The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-05-16
SHORTAGE
 OF MACHINE GUNS
War Department Can Supply, No More for Training
 Purposes.
Especial to The Fatmer.l


 Washington, DC, May 16.-A short age of machine guns so acute that no more can be supplied the militia for training purposes is admitted by the War Department. All available guns have been forwarded to the border and 1t is a grave question whether the sup ply is anywhere near adequate.
 Moreover, no appropriation for ad- ditional machine guns was included in the $S,0O0,OOO extraordinary budget submitted by the War Department two m onths ago for the first Mexican ex- petition, and promptly passed by Con gross. This was due chiefly to the or dinance bureau, (which having approv- ed a particular type of machine gun, the new Vickers, wishes to buy no other. The result is that the long standing order for the new guns is not filled and will not be before the end of December.
 National Guard organizations from all over the c31nLl have made appli- cation for machine gun equipment so that their regiments may be ready for service. Some of these organiza- tions declare that if they cannot get the regular equipment, they wish enough for practice work so that the men will at least be able to use the equipment when it is available. In answer to these requests, the division of militia affairs has been obliged to admit that there is not gun to be had, nor are any expected from the makers until the last of the year, when 126 are to be completed and sent to the department. These 125 guns are included in the 1,O72 machine guns of which the army boasts.
 The regulations furnish each regi- ment with four guns. The practice has been to furnish one reserve gun also for each regiment, so that the~SO infantry and Is cavalry regiments of the regular army have 225 machine guns. There are also 120 machine guns which have been supplied to the State militia in various sections of the country. This leaves SOP machine guns in the military establishment. A large number of these are in Panama and a certain reserve is in the insular possessions of the United States. The balance of the reserve, which former ly was kept at San Antonio and other arsena1s is now reported in use on the border, and the fact that the little de- tachment of troops at Glenn Springs had no machine gun for defense against the raiders last week, is an in dication that more machine guns would be used under present condi- tions.
 The situation is a little bit worse because of the fact that of the five regiments of infantry added to the bor- der patrol through the requisition on the forces of Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, there is only one with ma chine gun equipment. That means that simply to bring the additional forces up to the regulations standard the ordinance department D1ust in some manner obtain machine guns for the additional regiments.
 Army. officers seem unwilling to ac- cept the present standard of equip- ment as sufficient. Trench warfare such as is carried on in France and Flanders is utilizing two machine guns for every 100 yards, and there is a feeling that the American regulations will have to be increased
 Vickers guns are already being turn ed out in this country for foreign con sumption under American patents held by the Colt Arms Company. This com pany has assured the ordinance di- vision that it is ready to begin sup plying guns at any time and that it has taken the foreign orders only with the understanding that it will furnish it's output first to the United States government if the War Depart ment wishes to buy