Marietta daily leader. (Marietta, Ohio) 1895-1906, 1896-11-28
FOR DEFENSE.
The Annual Report of Secretary
of War Lamont.
Expenditures for 1895 Aggregated
Nearly Fifty-Two Million Dollars.
by July 20 High Power Breech- Loading
Guns and 95 Brsech-L Loading Mortars
VIII BE In Position, and by July
Year 1eS Guns and f53 Mortars.

WASHINGTON, Nov. 27.-Secretary La
moht's report Of the operations of the
war department for 1896 show total
expenditures aggregating nearly fifty
two million dollars and an unexpended
balance of nearly two millions turned
back into the treasury at the end Of
the fiscal year. For the three years of
Secretary Lamont's administration the
surplus has amounted to more than
five million dollars.
On the first of July, 1898, of our
modern defense, but one high-power
gun was mounted. BY the first Of
July next we will have in position 10
high-power breech-loading guns and 90
breech-loading mortars of modern de-
sign, and by the following July, on
completion of work already under way
or provided for, 12s guns and 1853 NOR
tars. A battery of two or three OF
these guns takes the place of the
former pretentious fort and is vastly
more effective. An eight-inch gun
weighs 141S tons, is 234 feet long, re-
quires a powder charge Of 125 pounds
and throws a projectile weighing 900
pounds about nine miles. A ten-inch
gun weighs 80 tons, is 3015 feet long,
requires powder charge OF 250pounds
and throws projectile of SIS pounds
about 1a miles. A 12-inch gun weighs
81 tons, is 40 feet long, requires pow
der charge of $50 pounds and throws a
1000 pound projectile 13 miles. A 12-
inch mortar weighs 90, 120 pounds, is 13
feet long, requires a powder charge of
105 pounds and throws filed project
lie weighing 500 pounds over five miles.
The total amount appropriated for
seacoast defenses, including cost OF
sites, Notifications and armament since
the adoption Of the present scheme is
S26, 457, 900, of which more than one
third was carried by the act passed at
the last session of congress
BY July there should be completed
IA 12-inch, 4G 1O-inch 10 S-inch and 12
rapid-fire guns and 112 mortar en-
placements. And by the close of the
coming year this will be increased to
81 12-inch, &C 1O-inch, 25 S.inch and 16
rapid-fire guns and 156 mortar emplace.
ments. -|
In the belief that the problem that
satisfactory disappearing gun carriage
had been solved, the appropriations
committee were informed at the previ.
GUS session OF the present congress
that this department proposed to spend
no more money for gun-lift batteries,
thus saving $4,000, 900. ,rr,e.E nuJ5r.
The construction of the carriages in
as large numbers as the appropriation
would permit was Immediately under
taken both at the government CAR
riage factory at the Watertown ar
senal and under contract. A
still more difficult problem was
the designing of a disappearing all
breech loading rifle. How difficult
problem it was will appear when it is
noted that such a carriage must en-
dure, without breaking or straining
any of its parts, the tremendous shock
due to the ballistic force necessary to
propel a 1,00O-pound projectile at a
velocity of 2,100 feet per second, low
ering its Seton gun for distance of
nearly eight feet to secure posi-
ton, and that it must do this
rapidly, certainly and easily and
by mechanism not liable to get
out of order and easy to be operated
by the average soldier. The technical
difficulties involved will be- better ap-
preciated when it is considered that a
similar case would be that of 50-ton
locomotive and tender, running at a
speed of go miles an hour, which is re-
quired to be brought to full stop
from this speed within q distance of 16
feet, or one-third OF its length, yet so
easily and gently that at the end of the
motion there shall not be the slightest
jar.
Both these problems, it is believed,
have been satisfactorily solved. One
12-inch all around traverse disappear
ing carriage is now under construction
and carriages of similar design are
about to be commenced.
The armament of troops with the
new magazine arms was completed in
May and the armory is turning out 1875
rifles or carbines per day under the
appropriation made last year. All the
ammunition for small arms now made
is supplied with smokeless powder of
American manufacture and of satisfac-
tory quality.
The total expenditures for river and
harbor improvements ordered by con-
gress during the year ending June 80,
1896, including those of the Mississippi
and Missouri river commission, was
S17,099 O0O Including the amounts
appropriated by the act of June 3,
1896, there was available for ex-
penditure on river and harbors
July 1, S26, ,O2O, 600. The Mississippi
river commission has decided to dis
continue the plan to improve the river
by bank protection and to adopt the
plan of dredging channels in shoal
places and maintaining, with state and
local cooperation, an effective levee
system. With this change of policy
the minority believe the function OF
the commission is ended and the work
should be turned over to the secretary
of war.