The Athena press. [volume] (Athena, Umatilla County, Or.) 18??-1942, 1913-10-17

n Of the old type. He neither
spares the rod nor spoils the
w. child. He has many pupils
those who enter his service
in the government departments ane
the army and the navy. His course
Of training in the navy is rather se
we're, for he requires every man who
enlists for service under the Stars
and Stripes on sea to become skilled
artisan. Probably the most interest
ing of all of Uncle Sans trade schools
is the school for seaman gunners, al
the navy yard In Washington. 1t is
here that the men who aim and fire
the great guns learn their principle
and mechanism so thoroughly that the
efficiency of the United States navy
is unequaled by any navy in the
world.
There are more than 1875 men in the
seaman gunners' class at the present
time, enrolled for six months of the
hardest kind of study in the shops
and in the classroom. Every one oil
these men is picked, and In the serv
Ice 1t Is considered great honor to
be chosen to join the class. Only
men who have been in the service
four years are eligible, and then only
when their conduct and service record
are exceptionally good. Graduates oi
the school are the backbone of the
navy. Here the men are taught the
only really distinctive naval trade, and
it Is here that the men who load, train
and fire the immense guns are made.
Requires Much Study.
They learn the making Of the large
and small guns. They learn by prac.
teal experience how to take them
down and assemble them again. The
breech mechanism, everything to do
with the practical part Of ordnance,
the manufacture of shells, fuses and
powder and torpedoes all require
thorough and extensive study. The
work Is equally divided between the
naval gun factory shops and the class.
room, where they have instruction at
the hands Of skilled ordnance experts
and special instructors. In addition
to the ordnance course they are re-
quired to become proficient In the sci
ence Of metallography and skilled in
the manufacture and principle Of the
storage battery.
Work on the big guns start from the
raw casting. This huge, 75-ton cylin-
der of steel is bored out, trimmed and
grooved. The casing, another huge
cylinder of steel, is bored out, heated
white hot and shrunk onto the groov-
ed lining. The manufacture of this
part of the monster 14-inch rifles takes
about four weeks.
Then the gunnery force enters the
forge and hammer shops, where they
remain for two weeks. After this the
class Is divided into small squads.
some OF them going into the black
smith shop, others to the machinists'
bench, the carpenter shop. the tin
smith, the coppersmith and the
plumber for instruction. Each man
must hammer and turn out from raw
metal every piece of steel which goes
into the complicated breech block me-
chanism and the firing devices. Pro
jectiles and smokeless powder also
get great deal of attention. this last
phase of the work taking the school
to Indian Head, Md. for several
weeks work.
When these men graduate and leave
Washington for the various ships of
the Atlantic feet to them falls the
duty of keeping in repair every por-
tion of the ships armament II dur
Ing battle practice spring or bit Of
mechanism breaks, these seaman gun
ners must enter the ships machine
shop and forge or turn out a new
piece.
The gunner is In absolute command
of his gun. He has under him an as
sistant. In the big dreadnaughts Of
today, there are six turrets. with two
guns to each turret. Each turret Is
supplied with ammunition for two
magazines. Also there Is a gunner
In charge of the magazines. Besides
these. there are smaller five-inch rifles,
six and one-pounders located on vari-