The morning news., 1899-11-25
ARM0RED TRAINS NOT NEW.
THEIR USE IN TINES OF WAR
DATES BACK AT LEAST
THIRTY YEARS.

FROM the LQnQpn news.
The honor Of invenung arnored trains
the use Of which is frequently mentioned
in tie war dispatches from South Africa,
/ belongs to James Anderson of Edinburgh,
who in 1877 prepared and patented a series
of plans and further submitted working
method Of his defensive rolling stock for
the inspection of some distinguished en-
/ gineer and artillery officers. Again, in
1919. he forwarded his propositions. which
included an estimate for laying down 100
! miles of single branch line along the south
/ coast Of England. in connection with the
1 existing lines, as the maneuvering area
/ for his trucks to the Duke of yelling
ton and Lord Hardinge at the Horse
! Guards. AS, however the aggregate cost.
! of the special railroads and ordnance car
riages was estimated at 81, ,O0OC0O the COM
mander in chief did not think it expedi-
ent to offer any opinion upon the matter"
Although it is impossible TO obtain any
J reliable details, it is certain that the
| Franco-Pruzsan war was the first cam
/ paign witnessing the use of protected
! trains and locomotives on the field of bat
! tie. In their sorties from Paris the French
! tiOOpS were frequently backed up Dy the
| fire of light fie d pieces carried in this man.
! ner, and when the communists were ho,d-
/ ing the capital against the Versail,ese an
/ armored train operated upon the railway
! In the direction Of Chateau Brecon and is
| said TO have achieved its object in silenc-
! ing the batteries which the regular troops
| were endeavoring to establish In that po-
| siuon. 1t Is this experience, perhaps, that
has given rise to the belief that the French
| were the original adapters of the idea for
the utiiza lion Of permanent lines of rail-
way for the transport of artillery, capable
of being brought into action upon the
metals themselves. Shortly after the war
of 1870 an Englshman, Evelyn Liardet,
took out a patent for an armored train,
which was nulhed by the discovery in
the patent office of Mr.. Andersons prior
scheme.
Where the British army is concerned,
Capt. Fishers armor-clad train, used dur
ing the first ages of the campaign
against Arab was the first, and so far,
only active example Of its type. The train
was constructed at Alexandria by a party
of bluejackets and was composed of a
locomotive and number of trucks pro-
tected by iron rails, hon Plates and sand
bags. The engine was placed IN the middle
of the train, while a Nord anfelt mach ne
gun was mounted on the leading protected
| truck and a 40-pounder on the next. The
! latter, by means Of a small crane carried
Win the Ud4Ll GOQld De QUICKLY mounted
and dismounted one minute sufflclng from
The haltng of the train to remouut and
fire the gun. The vehicles behind the en-
! eine conveyed a detachment Of skirmish-
ers, while 1t was found expedient to at
! tach one or TWO empty truck in front of
the working portion carrying the guns, so
| as 10 minimize any danger from the explo-
sion of the mines laid under the parma-
! nent way by the enemy. Unfortunately,
| Capt. Fisher had few opportunities of
! bringing his train into action, but during
a smart sktrmsh on the Mahmoudiyeh
canal IL came steaming up frcm Gabarre,
and by throwing some well-directed shells
into the very center of the enemy compell-
/ ed him to retire with considerable loss.
Progress Since Then.
Since then, however both France and
/ Germany have recognized specially con-
siructed armored trains as formidable
! units Of lighting equipment but neither
| apparently, have yet gone so far in their
! experiments as have the First Sussex Ar
| tillery Volunteers, who since 1893 have pos
! sessed what is probably the completest
thing of its kind in the world. The train
| originated as follows: In the southeastern
military district it was found that if ever
| il became necessary 10 mobilize the Sus-
! sex Artillery Volunteers there would be
with this corps some 300 men, to whom,
under the mobizaiio scheme, no special
duties We're allotted; and, further, that
| there was at Shoreham a forty -pounder
breech-loading gun not destined to any
/ particular embrasure or position. The
! brigader major r. A, then conceived the
happy idea of utilizing both men and gun
! on an armored train and the support of
| some wealthy residents in the district be-
| ing obtained, the project was worked out,
| and Is still being partially maintained at
| their expense. For constructing the roll
| ing stock the London, Brighton and South
! Coast Railway COnananU the of
/ their workshops, and materially assisted
| with technical advice. The truck special
! ly constructed for the gun (Which Is
! mounted on an ordinary field carriage)
! consists of a turntable Platform pivoted
| on the center and revolving on a circular
racer. The gun detachment is protected
! by a plating some six feet round three
| of the sides and the gun is fred through
! an aperture the recoil being checked by
! hydraulic brake on its own carriage and
/ by rising slides on which the wheels of
| the latter rest, causing the gun to turn
! automatically to the firing position. BY
| an ingenio is arrangement of cross girders,
! which can be run out and supported on
! blocks a broad base can be obtained for
| the truck when the gun Is fired at right
| angles to the permanent way, while 10 in
| crease the stability the truck can be con-
nected with the rails by strong screw clips.
/ The vehicle however, has proved itself
/ sufficiently steady on the metals without
these last aids and so slight is the jar
TO the permanent way when the explosion
! takes place that stone placed on the
! rail remains unmoved.
| The remainder of the train is made up
of an ordinary locomotive and two steel
plated vans conveying a Maxim gun, the
men, the horses, the timber and the pro-
jectiles During the military maneuvers
| carried out IN the southeastern military
| district the Sussex armored train has on
! several OcpaS SiOuS nlaNp1 a DrOninent
! and acquitted itself right well, although
| in these mimic operations the Board of