The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1907-07-09
MANAGING A war
FROM A Distance
The President in Washing
ton May Direct Resistance
In California.
MATHEMATICS-WAR.
A National System Of Fire
Control Worked
Out.
MATHEMATICS-WAR.
fsneoial corresnondence.l

hectacle of President Roosevelt, sur
yunded by his military advisers, d.
Biting the defense Of San Francisco
-.gainst the attack of hostile feet,
would be sufficiently novel to stir the
civilized world, yet it Is within the
range of possibilities.
Really, about all that would be ne
cessary would be straight line OF
telegraphic communication between
Washington and San Francisco, an al
lowance for the two or three seconds
it takes for an electric flash to trav-
erse the distance, and an equipment
Of charts showing the defenses. This
is what the system Of fire control and
direction has made possible though
hardly probable. All summer, up and
down our coast, the national guard Is
cooperating with the coast artillery in
Joint naneuvers to learn the system on
which our defense against attack by
sea must rest and on the perfection
OF which so much depends. There Is
something mysterious, almost UNI
Danny In the idea that man who does
not even see a ship can direct the fire
Of unseen guns miles away, or the dis
charge Of a mine and send vessel to
The bottom under rain of heavy
Shells or with hole torn in her sides.
The matter is the application Of ma
thematies to war. At signal IL
inch gun or battery Of such guns,
spring from behind an innocent look
ing embankment, beleh forth a rain OF
shot, and sink again before the enemy
has time to locate them, only to re-
peat the performance a few minutes
later. This fire is delivered with mar
vellous accuracy and dispatch and at
the command of man miles away
who has no time to look at 1t If he
were able to view 1t.
The dominant feature in the fire
control system is rapidity of action
Guns which have been emplaced for
wears may be brought into an action
lasting for only 10 or 20 minutes. A
system therefore that will make 1t
mossible to fire 80 accurate shots 1om
each of these guns in this time mas
the effect Of doubling the number OF
guns in a system which makes it pas
gible to fire only Is shots. The chain
IaCLlCal
units in the system of defense are as
follows. First, the battery, a group
of guns or mortars of the same cali
her and power, of which there are the
following classes. GAY 8-inch, 10-inch, or
,es4=inch gun batteries of two or more
guns, usually not more tina nthree guns
each; CD 12-inch mortar batteries OF
eight mortars each; (c) rapid fire bat
teries Of from two to six guns each,
caliber six inches or less A battery
Is usually commanded by a captain. 1t
is assumed that the guns of a single
battery shall always have the same
sarget. Second, the fire command,
which is a group Of batteries, so locat-
ed that their fire covers the same or
contiguous water areas, and that they
can be readily commanded in action by
one man. Coordinate with the fire
command is the mine command. This
consists of submarine defenses includ-
ING mine fields and rapid fire guns
which defend them.
Third, the battle command, consist
ang of two or more fire or mine COM
raands and including al the armament
material and accessories that cover
water area within which a naval at
tack may be expected, and over which
one man may exercise efficient con-
troll In most harbors there Is but
one battle command. In the very
large harbors there Is more than one;
for instance in New York harbor,
Forts Totten, Schuyler and Slocum
1Na&4 O M IF OIiY
FIRE commands and one mine command
(fifteen batteries), Forts Wadsworth
and Hamilton constitute second bat
lie command Of five fire commands and
one mine command (twenty-thTee bat
teries) and Fort Hancock constitutes a
third battle command of three fire
commands and one mine command
fourteen batteries). A battle COM
Inand is usually commanded by col
onel, and is the highest unit in our
system. over which is exercised fire
control Fourth, the artillery district
consisting Of a subdivision Of the coast
line, including the personnel assigned
thereto, organized for the purpose Of
artillery administration and defense
The command of an artillery district
devolves upon the senior artillery Of
ficer thereof who is designated as the
district commander.
The system of fire control and d.
Fection" has for its purposes l, to en-
able the battery commander at al
times to determine the range and other
firing data Of the target assigned tc
rim; 2, to enable the frae commander
to supervise and control the fire Of the
batteries Of his command. 1t is tht
fire commander who assigns targets tt
the. batteries, who ses that the targets
are illuminated at night, who pre-
scribes the volume and rate of fire, etc
5, to enable the battle commander tt
conduct an action and to exercise gen
efal supervision over and to co-ordin'
ate the various subdivisions Of his
mand; A. to enable the district com
mander to command the artillery de
fences Of his district and so direct al
Of the artillery elements of defensl
that they may work harmoniously to
gether and mutually supplement ant
support each other
There should be at least one 60-incl
searchlight under the control of tn
Battle commander who has an electri
controller in his station. He searche
for the enemy in his battle area by us
Of his searching lights with assist
ance as he desires from the illuminat
ing lights of the fire commanders TIL
fire commander has a horizontal bas
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