The Washington weekly post., 1899-07-11

less roar and rattle of cannon and shrap-
nsl and magazine rife, and the aWIu'
crashing OF bursting shells.
NJ Won Bloch has some very interest
ing ESSAYS on the subject OF the ainleu''S
OF skinfully leading the inflated nloosIh
armies of the continental powers. ne
reekons the forces OF the triple anu auAi
alliances as follows: A.,
....., 2 $50, coo
Austria t'sS,'Soa
Italy -..-...--.-------..'''''''''' -
-..., e. ,-s,,s alliance -....... SIS, 900
france '''-'----'''' -. ? sJG. 0o9
.u,.... ....5.s5i.eee
In the event of these two enormous
masses of men opposing one another.
number of problems Will arise conneeted
with the moving, housing, and coiniiis-
sarist. with which no human intelligence
could satisfactorily deal. The mopiiiL1-
tion and concentration OF these VAST
forces would alone tax the most powerful
mind. 1t Is NJ. Won Bloch's opinloh-ah
opinion which he strengthens Dy quota-
tion from a French expert-that WERE
these TWO combinations of powers 10 ue-
clare war, 100 900 men would be IN hospl'ai
a fortnight after the outbreak OF active
hostilities, Men broken down by the
stress of marching, by hunger or thirst
or stricken by the fearful epidemics wnlcn
are the inevitable concomitants OF war
And In the conduct of battle the dlni-
culties in the future will be incomparapiy
greater than they have been III the past.
NJ. Won Bloch questions If modern COM
manders have the qualifications for crap
pling with the problems they will have
TO solve. In the next great European
war each army will have front OF a mil
lion men, extending along frontage OF
perhaps 800 miles. Under these cifcum-
stances, he asks. are settled plans pos
sible?
Cost of Cannon Shots.
In O. similar matter-of-fact, convincing
way. the author OF this work deals with
war at sea, reviewing the progress OF
ships of war from the galeys OF the
Venetians TO the latest leviathanS or the
British Navy, and the development or
cannon from the middle ages down 10
the present time. In the midst or MS
dry. scientific disquisitions, he suddenly
pulls up to ask a pertinent question, ana
the question is usually followed with an
answer that appalls you. He is speaking
of the big guns on the Italian warships,
a 200-ton gun weighs 5000 pounds and is
able TO pierce an armor plate Sc inches
thick. Then he asks: What does this
prOjectile cost? A shot from 110-ton gun
costs roundly $3.50, which is the yearly in
terest on a capital of 80. This is only
the cost of the projectile. But IL will be
| remembered that one of these huge can
| non can only fire ninety-three shots. At
| ter that il is no longer reliable. A 110-ton
| gun costs $4,000, therefore every shot fired
| from ii reduces its value by a sum of
| $40, and this added TO the cost of the
projectie itself makes the cost of every
| shot s1,7J1.
| This is stating. We knew in q vague
way something about ii, but this way of
| putting it hits US right between the eyes.
In NJ. Won Bioch's work little hope is held
| out that a solution will be reached Of the
/ VeXed question as to whether armor or
| artillery will say the last word. Al .he
| present time armor would seem to be in
the better position, but NJ. Won Bloch
thinks the time is coming when aluminium
will be available as armOr. Should tEat
| time come, armoI viii have dl advant. se,
! and the contest will be resumed until pro-
jectiles will be invented to pierce alumi-
mum as easily as they now pierce the
steel plates.
We need not linger over the author :
| valuable chapters on sea war carried on
| by cruisers and privateers except To
mention again that even in the midst OF
| an expert examination of international
law and all the numerous technical cues
tiOns involved in this somewhat irregular
method of warfare, one gets the impIes.
sion of a man terribly in earnest, L ran
pursuing every detail of this subject, de-
termined to make 1t subservient to his
one main purpose.
Stop Insegting Engines of Dsstruetioa'
1t is known that the Car Os Russia i:
anxious TO have the principles of Th6
Geneva conference extended. It is known
also that he is desirous that rhe confer
ence at The Hague should discuss tht
question: Whether ii IS not advisable tC
call halt TO the invention of more dead
ly instruments of destruction? NJ, yoI
Bloch has something 10 say on this point
and discusses with perfect fairness tr0s'
| other important questions: Will the wea p
ons of the future produce worse wounds
| than those OF the past? VIII the battle
field of the future be more terrible? Il
medical science advancing pari passu 1ti
military invention? Ia replying 10 thes'
questions, NJ Won Bloch uses The Htmos
circumspectiOn, and therefore the con
eIuslORs al which he arrives must Dr. ac
cepted as carefully weighed, and as base
on irrefragaole evidence. In recent VIII
ings on this subject an attempt has ceei
made 10 minimize the effect OF the new
: small-bore projectile on the numan body
te show that the wound it makes, wilil
{; placing the wounded man out OF the hghl
- of. Al. A. Yl1
40 dangerous 10 life and limb az the bul
let of twenty years ago. N. Won Bloc
does not share this optimistic view Thi
is WhaI he says on Ihis subject, and il !
perfectly evident that his opinion is ma
of his Imperial master. and OF the Rus
sian War Office.
THE action OF the new projectile on ID
: human body Is fearfui. resembling tne &C
tlon OF an explosive bullet. The bones ar
I not pierced a. with an aWl. TO think ,
Is erroneous. On the contrary taey ar
splIntered into Tiny fragments. which ar
. scattered throughout The entire organic
with the force of q dynamite clsehafg'
Z The entrance made by the bullet = anal
almost invisible but its exit IL more mark
Z ed b. a gaping wound. u does nOL pierce
. one body alone, but mas the power . per
: citrate taree,anS .ts course Is only stoppe
IN the fourth body. Liver, hears an
: kldueys. waea touched by oae Of hiss
proiectiies Of tae future are pulFei lze(
and other internal organs, especially "a
: muscles, are torn 70 pieces. The extrem
/ lies. II a bone l. struck, are des;royss
: and wounds In the head, neck ana sbae
/. ( men sre always fatal
OF course. this is a description Of 20
effect Of ihs FT0iecille Of the future q
D the comparatively sEort range = z
= meters. At a distance Of I.e9 TaleteFs. "a
| effect il thus described;
+. The impact Of the bullet eau@es nuH
: bsr OF raalatsa rents 70 start IN ali dlrei
tlons from the point q contact Egen a
y a distance Of 1slo meters ihe new pr0je'
I tA.. lnticis dangerous fractures and .
: / oft@n as Eot the fragments of hone ~
! driven into other portions 81 tbs bosl
{ ( working through the tissues iikc pair (
: | selsso.G Experiments already made Z
: ! - proVe that the old round bullet. AZ
= even tie long bullet in use Ia lsf9. sa
: caaparatisely harmless compared Hls
the modern. fneiy wrought. niekel-e0ait
projectile"
The principal surgeon In the Swiss Arm.