Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1898-03-17
HALF A MILLION RIFLES.

L
The War Department Is Preparing for
| Their Purchase-Other warlike Prepara-
| tions-ship Owners Eager to Sell yes-
| sells to Uncle Sam.
Washington, March 1O.-The feature
| of Wednesdays events was the prompt
ftude with which the senate passed the
house bill carrying the appropriation
| of $50, 600, 900 for the national defense
| and the haste with which it was put
through the formal proceedings, en-
crossed, and signed by the president.
The fund has not yet been allotted
| among the various branches of the gov
ernment service. Each of these had
prepared an estimate of the funds it
| could dispose of to advantage, but the
president concluded that it would be
| well to avoid making the allotment
until the necessity became apparent.
The reason back of this is that the
sum that can be proftably spent for
warships cannot even be guessed at
with any accuracy just now. AS the
| ships are to be first choice in the steps
for defense, until their cost is ascer-
tanned it is not possible to divide the
remainder of the appropriation among
| the other branches of the military and
naval service. The secretary of the
navy is making every effort to secure
| from our naval attaches and diplomatic
| officers abroad all information obtain
able respecting the number of ships
being built, their price and other data.
This does not necessarily interfere
with the execution of the plans con-
Gded to Capt. Brownson, who sailed
| fnt- In ami, If hI1f
rather promises to assist him with his
inquiries. Up to this moment not only
has the United States bought no war
| ships, but it has not even secured an
| option on one.
| There are many applications coming
| to the department from persons and
| firms who desire to sell ships, but in
most of these cases one of two fatal
| obstacles are encountered to the con-
summation of the sale. Either the
craft offered is not suitable for naval
needs, or the date of possible compile
ton is so distant that it cannot be re-
garded as worthy of purchase to meet
an emergency. There is less difficulty
experienced in securing tenders of war
material, such as shot. shell and pow
| der, and the navy department has
| almost assured itself of an abundant
supply of certain kinds of smokeless
powder abroad at short notice. The
officials of the department are in daily
correspondence with agents of ammu-
milton houses. and are fully acquainted
with the plans of domestic powder
makers for enlarging their plants to
meet an emergency.
Representatives of armor making
firms are in consultation with the de-
partment steadily, generally relative
to the supply of gun forgings and such
material for use in the gun shops here
and at Watervliet. but the question of
armor is receiving little attention, as
| the armor makers cannot turn out
such armor as would be required for a
modern battleship in less than seven
| months
| The statement was made at the navy
| department yesterday that the report
| of the Maine court of inquiry would
come to the department some time
next week. 1t did not appear, how
ever. that this statement was founded
upon any direct report from the court
but was rather an estimate based upon
| the progress so far made.
| The war department is arranging tc
secure a large supply of the most
modern rifles, sufficient to arm 500, 00C
men. 1t is stated by high officials OF
| the department that no board is neces
sary to inquire into the merits of the
various guns on the market, but that
the department will turn to the best
sources of supply. These it is said
are ample within the United States tc
| turn out rifles of the most approved
fashion as fast as the government
wants them. 1t is not unlikely, how
ever, that the demand will require the
army to turn from the Krag-J Jorgensen
rifle, now in use, and adopt in part, at
least, one of the American-made guns
Gen. Miles strongly favors the straight
pull gun. 1t is of American make anG
has been adopted by the British gov
| ernment as the standard arm, a million
being now in the hands of British
| soldiers.
| Like attention is being given to sup
plies of powder, cartridges, etc, foi
the army. Those in authority say or
ders can be filled without delay anG
that about the only branch of ord
| nance in which the facilities are not
fully up to an emergency demand are
those for heavy fortification guns
A BOYS CRIME.