The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1875-07-15
WEAPONS OF WARFARE.
IN TIME OF PEACE PREPARING FOR
WAR.

OF TRANQUILITY-How THE GOVERNMENT
INsUREs PEACE BY PREPARING FOR WAR
SOME INTERESTING STATISTICS.
The old proverb, "In time OF peace pre-
pare for war;" would seem to be the motto
of Uncle Sam. The Springfield, Mass, COR
respondent of the Chicago Times writes: 1t
Is a notable example of the relative infiu-
ence of the pen and the sword, that probably
halt your readers know the old town
more as the place whence tren caant news
paper goes forth to fight peaceful battles than
as the spot where Uncle Sam makes and
| keeps the instruments of death with which
| ne battles his unpleasantnesses and shows
what bullets can do when ballots fail. no.
| tice, as we draw up, that three OF my LraVei e
| ing con1panions thrust their heads out Of the
car window to bail newsoOy for the paper,
wnere one strains his eyes TO get glimpse
at the arsenal. Springfield contains the
only national armory, and also ore
| of the various arsenals or military
storehousss of the government. Years
| aro. long " before the war" visited the ar
senal, in the peaceful days when the very
| existence Of such 2 mandatory OF me-
destroving weapons seemed to my then
youthful simplicity, not Only a waste OF
money, but libel upon our democratic and
! Christian institutions. Years bring US many
| lessons and lived 70 hear with shudder
| that the capacity of this immense machinery
| was not sufficient for the death-work de-
manded of it; tnat keeping its enormous
engine going night ard day, beaping 1000
pounds OF coal into the great gasping mouths .t
4 OF its furnaces, and putting all hands at the
task, TIL coo muskets were turned out In
twenty-four hours, guns could not be made
fast enough for the
PARRIcIpAL AND SUICIDAL WARFARE
of American citizens, state of the old thir-
teen against state, brother with brother,
father with son, the starry flag against tbs
.rebel reg" the Southern confederacy
against the damned Yankee government"
Now, again, a few more years, and roses scat
tered over the grassy hillocks from Maine TO
the Gulf, falling with impartial profusion
alike on the blue and the gray; and South
Carolina reaching out fraternal hand over
the gap of the "lost cause" to clasp Massa-
chusetts' palm in cordial brotherhood OF CEN
tennial cOmmemorstion; thanks to the terri
bic mission. work OF the Springfield arsenal.
| gaze up the green slope that stretches 10
| the arsenal heights, and recognize the prac-
| tical fact of this las the theOlOgians call IT,
sin-cursed world; that there IS no secure
peace which is not the product OF SUCCESSFUL
| lighting. Pausing moment on the MIL
ton. TO look back down the arching vista OF
the elm foliage and watch the little street
cars toiIing up the ascent or slipping down
the declivity, We gain fresh flavor OF the
contrasting poesries and practlcalltles OF hlll
country and prairie land, and turn to enter
| the SoVernment grounds. These consist OF
some 300 acres, level plateau OF the hills
expansion. separated from the adjoining
city lands by a substantial iron fence, and
having a porter's lodge at the gate
after the approved style of gentleman's
domains. Indeed, the general aspect OF the
placs as YOU enter is that OF some fine private
grounds. Nothing is suggestive of artisan
soip like the great mills OF the manufactu-
ring cities. Broad stone tagging Tor loot
paths and nicely grayeled carriage drives
! lead TO the different parts OF the grounos'
Here and there, dOtting the slope and cling
ing TO its sides, are the officers quarters, as
they are called in military parlance, or, as
the dialect of our average Chicago real estate
broker would say, palatial mansions, Tor
the most part of brick painted brown, or
OF wood the same color, graceful with por-
ticos and verandas, and frightened Win
FLowER BASKETS AND BLossoMING
! CREEPERS.
The houses cluster in peaceful proximity to
the destructive industry which is the life
blood of these domesticities. There are
some ten OF these homes or quarters occu-
pied bv the commanding officer, muster ar
morers, paymaster, etc. The grounds are
kept with scrupulous neatness--the par
| Jerres of flowers tree from weeds, the lawns
nicely shaven and sloping down on the brow
which the drops OF morning rain glistened,
and over whose scented sweets hummed bee
snd butterfly. Children played croquet, Ia
dies fitted hither and thither in pretty COS
TUNES and gay wraps, or sat with book and
embroidery on porch and step; no soundsln
the air except the music OF birds
| and pleasant household chat. One would
have taken the whole to be some college or
university grounds, except for certain
sumptuousness and air OF pleasance foreign
to the ordinary Strengthened resPecsapihty
of literary leisure. But as l stopped to ad-
dress question to lady at the door OF one
of the houses, in turning 1 descried at the
corner the official insignia in the form OF r
mounted brass field-piece pointing on over
the garden terraces. 1t WAS not loaded and
never could be expected in any concatena
ton of circumstances to be loaded or bred
from that position It was merely badge
Uncle Sans finger pressing its mark ON
these scenes and giving the prestige OF his
name 10 the doiDgs of these quarters. What is
the fascination OF military display? Reason
against it as we will, We bow TO the
/ snoulder-straps and the title, even
though we despise ourselves for the
prostration. L realized this in the
little consequential consciousness with
which the various ladies OF the quarters
seemed enyeloped, and the almost depre-
catory tone in which any person about the
grounds confessed himself to be q civilian
and devoid OF military appsndages to his
name. The arsenal proper, or storehouse OF
guns (when say guns / mean muskets,
.fies, etc.; no cannon are made here), stands
open for visitors. By the iron staircase you
may climb TO the tower-top, getting, as you
90, glimpses through the windows of the
locked doors, at long lines of gun racks from
floor to ceiling. with sisles between each sec
ton of racks. There are in all some 100000
guns here stored, according 10 the state
msnt of Patrick, the ianitor, who does the
honors to visitors bearing passes to the
rooms. He waxed enthusiastic, and, with
true Irish American patriotism, proclaimed
his faith in the
INvINcIBILITY OF THE UNITED STATES AR
AIIEs,
especially when furnished with Springfield
rifles. The bird's-eye view of the city (from