Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-08-30
A Comparison of French
and German Field Gums

the replacement of the old Springfield
rife with a small caliher magazine rifle
But at length the United States gov
eminent bought a battery of krupp
guns. or they may have been Ehrhardts
with recoil cylinders, trail spade, tray
ersing mechanism. fixed ammunition
mechanical fuse setter. bulietproof
shields and all that IL may be that that
original battery of German guns is in
the United States artillery today. but
that seems scarcely probable. The
German and the French guns of that
period were similar and the guns
which the United States bought at that
time We're then the las, word in field
artillery. That gun the founda
ton of the gun today. but it has been
very much improved.
One matter in which tho French field
gun is superior to the American field
gun, and it is believed by many to be
superior to the German field gun in
the same respect. is in what is called
the independent line of sight. To IL
lustrate: In laying the American gun
the gunner at the indication of the
target tdirect fire) causes the piece to
be pointed at it and does the follow
ing things: Seats himself on the gun
ner'S seat. the left foot to the front.
the right foot to the rear: sets the de-
tie rtion scale at the detection ordered.
using either the peep or the panoramic
scale: sets the range scale on the rear
sight shank n the range ordered.
reefs for the difference in the level of
gun wheels and operates the elevat-
ing and traversing apparatus so as to
bring the line of sight upon the tar
get. In elevating the gun he uses one
hand wheel and in traverSing the gun
he uses another hand wheel. 1t Will
be seen that the gunner has a good
many things to do. On the French
gun this work is divided in direct fire.
The gunner lays the piece on the tar
get giving to 1t the direction and angle
of site. while a cannoneer gives the gun
the required range table elevation.
Another point of supposed superior
ity of the French gun is the split trail.
This improvement was told of by
Lieut. Col A. Deport of the French
artillery in the Revue d Artiilcrie in
June. 1911. and the article was trans
lated by Lieut. CORTLAND Parker of the
9Th Field Artillery and published in
the United States Field Artillery jour
nal The split trail has recently been
adopted in the American artillery and
the guns are now being equipped with
The vertical field of fire of the
French gun, before the adoption of the
split trail. was about twelve degrees
before the spade was sunk in the
ground to about seventeen degrees aft
er it was sunk, and the maximum de-
preston was ABOUT TOUR degrees. with
the split trail the normal vertical angle
is now from negative ten degrees to
positive fifty degrees and the posi- BILE
vertical angle is up to seventy de-
grees.
"The traverse or horizontal move
ment of the gun on it's carriage was
increased from seven degrees to a nor
NAL horizontal field of fire of forty
five degrees and a possible horizontal
field of fire of fifty-four degrees. The
better anchorage of the gun by means
of the forked trail and the two trail
spades driven into the ground with
sledges and the wider traverse of the
piece. shorten many of the operations
of the gun squad and obviate relaying
after the first shot.
The Independent line of sight and
the split trail are just two of the
things which tend to show the alert
ness of the French artilerists.
Another feature which would
name as favoring the French field gun