The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-04-15
AFR STRENGTH IN WAR.
-gN HOWARD DISCUSSES OUR
MEANS OF RE ISTANCE.

N-scessary to the Protection ct tie
last Cities - The Awful Force of
ussvy Projectiles-Plan of Triple
psrbor Defense.
CCopurightl
r74or Morning News: AS requested,
ara welcome to a few of my thoughts
the subject of Coast Defense" Of
----ss, there is very little prospect of war
-.b Italy Just now, yet the rumors Of war,
"a the firm stand that our statesmen take
~1a7 any new complications arise show US
-l,inly that We ought to have our lines of
ss,snse we'll arranged and in place. The
s.Bsry embroglio, the Bering sea contro-
-s-sv the strikes made by the Slays, Poles
.,5orher foreign people who have been
bred to fight against all organized author
nv the dynamite anarchists of our cities
hat abominate all good government-these
1.-THE recent unreasonable attacks aimed
AGAINST our army and navy, insisting that
,5a army and navy be abolished, must make
N thoughtful n9n ask, What are our
means Of defenseF
The village or city has its police, the state
=. militia. the court districts their marshal
ghst defense has the nation which is called
anon to meet and deal with other nations
n equal terms of dignity and sovereignty!
What are the practical means of defense on
vhich the President and his cabinet, i'll an
emergency, can relys
Certainly this is no time TO reveal to a
rstion apparently disposed to provoke a
marrel orr strength or our weakness, but
It's time for being reasonably prepared,
:. loost fer a defenSI ye attitude
In a report made to the war department
FIVE years ago, | said: THE prevalent
statement that under all circumstances
numbers of brave, true men are a sufficient
defense 10 any country, is palpable mis-
take It is certainly inviting attack to
Dresent a rich and beautiful city to the
greed If nations that asSuredlY are not yet
wholly governed by benevolent consldera-
tons,
And we now see that other motives
than the greed of other nations NAV tempt
somebody to attack us, endanger our sea-
boardtOwns and imperll our commerce.
Lieut. Gieble, an artillery officer, in a letter
tome FIVE years ago, presented some facts
whicA quote as applicable to the present
stuaon. he says:
When we think that these guns the
2nounder Parrott) were carried by YES
sestOtally unarmored, or so nearly I'M
Gutred that they could not remain long
eIsh under the fire of land batteries to
mse their own fire destructive, we see
VII granite forts with 8-foot walls were
utdered strong enough to protect our
nbors. Now when the iron armor of
vtships have increased from to so
ntes, and their armament consists of
4 gk ranging up to ~ inch calbre,
VEhing more than 100 tons, and throwing
ttectiles weighing 1900 pounds, fired
VIA 200 pounds of powder, having a
ukzle energy of 10000 and $4,000 foot
ID aud capable of penetrating twenty-five
thirty inches of wrought iron nearly
ne away, OF course the old forts cannot
slnd against the new engines of war. Since
IL heavy ordnance mas increased wonder
Ily in power and size, and equally great
tprovements have been made in powder
ID prOjecties. Foreign nations have spent
fllions In developing and perfecting heavy
bns and vessels to carry them. Now guns
. fe atioat which send a ton of metal some
fne miles with accuracy enough to hit
ny, carrying some Is pounds of nitro
4 Iycerine. In August, 1888, steel pro-
bctile weighing 400 pounds was fred from
Pc 2O-ton Whitworth steel gun through
/ inches of wrought iron, 81 inches of
fell-packed sand, II inches of steel,
Pme heavy balks of timber, and
Een 16 feet more of sand. The pro-
Ectile was recovered practically uninjured.
Fhe 80-ton gun will penetrate 25 feet of
tranite and concrete masonry or 90 feet of
. pest Portland cement concrete. At Spezia
May, 1880, the Armstrong 100-ton breech-
| tading rife, II. finch caliber, fired pro-
/ Ectile through 10 odd feet of sand into the
/ Eck behind, ard the italian 10O-ton gun
/ knt its projectile weighing 2,205 pounds 46
/ pet into the sand. In 1868 armOred yes
/ bis cost about $500 900 apiece. now they
/ tSt about II times as much as the ships our
trts l,Y,jlt rot Obt
/ bis increased cost comes, of course, pro-
brtional increase in offensive and defensive
liabilities. England has a navy of
ships, all heavily armored
. Ia going vessels carrying the
. lost powerful ornaments. In
tse of war with this nation the greater
brit of this navy could be sent against any
be of our seacoast cities To defend our
basts with a navy alone, as some people
iggest, is impracticsble, as it would re-
bire navy equal in power to that OF
feat Britain in the harbor of each of our
Fge cities. This would be necessary, as
could not forses against what point the
tack would be directed. Our only safety
lin building forts capable of mounting
iavier and better guns than those ahoat,
Id having iron or steel armor for these
fts sufficiently thick to protect the guns
Id gunners from naval fire.
wish to emphasize that last sentence,
p: build forts capable Of mounting
Rvler and better guns than those at1oat
ID having iron or steel armor for these
IT'S sufficiently thick to protect the guns
Id gunners from naval fire.
Experiments have been going on since,
there are guns carrying proiectiles that
ceed In penetrating power those which
put. Gieble has cited
Is not wise to re-argue then PROPOSE
% That the United States will for many
prs be always liable to war. Arbitra-
T may come and may be universal among
pllzed and Christian people. God
sten that timel Europe, however, does
present that attitude to-day. AS in
Iurko>Russian war and in the Franco
Hsslan conflict, war comes in latter
les like q thunderstorm. The cloud
pms in comparatively clear sky, swells
enormous proportions, soon ex-
4s It's fury and quickly subsidies. The
IN rate is terrible, the expenses frightful
beaten nation is made to stagger for
Is under heavy burden of debt to de-
z the war charges, and years and years
ust swallow its chagrin, while it pays
Jfs debt and recuperates it energies.
oppose the war cloud to dart up from
dpolnt of our horizon, what could we do
1old our own and avert calamity and
answer, I will report an opinion once
9essed concerning the defense of San
Fhcisco. 1t will apply to New York or
GhY other of 0ur large citiaa on either