The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-10-06
AMERICAN GUNS IN FOREIGN ARMIES.
The Demand for Arms by European Gevern-
| ments Heavy hxportatIons The Gun

ments Heavy Expectations - The Gun
Market.
A prominent officer of one of the London
Commercial Exchanges has lately placed the
sum of SO, 0OO, 000 with the promise of as much
more may be needed, at the disposal of
business associate in this city, with instructions
to purchase and shiplas rapidly as possible all
obtainable small arms of certain kinds and
of good quality, with quantities of field
artillery and various munitions of war in
large amounts. The cable dispatches re-
ceived from this and other, private
sources show that there is heavy and increas-
ing demand for good war material of every
kind for the supply of several European govern
ments. The demand for arms is said to be so
great that our Government, which is known to
have still on hand large surplus, could dispose
of the whole within one week-provided prices
were fixed and proper facilities afforded for the
ready transaction of the business. The red
tape delays consume so much time that buyers
or agents are unable to make contracts to
deliver at certain periods, and, where weeks or
even months are liable to intervene, there is the
constant risk that the wars will be ended before
the end of the War Department routine is
reached. AT the same time strong political iu-
fiuences have sometimes accomplished results
speedily enough, as in the case OF the recent
purchase of many thousand Springfield rifles
direct from the Ordnance Office by the Khedive,
who wanted them at once, and who obtained
the aid of an eminent Congressman to secure
them.
portion of the arms shipped secretly in
the Nlll6 Q6 faTlS were III cases WQlcQ were
marked as having been shipped direct from the
United States arsenals in different parts of the
country. They were part of the several hun
dred thousand small arms which the Govern
ment has for sale to any buyers who want them.
The nloduS OperdndS is about as folows:-The
speculator opens communication with the War
Department, generally through the Ordnance
Officer at the arsenal where he finds the kind of
arms that he wants; the Ordnance Office has no
fixed price, and consequently proposal is for
warded for the consideration of the Chief of
Ordnance; correspondence ensues, the
Secretary of War is consulted, terms are
agreed upon, securities are fled and finally,
after much writing, copying, and delay in the
transmission of papers, it is settled that the
buyer shall have given number of thousands
of arms to be held for him on storage at the
arsenal for period named. He then seeks
purchaser, and when he has found one they are
shipped to any given point In buying arms,
preference is apt to be given to those of the
Government, because it is known that they are
kept in the best possible condition and
frequently inspected, aud will be of precisely
the quality that they are officially represented
to BE- The Sultan some months ago. bought
200,000 Springfield rifles, muzzle-loaders,
and the Khedive 10000 France has also,
within the same period, bought large number
in this country; and, singular to say, she pre-
ferred those of inferior patterns it may have
been with view of altering them according to
her own notions. Cuba and various States of
Mexico have also obtained a considerable num-
ber of Uncle Sans weapons which were hung
on the rack when he was done fighting.
At the close OF our war some 80 or more gun
factories were dismantled; and the machinery
was sold and shipped to Europe, as secretly as
possible, but Russia is understood to have re-
ceived most of it. Russia is known to be busily
making arms of good quality at this time; but
she is not believed to be buying any in this
country. Prussia does not buy here for the
use of her army; but her agents have sometimes
taken quantities of arms simply to prevent them
reaching rival government. Belgium is
not now making arms. Austria is buying
none. The French Government itself does
not appear to make exertions to obtain
several prominent municipalities, such as Lyons
Bordeaux, Marselles, Havre, etc, are purchas-
ing large quantities of war material of every
kind Just as was done by large cities in this
country early in the late war. The capacity of
the imperial arSenals for rapidly turning out
Chassepots appears to have been greatly over
estimated; and now, after her misfortunes in
the field, which of courae entailed great losses
of arms of all kinds, France is the most poorly
armed of all the nations. The action of her
patriotic merchants has, however, recently been
very energetic, and they are obtaining arms
wherever they can be found.
In addition to the sale of arms by the Govern
ment there has been very heavy sale of wea-
pons of higher quail " aud improved patterns
/ by various arms companies in the country. The
new Remington hreech-loading arm which Was
| brought out in 1866, appears to lead all others
/ in popularity among foreign powers. The
/ Remington Company has furnished nearly
500 zoo arms to various foreign governments, or
| is now turning out guns at the rate of about 700
| per day to fill orders which will soon bring the
number furnished up TO that amount. This
company has furnished the follOwing;-Den-
mark, 1900; U. s. Navy, $4,000; Sweden