Ripley County democrat. (Doniphan, Mo.) 1905-1920, 1916-12-22
PLAN MAMMOTH
LANDBATTLEsHIP
IFOR FUTURE War
Super Tank With Wheels 200
Feet Hloh Proposed by Phil
adelphIa inventor.
sWEEPAWkYARMY OBSTACLE


Depression IN Hoac--Guns 70
ns Smallest Part Of De-
stroyInu Power.
New York.--A land battleship, with
wheels 200 feet high, driven by engines
Of many thousand horse power, able to
cross the Hudson as If 1t We're mud
puddle and daring the British tanks
as a locomotive does a hand car, is
the prediction Of Frank Shuman, the
Philadelphia inventor, whose concrete
piling and wire glasses, says the New
York Times, made him famous. Mr..
Shumnn believes that the next war will
bring q juggernaut that could NOV
through an army as easily Us through
O field Of wheat. Its giant wheels
would have to turn over just 10 times
to cover D mile; its giant size would
send itover rivers and valleys as cas-
lily as an automobile takes O foot-wide
depression In the road.
Mr.. Shuman says there is nothing
technically impossible about such a
machine, which would mean to land
battles what the superdreadnaught
means to war upon the seas. Guns
would be the smallest part of the de-
stroying power Of such q monster,
which By sheer force would sweep
away almost any obstacle the enemy
could oppose. In the December Is
sue Of the Popular Science Monthly,
nzEs r,.unr.u nn~srss-,s~-srsv-->> >>-,S.sps.vs-s
OF what he believes such an instru-
ment of war would be.
"A club, q bow and arrow, q blum
derbuss, an infantryman's rifle, Az
centimeter howitzer are,merely instru-
ments for delivering blows" he says.
"The essential difference between bat
ties Of prehistoric times and those Of
today lie In the manner Of delivering
blows. Smokeless powder has merely
heightened the arm Of the fighter. He
strikes and kills at distance Of miles.
Because armies are still composed
essentially OF many individuals fight
ing ships may be more fttingly termed
war Machines A battleship is real
machine. The men on board are mere
ly SO many intelligences that control
the steam engine, the turrets. the great
guns, and searchlights. But land war
fare is still waged, not by few ma
chimes, as on the sea. but by organized
millions Of men.
"Why Is there no land battleship,
something comparable with our own
Pennsylvania, something which will
concentrate within one volume the
striking power Of an armyf
Engineering Possibility.
'srhere Is no good engineering req.
son why an enormous wheeled struc.
ture heavily armored and capable Of
travelling at high speed. should NOT
wage the battles Of the future. Tech.
nically 1t Is far easier task to de-
sign and build q superdreadnaughi
than a wheeled destroyer to run OF
solid ground. The ocean Is vast
level expanse. There are no hills and
valleys. Waste Is In the same den.
4 sity everywhere. But land varies from
the hardest rock to the softest Quag'
mlre. Here we have the reason, why
we still oppose armies against each
other instead Of machines.
4 "Undenlable as these difficulties are,
It seems to me that they could be over
come by boldly designing q machine
Of such dimensions and OF such en-
| ergy that It could travel over a country
road. "A hill so feet high would be tc
that machine what six-inch ridge oi
| clay would be to IN automobile; .
swamp would no more hinder its course
than a half foot OF mud would stor
touring car. Hyen over rough inlant
country It would rush more swift,
thnn any touring car on poor road
The impact Of heavy mass moving
with the velocity Of an express trair
would be Irresistible. Indeed. In ii
speed would lie its destructive pos
sibilities. 1t could NOV down every
thing before It with the relentlessnes'
Of q steam roller. Guns would not b,
required torout an enemy. An arm,
would be as helpless In offering resist
ance as a flock Of geese In the path o.
an automobile.
"Picture to yourself 9 self-propellet
machine, comprising three wheels ant
a heavily-armored body or car. Their
ars two wheels, l50 to 200 feet "a al
ameter. In front and a single snallel
steering wheel to the rear. The en-
tire structure Is short 50 that the turn
ing radfus win be small.
u mo doubt you are familiar with tn
military ulasts Of our American bat
tleships They are lattieei towers no