Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1890-07-18
HORRORS OF MODERN wAR.
Made Moro Horrible by Recent Improve
rncnts In Arms.

Mndc Moro Horrible by Rcc;nt Improve
rncnts In Arms.
In recent article concerning tho
ncXt great European War Prof. Emil do
bavcicyc prophc5cs that the number of
killed and wounded will in orc day sur
pass that of an entire war in formcr
times. Human blood will never have
soaked the earth in such streams. On
tho continent Prof. Lavclcyc has long
been regarded as Il professional alarm
list, and most of his published opinions;
ot tho approach and magnitude of tho
coming war have been taken with a
grain of salt OF late, however, the
majority OF men on the continent who
write Tor the magazines on military
subjects have been gradually swinging
around to his extreme position, which
they formerly rdiculcd.
Tho vast superiority OF these weapons
over all weapons o; former times is tho
oasis OF recent estimates of expert; that
III THO next war the losses of the COM
Datants will hc thirty or forty rcr cent.
OF tho men in active scrvicc-that is far
more than double the losses of tho war
of ISTo-'7i. The famous needle run,
with which Germany won her
'''NN'''' h'stiA bh'nty years age,
IS today considered pretty an
tiquatcd wcapon. With weight OF
h}l kilograma and II calilrr of 10
nlllim"tcrS IL had a range OF but 300
meters. hardly onc-thrd o! "a mile. To-
day the French consid"r gun witt: 4
kilograms weight, millinctcrs cali
Der and 2,0U0 meters range somewhat
hchini the times. Tho German gun.
new twenty years ago. delivered eight
shots in the minute. The French run,
already passing out OF date, delivers
eight shots in twenty seconds. Durinir
til" next year the German army will be
provided with now magazine gums, and
tho guns which wore deadly enough
Tor it, liz" years ago will he laM on the
shelf or used as old iron. Three wears
ago Austro- hungary began to INTRODUCES
modern magazine guns of big calibrr
among it's infantry. During the last
gear, however, The Introduction Of tho
big calibcr guns has been given up and
guns of small caiilrr have taken their
place. Italy, too has given her army
guns of the latest pattern. Russia alono
with her colossus OF nearly 900. 0OO men
sticks to tho weapons of formrr days.
man weekly, Hugo llintzc makes tho
following prophecy:
Tho various zones in which mod
crn Infantry may act are as follows:
600 900 meters (onc mile To three
hiihs of a milo, zone of evolution.
i,G0o-50O meters, first fighting 2onc:
"oo-2io meters, zone of increased ana
rot firing; ai0-.!0O meters, zone of the
last firing, whence the decisive vullcy
is fired and til" attempt to take by
storm Is made. The only cover pussiiIr
for attacking infantry is to hc ieottcn
merely Icy lying HAT on the ground dur
ing the firing. Cover, while advancing
from position to position, does not OK
list. Tho iosSrs of tho advancing in
fantry will he enormous. 10 cross :,
Hold of $40 meters breadth, swept by
constantly increasing vollcys, requires
Of soldiers degree of moral courage
ana persistence that III past wars nave
never been dreamed of. Nor will tho
losses OF tho infantry be confined 10 its
operations within tho zones described,
Tor, save in most observation-disclosures
country, tho artillery will DO ablo to
sweep the advancing columns with n
destructive fire.
The baltic of tho field artillery will
not be less murdcrous. Aside from
small variations among tho different
kinds of artillery the extreme range of
Er"nadcS may he stated aa 7.O1O meters
twril over four milcs), and tho range of
shrapnrl 5,OI0 meters. Tho real duel
NIX distance is between 1000 and $500
meters. ~ prominent German officer of
artillery describes modern artillery
battle thus: 1T is battle of life or
death, duel at tho ond of which ono
III tho principals lies dead on tic field.
II would he a criminal and inconcciy-
ablc piece OF rccklcssncss To enter into
such struggle without utilizing cvcrv
possible means to victory
Il would apply n similar rcmark to
tho whole struggle on tho battlefield
anu say: One principal lies dead on
tho Held, the othor leaves tho field
ripple
rho effectiveness OF the siege and
fortiiication guns has hcon brought 10 a
frlghtful degree of perfection. The biz
siege cannons have a range of 10000
meters. The weight of the proicctilcs
III siege canncnS OF shorter range runs
Is high MS l15 Kilograms. Naval gums
and guns OF the coast dcfcnscs carry
shot weighing l,OO0 Kilograms. No
armor, no earthworks can long with.
stand the explosive power OF these shot.
Formerly httocn-ccntimctcr grenade
WAS exploded into forty or forty-iivo
pieces; to-day it is torn into 300 to $50
pieces OF over ten grains weight and in
900 pieces of onc-tcnth grain weight,
while tho smallest pieces of less than
ono grain weight are thrown with
sufficient force to penetrate a plank of
two ccntimctcrs thickness. No fortiii
cations can be constructed which can
long Withstand q bombardmcnt with
such grcnadcs."
Herr liintzc also speaks briefly of tho