Evening star., 1915-04-11

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gates to the northeastern United Statee-
Buzzards bay. gashing deeply into SIassa-
chusetts; Narragansett bay, almost cut
ting Rhode Island in two, and tho east
ern entrance to Long Island Sound ane
the cities OF Connecticut
Open any one Of these gates and IL
opened the way at one blow to both New
York and Boston.
These three sea salients were greatly
armed for defense, In each harbor lay
batteries Of fourteen and twelve inch all
steel rtf1ed cannon Hidden under facins-
OF earth. steel and concrete. they sat on
disappearing carriages and pneumatic gun
lifts that would swing them UP as II they
weighed ounces instead OF tons. and
instantly plunge them back again into
cover after firing.
Deep under earth enIbankrnents. squat
ting in concrete-lined graves, twelve-lnch
mortars. sixteen TO a group. stared up
ward at the patches OF sky over Shetr
heads: which was all that their men would
see while they were firing however httter
the fight might be.
A single shot from one of the long.
graceful rifles might sink a ship II Il vens
we'll placed. A single salvo from the NOR
tars. the sixteen firing together assured
ly would. And they could do q. Aimed
by mathematics. they were sure to strtk.
the spot.ir
score OF serving devices in the de-
fenses we're slaves to the steel champions
Searchlights in armor waited like meu-at-
arms to point with long white finger
at their prey. Mine fields and ernplane-
ments and cable conduits were there to
force the ships to steer where the guns
could strike them most surely Masked
by trees and mounds, concealed by every
device against betrayal, were range fnd-
ers and fire control stations
Here sat experts who had studied the
- rf<H
etry. surveying, navigation and cartoE-
raphy for one purpose-to direct thoes
long guns true. They were provided with
exquisite instruments for calculating
angles and distances to an inch. though
the point to be ascertained were ten nau-
ticai miles and more away.
Before them lay charts of the sea area
that they were guarding. Let a ship come
within the limit of their apparatus and
In the time required to speak into a tele-
phone the gun pits miles away down the
defense line would crack with the explo-
sion Of toms of smokeless powder
They were nearly perfect. those worries
as engineering works. They were fully
armed with the engines to make them
malignant to the ultimate fatal degree
The ten-mile area of sea that lay 30
bright and dimpled that morning might
well have been black as the wings OF
death: for few little motions Of H..
waiting men under the pretty grassy
mounds would unfold those pinions
But under the iron visages was weak
ness. In none of the defenses on this
morning when the time had come for
their test were there more than one-h half
the number Of men required to hold
themts
They could fight the guns. so long as
the action remained ship-to-fort action.
out II the enemy attacked at the rear
from the land. they were not in sufficient
force to meet him and throw him back
Attacked from the land the men of the
defenses would have to retire to the in
ner keep and fight from shelter with
rapld-f1re guns. And when the defenses
mus began to defend themselves their
hour would have struckis
Still. for the time they were deadly
The enemy fleet paid them the supreme
tribute of scrupulous respect Not a YES
sci ventured after dawn into the deadly
circle Of their reach To make sure that
no vessel should expose itself by accident
the mine layers of the enemy fleet were
even then moving we'll outside of the zone
or extreme fire and laying immense steel
buoys, painted vivid scarlet
These scarlet buoys outlined an area
Of safety that was shaped somewhat
like pentagon with its apex at Block
Island and its base on the Rhode Island
Judith.
1t was base marking out five miles
OF beach that was safe both from the
fre or the Long Island sound defenses
shooting eastward over the water along
the Rhode Island shore and from the
shots of the Narragansett defenses firing
over Rhode Island from within.
Here daylight revealed land oc-
cupied In orderly, quiet, perfect mill
tary manner. Inland. as far as III.
naval guns could protect them. lay the
men of the advance landing party be
hind their machine-gun positions For
miles beyond that. east and west, their
patrols had cut telegraph and telephone
wires. and occupied points that com
manded roads by which attacking
forces might approach.
On the beach. where the blocks and
tackle and hoisting derricks had been
rugged in the night. gun-foats were
being brought to the beach with can
non and caissons. Under the pull OF
centrifugal blocks these were hoisted
out and dropped In shore on railway
tracks that led over the sand to firm
ground.
There motor trucks and traction on
gines, all brought to land during the
night, took them and hurried them to
positions ready for fight. or to mark
them ready for moving when the ad-
vance should begin.
From vantage points inland from
turesome spies as M-9, went the news
to Washington. and SO through the
land. The crowds in the cities. dense
even at that early hour of the morn
ing, read on the bulletin boards:
Enemy effected landing during the
night on Rhode Island between Mar
bay and Long Island sound.
Transports are now close in preparing
to put troops ashore. Scouts report
four liners aggregating 100000 tons.
Army officials estimate that at the
usual allowance of two men per ton
this means $4,000 men. More transports
waiting under Block Island"
Now is the time to strike en- II
was not one man in one crowd who
said it. In every city where there wer.
crowds there arose these speakers-ths
excitable, passionate orators who are
born of every great crisis, ami who. in
such moments. find willing listeners
Now is the time to strike 'en. be-
fore they can bring more men ashore,
They should have been attacked in the
night, What kind of generals have We
got, to let 'em land instead of throw
Ing 'em back into the sea as fast as
they came? Where is our army" Keep
ing itself safe?"
The army, with 10000 civilian work
ers impressed as they were needed, was
the railroad of southern
New England. 1t was tearing up the
shore line of the New York. New
Haven and Hartford railroad from New
4 I.,t,