the CoDfcderacy comrriss now not less
than thousand pieces, most Of which is in field |
batteries, well organized and equipped. The gun
chiefly used is the II FOUNDER, known the
"Napoleon," to which added the l0-pounder
Parrott rife (the latter mostly clpured) The
number Of heavy guns fabricated IS to be couHted
by the hundreds, among them soie rife guns of
the most formidable description In this latter
kind of gun, the Ordnance Department of the
Navy has achieved especial excellence, and the
Brooke gun has a foreign reputation, wherever our
struggle is known. The number of cannon foun-
dries built up since the bcgiOning Of the war is
six two of these have the capacity TO cast guns of
the largest dimensions
In the manufacture ofpoudcr, great success has
been attained. The President early directed his
erection Of not less than FIVE powder mills, in diff
ferent parts of the Confederacy. One of these
alone is capable of producing all the powder needed
in the Coutederacy; and is work, the design and
execution OF which are unsurpassed. To sustain
the consumption Of these mills, nitre has been i'm
ported and miucd, and nitre beds established on
the largest scale. In this connection curious
fact deserves to be stated: The most reliable and
fertile ntre- producing dstrc, is devoid of single
nitro cave and the earth used is obtained beneath
old buildings The continued existence of this
phenomenon is due TO the sagacIfy and persever-
ance of the Chief the Nitre aud Mining Bureau,
aided by the energy and good management Of one
of bis subordinates, (ilajor Barney)
Besides these its legitimate labors viz: arms,
artillery and powder, this Bureau took upon itself
the labors incident TIE development Of the iron,
lead, copper and other mineral productions of the
country. This portion of its duties gradually ma
tured into distinct Bureau, at lirst attached TO
that Of Ordnance, but fnally created into sepa-
rate one now we'll known as the Ntre and Mining
Bureau Added to all these duties it began the
expectation Of cotton on its account, and the
importation of supplies The famous blockade
runners Cornuba and r. f. Lee and others be-
longed to il; aud this system thus inaugurated has
gradually expanded into another Bureau, charged
with the same subject, behalf of all the depart
ments of the government Thus, second Bureau
grew up, and was detached from the Ordnance
Bureau.
From this may be gathered how various are the
duties which claim the attention of the Govern
ment. It is obliged to become its own puryeyor