The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-01-10
A MOTOCYCLE FORT.
On Wheels i'm summer and Runners
i'm Winter.
Copyright, 1897.

in Winter.
Copyright, 1897.
From the steam road-crusher to the mo-
tocycle is only a step. Yet it took fifty
years to make it. From the motorcycle
| buggy to the artillery wagon is half a step,
| yet it took the Messrs. Serpollet famous
motorcycle inventors of Paris, ten years to
take it. The artillery wagon for war is
thing accomplished and the samples are
| being run over the country roads of Wash
ington.
Sherman's toilsome March to the Sea-
would never have been necessary IL the
motorcycle artillery wagon had been known
then. Perhaps Sherman could never have
got to the sea if there had been the Balti-
more gasoline express wagon, which is
now a full-hedged invention. But why
| speculate when it is now fully agreed that
| the sieges of Sebastapol, Lucknow, Paris
and Richmond will never again be possi-
BILE, with the modern appliances of steam
and electricity?
The motorcycle artillery wagon is a NOV
| ing fort. 1t is built to transport armies
wherever they want to go. The forts are
capable of carrying 5000 pounds and their
speed is fully five miles an hour.
The travelling fort is for advances into
the enemys country. Take that not
wholly impossible thing, a war with Spain,
and see how the motorcycle fort could be
used. Suppose Spanish warships effected
landing at some point of our long coast
line. The first news would reach us that
| the enemy had landed and was marching
| to take city. Immediately the motorcycle
| forts would be mounted upon railway
! trains and the army carried as far as the
| line of railway was open. Then the
forts would be placed upon the ground
| and loaded with men and ammunition.
| The power in the dynamo would be start
| ed by small gasoline burners, and away
| the vehicles would start across country,
with every facility for routing the invad-
ing army. Twenty forts each carrying
| 5000 pounds of men and ammunition, could
| rout an army of 1000 men,
The forts would be fitted with small can
non and with abundant holes for the
| sharpshooters. They would carry dynam-
lite shells and every small missile of de-
| struction.
At the front a revolving turret Of Cat
ling guns would scatter small dynamite
| bombs in alldirecti0ns in case of any stop
page by outlying pckets.
The speed of the motorcycle fort can be
| placed at twenty miles an hour. But this
is too great for any but squirt. The aver
| age speed would not be over three miles
| an hour.
The motorcycle fort when fully completed
| will be much less expensive than any horse
power. The cost of operating a motorcycle
| carrying 5000 pounds is one-tenth of the
| cost of maintaining horses that could carry
| the same weight, and in army use there
/ must always be horses or mules to trans
port the baggage, supplies, extra ammuni-
| tion and for the carrying of the sick and
wounded. Spain has a railroad fort. an
engine fitted with guns, but this goes only
| on laid tracks.
The motorcycle fort is also easy to man
| age. 1t can be guided across smooth fields
| and to open places in fences. 1t is more
| easily Steered than a team of horses and
| has the advantage of not running away
Another advantage of the fort will be
that 1t can be used in winter. The idea OF
| a motorcycle on runners is a contradictory
| one, because there must be something to
| make wheels go around in order to carry
| the vehicle along. But the motorcycle can
| be mounted on runners just the same
| This is done by placing runners under the
| front wheels and under the fore part of
/ the hind wheels In going over a slippery
surface the speed is much increased, & s
| the runners slip back keep constant fric-
| ton exerted which propels the wagon for
| WdTQ. Il his mas Deeu frequently uOut Win
the motorcycle road wagon, so its use with
| the artillery wagon will be a simple thing.
The cycle fort will be easily operated.
| There is a lever managed by an expert
| enced operator. This is in q. compartment
| in the middle, separated by partitions from
| the sharpshooters and the gunners. In
starting the fort the operator draws back
| the lever. and in stopping it he pushes it
forward There is a side lever for turn
| ing or steering. All is quickly and easily
| managed. A friction clutch stops the car
| wheels within a few feet. Going at top
| speed 1t can be stopped at twelve feet,
which is twice horses length, and
much shorter space than horse would
| need to come to a standstil
The fuel consumed is kerosene, which is
| easy to obtain. A small quantity suffices
for a long journey. Five gallons will
carry the motorcycle all day, the whole Of
a ten-hour day, at a speed of three miles
| per hour. This is very economical when
| compared with the cost of keeping horses
one day. The fiow Of oil is easily regulated
and the speed kept at just the required
| rate.
One of the advantages of the motorcycle
is that an army could completely surprise
| the enemy with it's use. Starting at dusk
| from some distant place the wagons could
proceed in four different directions and
come upon the enemy at dawn from four
sides at once the uniform speed Of the
| wagons enabling the commanders 10 cal
culate to a nicely the hour Of coming upon
the enemy. Chester A. Arthur was very
enthusiastic over this plan for surprising
the enemy and one OF his pictures shows
| him in a motorcycle, with a party OF men,
experimenting upon a five-mile run. This
| machine was one Of the earliest horseless
carriages operated In this country.
In time Of peace the motorcycle forts
would rest along with the army baggage
wagons. But IN trouble they could be
| quickly brought out, and with their use
would disappear the necessity for any OF
| the historic old marches"
Allen Witherby.