Mohave County miner., 1914-12-19
Some French Military Surprises.

AlInouSH HSIihdily oui PiioSu 'hS whole world with the 42-centimeter howitzer, and is said to be preparing still further surprises in the shape of new war Zeppelin and 4S-centimeter gun capable of sending a shell across the English channel at Calais, the French also say, according to Paris letter to the New York Times, that they have their surprises for the Ger mans, some of which have already made record. They are:
 1. A new gas bomb.
 2. A dynamite bomb, weighing sixty pounds, dropped by aviators for the purpose of blowing up bridges.
 8. A shell pistol which, it is said, will ignite and detonate Zeppelin.
 4. A rapid-fre air gun which, it is said, has already accounted for the loss of several Taube aeroplanes.
 5. Les filches, or steel arrow, six inches in length, 1000 of which can be discharged simultaneously by an avi- ator. They are said to have driving force of 100 pounds when dropped from an altitude of only 2OO0 feet.
 A military aviator who has used both khe dynamite bomb and the new gas bomb said to reporter of Le Figaro in regard to them:
 'The two are similar in size and weight, but the effect, as seen from above, is very different. When the dynamite bomb falls upon body of men, you can see the bodies leap up in the air. It is like a small volcano in action.
 "When the new bomb bursts it sim ply lays everything out flat within the area of its explosion. Men go down like ninepins, buildings collapse like card houses, guns are overturned as if by magic.
 "The explosion raises no particular dust or smoke, but extreme cold is produced so intense that l have felt it myself when have dropped my first bomb at a height of about 800 feet. was taking great chances by flying so low, but wished to see the effect of the bomb.
 'It fell on section of Germans bivouacking in field. l estimated that at least thirty men were killed within the area of the explosion. Had they been massed more densely, more would have been killed.
 "Death from these bombs comes in - staHtly from intense cold and the vi ! bration produced by the concussion. There is nothing wonderful about the bomb when we consider the frightful [ force of an exploding hydrogen cylinder, which often wrecks an entire building. The bomb is constructed on that prin- ciple. Its material is a secret, but it can be readily conveyed to any aero plane base, and the bombs can be easi- ly filled by the aviator or his assistant before he starts.
 In this connection, London quotes from leading Bavarian medical journal a Bavarian surgeons report on the casualties he has observed from arrows dropped by hostile aeroplanes. He states that, on one occasion in France, several companies were resting, paying little attention to two aeroplanes cir cling overhead. Suddenly the tethered horses began to kick and squeal and cries of pain arose among the men, several of whom were literally pinned to the ground by arrows. Nearly a score of men were wounded before the source of these arrows were detected and cover was taken under wagons. The force with which the arrows strike must be great, for in one case an arrow passed through mans skull It was estimated that every third arrow had scored hit, so the effectiveness of this weap is convincingly demon strated,