The Press., 1898-08-04
FIELD GUNS IN WAR.
THEY ARE THE FAvORITE WEAPONS
AMONG MILITARY MEN.

These Long Range Death Dealers Can he
Fired with Great Rapidly, Are as Ac-
curate as Rifles at Their Range and Ex-
ert Tremendous Energy.
The betterment of the modern field
gun is fully equal to the development
of other branches Of military armament.
It has been especially rapid within the
last dozen years. The work of special
lists and the results of extended tests
have ended in the production of weap-
on Of great accuracy and of titanic
force. The field gun of today is the IA
vorite weapon Of the military man, and
he expects from it some very remark
able demonstrations when opportunity
to use it occurs.
Napoleon is credited with the remark
that Providence is always on the side
Of the heavy artillery, but the artillery
which Napoleon knew was not worthy
to be mentioned on the same day with
the light graceful and deadly arm with
which the moderns are prepared to do
slaughter. The first great step forward
was taken when the breechloading 40
ton was invented. Well known scien-
tific rules of boring and the improve
ment in projectiles and powders have
done the rest. The field gun now in use
by the powers is as accurate at its range
as a rifle and has tremendous energy.
The United States has no better field
guns than those with which the armies
of Germany and France are armed, but
they are every bit as good. Like our
other ordnance, they are all made ON
this side of the water. The American
manufacturer yields to no one in ability
to make perfect weapon. Indeed many
of the chief improvements in field gums
and in the larger sizes, sometimes called
"siege'' guns, are the products of Amer
lean brains.
The field guns Of the United States
army are made at Watervliet. N. z,
just as the large guns for the navy and
for coast defense are turned out at
Washington. They have caliber Of
little more than three inches, are, Of
course, hreechloading, are rather
lengthy for their width and are lightly
but strongly mounted. They use point
ed shell which explodes either on con-
cussion or by time fuse, generally the
former, and are fred with great rapidity.
Each gun Of battery is in command
of lieutenant, who, under the eye OF
his superior, sights it and directs its
working. He has his elevation, depres-
sion and wind gauge formula at his
fingers ends, and with him good shoot
ing is mainly question of care. The
powder used in these guns is of the
smaller grained brown hexagonal kind,
though the pheroidal is preferred for
some calibers.
The recoil Of this gun on level ground
is 26 feet, with the wheels unlocked
With the wheels locked it recoils five
very swiftly. It's point blank range is
2, 900 yards. 1t can be made effective at
much greater distance, Of course, but
officers prefer that range for accurate
shooting.
1t fell to me some seven years ago to
report the first field trial given the
Watervliet guns. Three of them were
sent to Fort Sam Houston at San An
tonic, where Light Battery F, Third
artillery, was stationed under command
of Major James B. Burbank, most Ca
pable officer, now attached to the staff
of the governor of New York. Major
Burbank was instructed to try them out
thoroughly, and for this purpose select
ed an ideal range on Ganahl's ranch, go
miles north of San Antonio.
The guns were planted in line and
30 feet apart on the side of a green hill
and pointed across shallow valley.
On the opposite hill, 2,200 yards away,
tent fly was put up as a target. 1t
was 10 by feet in dimension and was
stretched on two poles At that distance
it looked like nothing in the world so
much as mans pocket handkerchief.
One shot was fired as range finder,
and that shot proved the range was
found. Then the work began.
For half an hour these guns pitched
shells through or under or over the tar
get, according to the firing directions,
with as much accuracy as man would
use a Winchester rife at 100 yards.
The work was done with the precision
of clock There was the rush of the
piece into its first position, the quick
command to load, the rapid aim and
discharge, the faint scream of the shell,
the puff of smoke and dull report as it
struck and the dust rose up in pillar.
When it was ended, we rode across
the valley and up the opposite slope to
the spot where the tent fly had stood.
Bits of it lay about here and there One
Of the poles was bitten short off. For
90 yards below the other pole, for 80
yards on either side of it and for 100
yards above it the earth was not plowed
lit was narrowed. An ant could not
have lived on the ground.
It was not difficult to imagine what
would have become of an opposing force.
Men and horses would have been dead
and all guns dismounted in five minutes
after the firing began. There could have
been no better illustration of the abso-
lutely fatal character of these pieces
1t was found that they did not become
unmanageable through heat, that the
breech mechanism displayed no sign of
strain, that the recoil was not greater
than was calculated and that accuracy
was as perfect with the last shell as
with the first These findings were re-
ported to the Washington authorities,
and the manufacture of the guns went
on. The regular army is now thorough
ly supplied with them. Chicago Times.
Herald