Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-11-18
GEN. BUFFINGTONS REPORT
Operations of the Ordnance Bureau During
the Year.
The New Army Rife Satisfactory
Coast Defeuses PrOgressing-Tem-
pOrary Force of Clerks.

expenditures for the year ended June 80,
1892 for the ordnance bureau amounted to
S23. 796, 1856. For the seacoast defenseS the
number of guns completed were eighty
eight eight-inch rifles, 10 ten-inch rifles
and sixty-eight twelve-inch rifles. The
ffteeu-inch dynamite guns and the sixteen
inch gun have not yet been completed
Reference is made in the report to the
dynamite field guns, twelve of which have
been sent to Manila. The total number of
seacoast gun carriages delivered up to June
80 were COS, and enough are now under
manufacture to increase the number to
1000.
Comments Suppressed.
Under the head of experimental carriages
Gen Burlington refers to the Howell 10
inch disappearing carriage and after quot
ing from reports on tests made, says:
1t will be noted that the carriage has
not thus far satisfactorily passed the tests
provided in the act authorizing its pur-
chase The defects mentioned above have
not at this date been corrected and the
carriage remains In the same condition that
1t was at the time the ordnance board rem
dered its preliminary report"
There has been quite a controversy over
this gun carriage. and asterisks inserted in
Gen. Butf1ngton's report indicate that not
all of his views on that subject have been
published.
With the completion of the siege artillery
now under manufacture, there will be
about seventy pieces each of 5-inch guns,
finch howitzers and five finch mortars.
Gen. Burlington speaks favorably of the
tests made of the quick firing mountain
gun, and Its equipment. Considerable
space is devoted to the consideration of
powder and projectiles which is largely of
technical character.
The report indicates that thorite-a new
eXplostVe-fs suitable for adoption in the
service Projectiles and guns for throwing
compressed wet gun cotton have been test
ed with some satisfaction, and further tests
Will be made during the year.
New Army Rifle Satisfactory.
The United States magazine rifle, says
Gen. Burlington. gave general satisfaction
during the war with Spain, and continues
to be satisfactory in the Philippines. All
future issues will be supplied with sights
with adjustments for windage. The report
states that board of officers has reported
against the use of clip for the magazine
rifle.
The present rife can be fred as a single
loader from twenty-five to thirty times a
minute which Is regarded as rapid enough
for most occasions. while the magazine
can be used in emergencies The army ri
file is regarded as superior to the straight
pull rifle adopted by the navy, because the
latter requires the Use of the clip
There was great loss of bayonets and
bayonet scabbards by troops in the Philip
pines. most of them being thrown away
because they were found to Interfere vii h
rapid progress through the brush
Some Of the Mauser cartridges captured
in cuba Were sent to the arsenal for eX-
animation, and 1t was found that they had
an initial velocity of 9 700 feet per second
Experiments were then undertaken to de-
termine whether the velocity of the service
cartridge which was 1000 feet per second
could not be increased. 1t was found that
2,2.D feet could be readily obtained with
materially Increasing la in
the barrel. A cartridge giving an initial We
locity of 300 feet has therefore been
adopted and will be exclusively manufac-
tured in the future.
Temporary Force Required.
The chief of ordnance submits an estl-
mate of So, 800 to continue a temporary
force of twenty-five clerks and one messen-
ger during the next fiscal year the remain
ing temporary clerical force being pro-
vided for in the estimates of clerks pre-
viously submitted to the Secretary of War
Gen. Burlington expresses the belief that
all the present clerical force will be re-
quirod to perform current duties and bring
up the work of examining the ordnance
property accounts Of the offices of the reg
ular and volunteer forces, which work is
considerably in arrears
The existing appropriation for the tenn
porary force runs only to March 81 next,
and Gen. Burlington says that provision
should be made by Congress for the re-
naming three months Of the present fiscal
year. 1t is the desire OF the chief OF ord
nance to bring up arrears of work in time
to prevent any delay in closing out the
final returns when the army is reduced It
Is thought that the present conditions de-
mand an incease in the permanent force
of clerks in the ordnance office at rates of
pay which viii insure the retention of the
most capable men of the force who are
now disposed to seek employment else
where as soon as they can obtain proper
recognition of their abilities