The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-10-12

Department and sent TO a post is made
into dough ana BAKED ia -u oven vr1rii q
iy the guaTtJimJsfeT s Department. the
officer iu charge .0f ~. bread supply be-
iuE entirely iud.usud, lr Of either depart
3. .hi- 'HlT s. sem EtS grown Up. ual
through any wsIl-formuIyt,d plan OF by
f-l concerted action on Tire part Of heads
Of bureaus. hut IJth,f from she -EF,uce
each bUr'-U tli-i-Z Gl-,r its charge what
ever happened Co COM las WY Tho evil
has expanded from tame 90 time, and
believe Jnat actual J., suits have shown
ION OF responsibility IS not 500 thc 3, 81 in
. lrT'Sts or th- s,rvia- and has ten
a'n,y q" ch~truct the aJtinmsnt OF IN.
. highest degree OF CticiCusy-'
The Commi>Sary aiso advocates the in
I Production Of modern relIigsratinE ma
CHIMES for the storage OF meats and veEe-
Lieut. Col Henry LIppincott. Azsisteut
| Surgeon General. states that thirty-niue
l,1thS occurred in the departU<nt dur
INK thu year
Cop. L,roy 5 Lyon. Acting Signal Of
/ H'tT. recommends that an f1rjiicatiUus
I comprising fire command should Dy
connected by cable OF other means. This
work should he undertaken as soon as
/ The units Of 81 single command have L.ce
a'AMt'ly designated IN each artillery dis
Mines and Torrcdoes.
Lieut. Col J. l.. story. ARTILLERY In
,
upon the future of our coast offences.
Particularly ae 10 the subject of subma-
rinc mines and torpedo,s.
lie says The most important problem
now pressing upon the artillery is how
To provide a SITcIeHt number Of officers
ana men qualified 10 operate the mining
u'Iehc,S OF our harhOrS. II is admitted
that tho present established strength Of
the coast artillery will not furnish one
rDlci Tor the modern armam eut already
PROVIDED, and that in the event Of war
lA' cthtltAc\ must be supplied by raw
recruits or 10y volunteer artillery. II war
were 20 occur with superior naval pow
en- an immediate dash would no doubt be
made upon one or more of our most i'm
ppTtaut ports To oppose such an attack
we should have an instructed force of suf-
hcient strength to execute. in less than
one week after the declaration of war.
the approved project for the planting of
mines in all our harbOrs.
To operate these mines in the harbOrs
Of the United States and OF its distant
possessions viii require about seventy Of
hcers and 200 soldiers At the time of
the Immediate planting an edition Of
5000 men as labOrers and boat crews wiz
be temporarily needed. All officers en-
Tioyed on this work ought 70 be expert in
electricity.
With respect to the officers now being
appointed to the artillery, from the army.
their examination for appointment does
not include even an elementary knOWl-
edge Of electricity, and IL is probable that
rev. IT any OF IItfur Will ever tt Nlalllltl
for this work Again, the required num-
Der of officers is so large that rhey could
not all be spared for this duty without
seriously Gripping the artillery in the
service Of the armament. In our late war
with Spain the deficiency IN officers Of en-
ElnceTs for mining work was supplied
by civilian experts in electricity Civil
iars cannot be held 10 service. or to pun
ishmCnt for malfeasauce, and some
scheme should be devised by which an
our mining defences NAV be efficiently
TEn u O
organizations. If a sufficient permanent
establishment cannot be supplied for this
purpose then volunteer reserve must
be organized and differed by electrical
engineer graduates Of technical schools
This appears TO be the only feasible plan
Of securing enough officers for -His spe-
cial service sufficiently qualified for the
work The advisability Of creating vo.un-
1ccT organizations Tor mining service
should receive early consideration
The first step that should lo ttkel
with the least practicable dela-- i ne IS
adjustment Of an Artillery Sch. Of
Mines for theoretical and practical In
struction- To this school. in my iuig-
meut. ought to be attached the School
for Electrician Sergeants, now al Fort
Monroe. Va.
1T is with regret it is stated that OF ac-
count Of the paucity Of officers IL will be
impossible this year TO have the tests at
Fort Wadsworth. y Z. which were in
tended 10 determine not only the relative
merits. in a system q fire control and
direction. Of position finders with a hori-
Zontal base and Of those with a vertical
base, but the value. Of electric search
lights I'm the defence o. harbOrs against
attack by eucmy's vessels II IS very I'M
fortunate that the test could not have
been brought to a sudEc ssful conclusion
this year
There - q general agreement among
the artillery officers who have given the
most time and study 20 the subject Of fire
control that no single system Of position
finding should, in the present state Of ar
tillery progress. be adopted for use at all
posts. the natural elevation Of the ground
at the forts viii determine whether the
vertical position finder OF the horizontal
position finder should be preferred. Here
tOlOrc the only board Of officers CharE !
with the consideration OF this subject was
directed &c locate and definitely fix sites
for the depression position finder. That
board had no authority 10 consider OF
recommend the method OF position find
ing best adapted to the topography of the
posts visited by it, A board Of officers
should formulate the principles which
ought 20 determine the special type Of the