The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-03-15
PREPARING FOR WAR.
Bids Received and Considered for All
Kinds of Munitions.

|
Bids Received and Considered for All
Kinds of Munitions.
Washington, March 14.-It is now
| stated at the navy department that the
| Marblehead, which arrived at Tampa
| Saturday night. was ordered to that
| place simply to take on some stores
| for the North Atlantic squadron. The
| torpedo boat Foote arrived at Charles
| ton yesterday on her way to Key West
| to join the tiotilla. The Fern sailed
yesterday from Sagua for Key West,
| having, it is presumed. delivered all the
| stores for the starving reconcentradoes
which have SO far been received from
| the central relief committee, New York.
The battleship Iowa came over from
| Tortugas to Key West yesterday. The
gunboat Annapolis has arrived at Cufa-
Goa. The training ship Essex has sailed
from New York for Portsmouth.
The ordnance department of the army
has sent an invitation to all the firms
which have in the past proposed TO
build disappearing gun carriages, in
answer to the departments advertise
ment to come forward at this time and
submit on their behalf proposals for
building such carriages. They are in
yited to state how many carriages they
can undertake at one time. and are en-
joined especially to state the exact time
to be consumed in making them 1t is
believed by the officials that the deliy-
cry of such carriages could begin in
from three to four months after the
placing of orders. the difference in time
depending upon whether or not the
manufacturers have the plans already
in hand and also upon the caliber of
the gun to be mounted, whether 10 or
12-inch
The plans of the Notifications board,
which are being followed in the en-
placement of these guns by the ord
nance officer of the department con-
template the mounting of all the big
rifles in disappearing carriages. AL
though they are more complicated and
difficult of manufacture than the ordi-
nary carriage 1t is said at the depart
ment that owing to the fact that the
makers are now and have been for
some time engaged in turning out this
style of carriage. they can probably
supply them in the immediate future
more quickly than the ordinary car
riage is, and with emergency orders it
is felt that the average iron works can
turn out from two 10 six or eight of
these carriages per month.
The ordnance officers have discovered
to their great qualification that ii is
possible to use the carriages of the
old 15-inch Rodman guns to mount the
eight and ten-inch guns of modern
manufacture. This is because the Rod
man carriages We're of particularly
heavy construction for the guns they
were designed to carry, so that with
even the vastly increased power of
modern ordnance. the 15-inch Rodman
carriage is still able to carry safely an
eight or ten-inch breech-loadng rifle
Of course the expedient is only a tenn
porary one, as the carriages are very
slow in operation. according to modern
standards, but they would serve very
well in an emergency.
The bureau of ordnance of the war
department opened bids to-day for a
large supply Of armor- piercing projec-
tiles and for u. 600, 900 rifle ball cart
ridges. The bidding brought together a
number of the representatives of the
large steel and ammunition companies
some of whom took occasion to give
assurances that in the present emer-
gency government work would be given
the preference over commercial orders.
The bidders for steel prnjectiles varying
In size from the eight-inch steel-capped
shot to the 1.000-pound shot, were the
Midvale Steel company and the Furth-
Sterling company. The bids varied only
slightly on the various classes of heavy
shot running from $11s each of the
eight-inch to s135 each for the 1000
FOUNDERS
Although the department intends to
accept only one bid. or to divide the
orders between the bidders. ii afforded
satisfaction to the authorities that of
the large supplies could be obtained
from so many sources on short notice.
The Midvale company offered to BEGIN
deliveries in 25 days, the Furth- Sterling
company at the rate of 101 per week
after p days. the Carpenter company
% per day after April s. and B. Atha-
lliingsworth company in 90 days.
The bids for rife cartridges were in
two parts, 100000 being standard
metallic ball cartridges with brown
powder and 100000 new cartridges
with smokeless powder. There were
three bidders, viz: The Union Metallic
Cartridge company, the United States
Cartridge company and the Winchester
Repeating Arms company. The bids
were the same in each case. SIS 50 for
the brown powder cartridges and so7
for the smokeless powder cartridges.
One company offered TO deliver 50. .0Oo at
once. and all the offers contemplated a
delivery of 100000 a day after a few
days. The bids for shot shell and cart
ridges will be considered and the
awards made within the next few davs
THE BOARD ORGANIZED.