Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1898-03-26
THAT $4,000, 900 APPROPRIATION.
What Has Been Done to Put Army and
Navy on War Footing.

navy departments. Of this the navy
department has spent nearly IS per
cent. The bureau of ordnance and
the bureau of equipment of the navy
have received the largest amounts of
the appropriation. The bureau of ord
nance has received about 81 900, 900 in
all thus far.
This money is being expended in the
manufacture and purchase of large
quantities of shells of various calibres,
brown, prismatic and smokeless pow
der, torpedo tubes, guns, and in meet
ing the expenses of operating the big
gun factory at the Washington navy
yard. At least s1,OOO,OOO has been
set aside for the current expenses of
the high power ordnance shop. This,
of course, includes the cost of mate
rial, extra labor, fuel, shipping, etc.
Contracts for 100 6-pounder and 100
1-pounder rapid firing guns are now
included in the money set aside for the
gun factory, as they are being manu-.
factured by private firms. Several
million pounds of brown prismatic
powder have been contracted for.
The bureau of equipment has ex-
pended about 100000 in contracts
for coal and coal storage houses at
various points and for miscellaneous
equipments and stores for ships and
naval stations.
These figures include the sums to be
spent in the extensive dredging opera
tions now under way at Port Royal
and Key West, but do not include the
100000 allotted last week for dredg-
ing constructions, etc., in connection
with the establishment of the new
naval station at the Dry Tortugas.
A considerable sum has also been
expended in getting the cruisers Min
neapolis and Columbia and the Mian-
tonomoh and other monitors ready for
sea. The purchase from the Brazilian
government of the armored cruiser
New Orleans, formerly the Amazonas,
and the Abrouall, probably to be nam
ed the Prescott, has involved the ex-
penditure of fully S3,000,000. This
includes not only the actual purchase
price of the cruisers, but large Incl
dental expenses in the matter OF ar
rangements for the contracts, the detail
of naval officers for negotiations and
the cost of getting the ships ready to
sail for the United States.
About 81 100000 will be used by the
bureau of construction and repairs out
of the national defense appropriation
in completing the repairs to the New
ark, Philadelphia, Yorktown, Charles
ton, Chicago and Atlanta, at the Nor.
fork, Mare Island and New York navy
yards. Were it not the fact that this
sum is available from the emergency
appropriation, the completion of these
ships would necessarily be very much
delayed, as the annual appropriation
for the bureau for the repairs of ships
has been exhausted for sometime.
Up to the present time sS,275,O00
have been allotted to the war depart
ment. Two bureaus of the depart.
ment only have been the recipients to
this money, the bureau of ordnance
and the engineer department. Near
ly this entire sum has already been
used in contracting for large orders of
brown and smokeless powder and ar
NOR piercing shells, and another con-
tract for projecliles will be entered
into this week. Nearly 100000 has
been expended for about 100000
cartridges for the Krag-Jorgensen and
Springfield rifles. The department has
under consideration a large purchase
of Winchester magazine rifles, calibre
80.
These small arms are now in process
of manufacture and the formal con-
tract for their purchase will probably
be made in few days. The 32.5 and
G-inch rapid firing guns, with their car
riages, and supply of ammunition
for them, which were purchased abroad
last week, cost about 100000. The
seacoast gun carriages of S-inch, 10.
inch and 12-inch calibre, proposals for
which were considered yesterday, will
cost about 100000. 1t is the expec-
tation of the chief Of ordnance TO
obtain an allotment of about So, 100000
additional within the next few days,
which will be expended in the pur-
chase of projectiles, powder, and high
powder guns.
Brigadier General Wilson, chief of
engineers, has contracted for the ex-
penditure of S3,OOO,000 in Fastening
the work on emplacements, magazines
and the mounting of guns on the south
ern and eastern coasts. OF this $780,
900 will he used for the mounting Of
more 12-inch guns at the eastern en-
trance to New York harbor. The
greater part of the money for eXpedi-
ting the engineering work is being
expended at Key West, Mobile, Pensa-
cola, New Orleans and other southern
points. About $500,000 is to be spent
for the planting of torpedoes for har-
Dor defense. The chief Of engineers
has at his disposal, it is understood,
about s2,0O0,O0O set aside for this use,
but not yet actually expended.