Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1915-08-26

bomb with a reasonable chance OF
hitting the target
Sky Darts
The sky darts" are another wea-
pom or aerial warfare, first introduced
by the French and later adopted by all
the hghting forces in Europe. They
consist OF pieces of steel, about the
size OF fountain pen and quite sharp.
At the blunt end they are ouartered.
ilke the feathers upon an arrow, to
insure their direct flight downward.
one or the American officers detailed
as a military observer abroad dug up
Dart of this nature which had
struck the helmet of a mounted SOL
aler, passed completely through his
pody and that of his horse and bur-
led itself foot in the frozen ground!
Submarine Torpedo
Hand in hand with the deyelopment
OF the submarine boat has gone the
development of the submarine torpe-
do-the only means of defense pos
sessed by the wasps of war. The tor
pedo used in the sso-Japanese war
1nl9O4 is little more than a toy COM
pared with it's counterpart of a decade
later. The modern torpedo has a fair
cnance OF hitting target at six miles,
a1ter covering the intervening space
at rate of forty knots an hour, and
1t is confidently predicted that torpe-
does will soon be made that will be
capable of range of twelve or four
teen miles.
Rear Admiral Bradley A. Fiske,
United States Navy has recommended
the experiment of launching torpedoes
from hydroplanes or seaplanes at
night because of the fact that the sub
marine is practically powerless after
dark. This may give rise to another
form of naval warfare-of aerial
submarine work, combination of
these two twentieth century fantastic
fighting machines.
Wireless Improvements
What the submarine is to the sea
and the aeroplane is to the air, the
wireless is to the land forces of a ma
tion at war, and many have been the
improvements devised upon the form
erly known systems of land scouting
by means of portable wireless stations.
practically invisible from a distance
and easily concealed in hay stack or
chimney. There is a story OF the
discovery by the Germans of a field
wireless station in the chimney of a.
chateau which had for several weeks
been occupied as headquarters of the
invading army. The operator had
been sealed up with his instruments
and considerable supply'of food. A
small opening into the room used by
the German field officers gave him his
information and it is practically GER
tain that many important messages
were flashed out of the chimney be-
fore the station was finally discovered
and destroyed. The operator escaped
under cover of darkness and upon his
sending instrument was found the sin
gle French phrase, "Nimporte"-
Never mind"
Knapsack Wireless
The knapsack wireless-the small
est of the progeny of the big towers
with their 3,000-mile radiuses--weiehs
but so pounds and can be divided SO
as to be easily transported by four
soldiers. 1t can be erected in a very
short time and has a radius of five to
seven miles. manifestly a great i'm
provement upon the old method of u.s.
ing mounted orderlies to relay news of
the enemy's advances.
The cavalry wireless, or the "whis-
kers of the army" as ii is known to the
British Tommies, is the big brother
of the knapsack wireless. 1t weighs
$40 pounds and can be carried by four
horses. The radius of communication
Is about 80 miles and the time requir-
ed to unpack and erect the station is
only ten minutes. The automobile
wireless is a still larger form of port
able apparatus for air communication
having radius of 200 miles and an
endurance of five hours on a single
charge.
Keeping Close Watch
What with air scouts to watch all
the movements of the enemy and
wireless to transmit their reports in
stantly to headquarters, portable wire
less stations to keep headquarters in
close touch with everything that oc-
ours along the battle front, submarines
to harrass the shipping and blow up
the dreadnaughts of the foe, motor
driven artillery to move quickly from
place to place and many improvements
in the essential arts of sanitation and
feeding, the position of the modern
nation at war is much easier than 1t
was formerly.
But 1t must be remembered that the
enemy is also equipped with these new
sidearms of Mars and that new weap-
ons are being daily perfected to
further mans inhumanity to man. To
the end that the United States may be
fully prepared in the event of war
the war department is keeping close
watch over all the fighting abroad, and
Congress will be informed when this
winter it takes up the matter of an
improvement of the
nj fltf ~ hra r4rf1Aa AZ fr,a