Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-08-07
FORM PICTURE OF WAR
Exercises Down the Potomac
Now Spectacular.
WORKING BY NIGHT AND DAY
Advantages of the Telephone for
Work in the Field.
OUTPOSTs WELL ESTABLISHED
Details of the Manipulation and
Firing of the Big Guns-Pre-
pairing Reports.

Special From STAFF Correspondent by The Star,
Dispatch Boat Fairbanks.
FORT HUNT. Va. August Sitting
| on the parapet of Battery Mount Vernon
with eight-nch guns booming constantly.
their vibrations shaking the buildings all
| over the post. any one could have caught
an accurate picture of war both today
| and last night. The combined maneuvers
of the infantry and the heavy artillery
were even more realistic than the infantry
| attacks on the forts of Tuesday and We'd
nesday evenings. the result of which
| seemed to preciptate a real war between
newspaper correspondents. With the fire.
| fly flashes Of the Signal Corps. the sig
| nal bombs and rockets. the great white
beams Of the searchlights picking up tar
| gets in the shape of yachts and other
craft on the river. the spiteful splitting
| of the infantry fire along the far
stretched line of Outposts at both forts,
| this reservation seemed to be in actual
| operation beginning at 8 o'clock last
night and continuing today from the time
| the supports marched across the parade
ground and out into the surrounding
| country to guard the post from land
attack or from an invasion by the enemy
| in small boats.
The night work of the men always
seems to be more spectacular than the
hard grind of patrol, scout and artillery
duties by day. Lying in the underbrush
waiting for the light crackle of twig
TO signify the approach of man trying
to steal through the lines. with the night
as dark a heavy cloud can make II.
brings excitement to every one fortunate
enough TO be out on the line of outposts.
heavy body of hostile troops may be
silently approaching the shore In boats
and the main body of the friendly army
is thousands of yards I'm the rear
watchful guard sees the enemy at close
range and gives the alarm. The little
outpost spreads out and fires a vOlley or
two and waits for the supports. who come
rushing down the hill. deploying to right
and left, and. concealed by the tall grass
or bushes. splits the darkness with the
fire of volley after volley.
outposts Well Established.
The outpoStS are we'll established now.
The Signal Corps urrder Lieut., Putnam.
has strung field telephones from every
important point direct to Col. Reichelder-
fer's headquarters. The field telephone
is a great invention, as it spins its web
like spider. along fences. through the
grass, anywhere. In fact, and leaves a
trail of invisible wire that an enemy can
not find unless by the greatest luck. BY
its use each outpost is in as complete
communication with the rest of the army
as if drilling in the armory
In addition to the noise made by the
other organizations in camp here today
the 1st Battery Field Artillery, hitched
up and trotted into the fields. where they
plugged away with blank ammunition. to
the intense delight of every one OF the
wagon soldiers under Capt Fox's COM
mand. They did not take part in the
battle last night. but most of them swung
thec legs over the top of the meteOrologi-
cal tower and rolled cigarettes. They
acted the part of military attaches from
foreign countries. and had several bits of
advice to hand to the commanding Off
cers-if it had been needed.
1t was very pretty to watch the search
lights sweep the river to catch the boats
that had been sent down to act as a hos
tile fleet. Some of the searchlights are
five fee in diameter. and illumine a ves-
sci completely when the man in charge
catches the target" as the boats are
called There is an incentive for the
artillerymen to work fast when the hostile
vessel can be seen rushing up the river in
the full glare of the searchlight, as every
minute brings her guns within better
range. and unless enough shells are sent
through her armor she will pass the
forts and have Washington at the mercy
of her guns. The light is as much of an
enemy to the ship as the great guns are.
AMI for that reason the ships try all sorts
of tricks to get by without being caught.
Sight a Battleship.
The L. S. S. Oneida went down the
river last night and tried to run by the
forts. A commercial steamer was caught
Just off Marshall Hall and did service
as a battleship. The command came from
the battle commander. "Battleship just
off Marshall Hall: train fire on the red
light" Then minute later. Fire three
rounds of blank ammunition"
Instantly all was action at Battery
Mount Vernon. a bugler gave sharp
CALL and the men ran to their posts. 1t
was very much like the scene in a fire
engine house when an alarm is sent in.
| to reduce the martial scene to civilian
terms. The gun pointer standing on the
steel platform. and peering through the
little telescope used as sign, called out
| Right or Left" while the men working
at the traversing wheels swung the great
gun, weighing a score of tons. TO the
proper position. Up from the magazine
| in the vaults below the battery ran the
| powder monkeys" the solitary character
| remaining to artillery from the romantic
| days when powder was served to the
guns In buckets by adventurous boys who
| had run off to the war The charges
| weigh twenty-five pounds and are in
cased in heavy bags
The breech detail has opened the breech
with a rush 1t is very much like opening
|
| charge is placed. the breecn closed and
| locked. the man with the lanyard runs
| backward from the gun, and the gun
pointer. keeping his eye trained on the
ship through the telescope sight. sings
out. Gun No. l. ready. fre!'' And as
| the men raise on their toes to escape
| the great shock there is a flash and a
roar impossible to describe.
Rush to Their Stations.
After firing a shot the men rush to
their stations again, and IL the battle COM
mander has sent over word for three
! rounds. or independent action, they go at
| 1t as II they were determined to make a
rapid-fire gun out of the enormous mon
ster that can throw a shell farther than
the ordinary man can see and sink a ship
| with hundreds OF men aboard.
| The fash of a big gun at night is a
most fascinating thing. II seems that for
that moment of time a giant hand has
| torn a hole in the blackness of night and
exposed the burning surface of a tremen-
| dous sun. The fash seems to be about
ten feet long. and lights up a great area
OF the surrounding atmosphere. but for
| TO longer than the wink of an eye. Then
everything seems blacker than ever. and
| the great cloud of smoke rolls bach
lsmelling rather bad. and the moon. II II