The Julesburg grit-advocate., 1916-04-06

~ ana quickly, tnefe Vlli De ever
abreast OF the mounted troops batter.
les of field artillery. for artillery Il
this kind has come to be one Of the
E1ainstays, perhaps the mainstay. Of
the armies Of the world.
Information recently has been forth
coming in Washington concerning the
development OF the artillery arm Of
the service, and it is certain Ii pre-
paredness measures are enacted into
law that the increase in the artillery
will be much greater proportionately
than the increase In any other branch
OF the service.
The engagement quickly resolved
itself into an artillery duel" The
words quoted appear in scores OF dis
patches from the scenes Of the con
nict in Europe. II Is All artillery
var largely. The word battery" 10
read by Americans probably five times
where the other words. regiment Or
battalion. are read once.
There are batteries of horse artil
lery. batteries OF light field artillery,
mountain batteries, siege batteries.
and sea coast batteries. although the
last named may be eliminated from
discussion because thus far. save for
some operations in the far East. and
. short engagement on the Belgian
coast. they have cut little figure In
the fighting.
The great arm OF the artillery serv-
ice is the light battery, for in it lies
the chief artillery strength Of the
armies. The field guns OF the Ameri-
can army as formed into batteries and
~ equipped for conflict are virtually
on the same basis as the light artil-
lery of the other armies OF the world.
When the field details of the Ameri-
can artillery are known, the compost
tiOn Of batteries. the allotment of am.
munition. the complement of can.
noneers, caissons and other adjuncts.
It Is possible to get definite infOrma-
tiOn OF the conditions in the armies
now fighting in Europe.
In virtually all the armies of the
terry, a change from the days of the
uzzle-loading fieldpiece. when there
were six and occasionally eight guns
to each battery. The breechloader.
with itk method of taking up the re-
coil and with the ease OF its manipula-
of twenty-five shots a minute. This
is something to be thought on. 1t
means that shell with it's dread
charge of lyddite or other high explo-
sives leaves the muZzle of each piece
every two and half seconds or there
abouts.
They are firing today from the field
| artillery twenty-five shots in the time
that it took to fire one in the old days,
but the havoc today Is not twenty-five
times as great, because soldiers have
been taught and forced to take to
cover.
A United States standard light bat.
terry Of field artillery. and 1t will stand
as a type, at war strength has total
of five commissioned officers and Ill
| enlisted men. There are 60 drivers
and 65 cannoneers, four gunner cor.
porals and 13 caissons, one store wag-
on and timber and four field wagons.
a total of l12 draft wagons, As saddle
| horses and 16 mules, making 172 ami.
| mails.
| The ammunition is the thing. There
| are In the caisson body 20 rounds and
| in the timber chest &c rounds, while In
the emergency tubes" on each gun
there are four rounds. So that in each
| gun section there are 106 rounds Of
! fixed" or made ammunition In the
caisson, sc rounds in the gun timber
| and four rounds in the ammunition
tubes on the gun carriage. In each Of
the four caisson sections there are 2l2
| rounds.
Thus with field battery of light ar.
tiilery there are 1882 rounds on the fir.
| ing line and on wheels close by under
| cover. That figures out 1858 shots to a
rife. With the ammunition train there
are. or should be, four wagons each
| with LOG rounds, and at the advance
| supply depot 1856 rounds. or 464 shots
q rife. raising the ammunition supply
on the firing line, in the combat train
| close at hand, in the ammunition train
on the road and at the advanced sup
ply depot, to 92S rounds gun.
No one knows definitely as yet just
what the military preparedness bill as
it finally passes congress will provide
for the artillery arm of the service. AS
things seem today. there is an appear
ance of an increased strength in the
ranks Of the antipreparedness mem.
bers. II appearances are not deceitful
it seems likely therefore that a com.
promise finally effected between the
house and senate members will make
for decrease rather than an increase
in the appropriations for the supply Of
men. weapons and ammunition.
Booklet on Park System.
The department OF the Interior,
Franklin x Lane secretary has iust