The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1908-07-22
MAKING HEAVY GUNS
THE WASHINGTON NAVY YARD Is
KEPT BUSY.
Forginss Are Brought from Various
Steel Works and Assembled
Exact Designs and Measure.
ments for Weapons.

All the big guns for the navy are
now made al The Washington navy
yard. The forsinss come from Beth
lehem. Midtale tnear Philadelphia
and The Carnegie steel sorks at Pitts
burg, being supplied under contract
and manufactured under the snperyi-
sion of naval officers, who are as
signed to each furnace and whose
duty II is to SEE that the steel is
pure and perfect and that il CORE
spends To the specifications. The gov
eminent spends about S. 600 900 a
year for materials of this kind. and
there are about 81 600 600 worth OF
guns partially finished at the navy
yard in Washington all the time. The
torgings come IN the rough but have
been hammered into the shapes aud
sizes desired, according to drawings
furnished by the ordnance bureau Of
the navy department
Every II and IL noh gun IL com
posed OF nine separate pieces Each
piece is SO exact In Its measurements
that they will fit together like the
works of watch Each gun is man
ufactured after 4 design and measure.
ments that are sketched upon blue
print such as an architect furnishes
to the builder of a house, Battle.
ships are constructed the same may.
Every plate OF steel, every rivet every
biz of machinery, every wire and
steam pipe, every electric light on
man-of war has its picture made be.
fore II comes into existence and IL
shaped exactly on the lines and the
size indicated by the measurements
that are marked upon the blue print.
The forgings for a l3ineh gun the
largest that is now made. which will
throw 2,400 pounds of steel IL or 10
miles and hit a target five or six
miles distant with an much accuracy
as revolver In shooting gallery
vary in weight from % pounds to 25
tons, and are brought by rail over
the Pennsylvania tracks into The gun
factory, where they are picked up and
carried to the places assigned them by
travelling ccaaea that don't make half
The biggest one can handle 10 Kong,
another 90 and another 40 tons as
gently and as easily as a mother will
raise her child from the cradle fhe
cranes pick up l3inch guns aud carry
them the whole length Of the factory.
which Is longer than the capitol build,
ing thousand feet from end to end
and lay them down In parallel rows
like knives on spoons IN silver chest
Every Kind of gun and ordnance ma
terial Is made at the navy yard-tor.
pedo tubes, cartridge cases, swahs
hammers, canvas covers, rope for the
gun carriers and sights which the
Rinners use to find the range and tell
them when to shoot They make all
sizes OF guns there. also, varying from
the one FOUNDER which is four feet
long and about one inch bore, to the
big l3-lnch thunderer. which Is As feet
long and made of metal that liz four
inches thick at the muz3le aud IL
inches thick al the hreeeh The six
FOUNDER h six feet Ions aud has a
bore OF 2,2i inches. The l3inch gun
of the latest type costs $50 900 Every
thing that belongs TO a gun is made
at the navy yard except powder and
prOleetiles The powder Is made al
Indian Head and the vrojectiIes at
GiesborO, On the Potomac, four miles |
south of Washington. A factory was
recently erected there by the Fort
Sterling Company, a private corpora
ton, which has a contract for furnish. |
ing 5000 600 worth OF projectiles for
the navy I