New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-11-03

| they or the hundreds of pieces of steel
end bullets into which they divide
strike. Still. men untouched twenty.
I'VE yards away from an exploding
smell are knocked over and often
stunned. ! saw one whose coat had
been almost entirely torn from his
back by the force of an exploding she'll
100 feet away. lie was unhurt.
shells can play more odd tricks on
battlefield han the fires of heaven
over did during storm. After the
French 3-inch rapid firing gun. the
most interesting as well as probably
The most discussed weapon used by civ
lllzed men TO knock into Kingdom Come
their equally civilized brothers, is the
i2O-millimetre about II inches) nor
tar used by the Germans and built by
hrupp in the utmost secrecy. IL was
said. and II has since been verified at
Maubeuge. that the concrete founda-
tons from which these mortars can
only be fired. had been prepared for
years by representatives of the Ger
man military authorities IN various
spots near the fortified cities OF Bel
gium and France. Such representatives.
were generally welcomed into those
countries as managers or propretor5
Of various factories.
The f20-m illimetre mortar il the
John l.. Sullivan of the present war
Pig. husky, formidable, If its punch
lands you're a dead man; but il is slow.
and while il Is figuring where 10 viii
place its blow why, alert Jim Corbett
under the circumstances. the French
3-lnch gun Smashes him once. twice.
three times just above the belt, and
John L. is knocked ont
Two of those big fellows were met
by the writer on the way from scissors
20 st. Quentin not long ago. They had
been put out of business and lay sadly
on the side of the road, their breech
blown off by the owners, evidently.
Dragged all the way from Maubeuge,
near the Belgium frontier, which had
been conquered through the very
weight of their shells, and meaning to
carry on their work up to the very
fertilization Of Paris. the two monsters
mad fioundered ANONYMOUSLY in the
road leading to Scissors. these having
been transformed by two days rain
into a second Everglades. A company
OF French sharpshooters specially Sc
!ected for this occasion had three times
successfully within a day killed the
forty horses needed 70 drag each piece.
and finally a battery of three-inch
rapid-firers. quickly placed in position
on small hill in front of Scissors and
two and half miles away. had in
about twenty shots knocked TO splint-
ers their UNDERMINING.
Number OF Guns Limited.
an the opinion OF all military au-
thoritics. French included. not a forti-
fed town, fortress or protective work
of any sort or description can exist
any length of time under the fire Of
these German monsters. II is said
their number is very limited. only
eight having been seen in Belgium;
nevertheless. a few are sufficient for
any work they may be called upon
to do.
But and. like many other butts
this one is of tremendous importance
TO the Germans these mortars can be
used only IN fact, can only exist
when the opposing artillery is too far
TO be used effectively, and at two,
three. five or even seven miles they
stand no chance against lighter
weapons. As only skilled engineers
can handle the very delicate and in
tricate mechani sm Of the mortar these
are not easily replaced. and the allied
have already played
havoc among the ranks Of these spe-
ciaists. who have followed the Ger
man siege batteries from the very
doors of Krupp. where they were born.
At long distance shooting ten or
twelve and even fifteen miles when
plenty Of time can be devoted to range
Ending, these mastodons are wonder
fully effective. Closer, they are st the
mercy Of the French and British ar
'i,lery, and. as has once been the case,
AZ the mercy Of bayonet charge.
zone thing has been amply proven
if all the engineering skill Of Krupp
has been devoted TO the birth of these
luge mortars. less care has been used
in the manufacturing of the shells
used by them. At Maubeuge only one
put OF three exploded The others made
loles through five feet Of concrete, but
,aused very little damage.
"fhe mortars, mounted, weigh about
5000 pounds. Each shell weighs near
Y half a ton, and the German govern
nent loses $4,000 every time one fails
o explode"