The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1898-03-16
BIDS FOR Army SUPPLIES
Iney are Invited by the Government
Dlsappearing Gun Carriages are Wanted
cartridges and Big Shells Also Needed.

Iney are Invited by the Government
Dsappearing Gun Carriages are wante,
cartridges and Big Shells Also Needed
Washington, March 15.-The ord
nance department of the army has SEN
an invitation to all the firms which
nave In the past proposed to build dis
appearing gun carriages to come for
ward at this time and submit proposals
ior building such carriages. They are
invited to state how many carriages
ohey can undertake at one time and
are enJoined especially to state the ex
act Time to be consumed in making
Them. 1t is believed by the officials
that the deliveries of such carriages
could begin in from three to four
months after the placing of orders.
Inc plans of the Notifications board,
which are being followed in the em.
placement of these guns by the engi.
neers and ordnance officers of the de.
partment, contemplate the mounting
OF all the big rifles on disappear.
ing carriages Although these are
more difficult of manufacture than the
ordinary carriage, it is said at the de.
partment that, owing to the fact that
tne makers are now and have been for
some time engaged in turning out this
style OF carriage, they probably can
supply them in the immediate future
more quickly than the ordinary car
rlages, and it is felt that the average
iron works can turn out from four to six
or eight OF these carriages per month.
Inc ordnance officers have discovered
TO their great qualification that it is
possible to use the carriages of the old
l5-inch Rodman guns to mount the S
and 1O-inch guns of modern manufac.
ture. This is because the Rodman car.
riages were of particularly heavy con.
Struction.
The bureau of ordnance of the wa,
department on Monday opened bids fo1
a large supply of armor piercing pro,
jectiles and for 12, 900, 900 rife bali cart
ridges The bidding brought together
a number of representatives of the
large steel and ammunition companies.
some OF whom gave assurances that in
the present emergency government
work would be given the preference
over commercial orders. The bidders
Tor steel projectiles, varying in size
from the S-inch steel-capped shot to the
l,0OO-pounds shot were the Midvale
Steel Co., B. A. 1llingsworth Co., Car
penter Steel Co. and the Furth-Sterlino
70. The bids varied only slightly on
the various classes of heavy shots, run.
ming from SIG each for the S-inch shots
to S@S5 each for the 1,OOO-pounders.
The bids for rifle cartridges were ir
two parts, 100000 being standard
metallic ball cartridges with brown
powder, and 100000 metallic cart
ridges with smokeless powder. There
were three bidders, the Union Metallic
Cartridge Co., United States Cartridge
GO. and the Winchester Repeating
Arms Co. The bids were the same in
each case, $3.50 for the brown powder
cartridges and $27 for the smokeles.
powder cartridges. One company Of
fered to deliver $4,000 at once and all
the offers contemplated delivery Of
10000 a day after few days. The
awards will be made within the next
few days, as the war department wishes
the work to begin at once.