The Goldfield news and weekly tribune. [volume] (Goldfield, Nev.) 1911-1947, 1916-10-28
CARS SMASH
GERMAN DEfENSES
CATERPILLAR AND .A~LLICaATOI;
ARMORED CARS CROSS
ARMY TRENCHES

The sudden appearance Of what
have been called tank cars on
the British front the third week in
September, says John Arson Ford
in November Popular Mechanics,
added another spectacular feature
to modern wal methods, which al
ready lave been characterized by so
Tany new and deadly devices. These
strange cars, which it appears the
British have been s~ecretely equipplng
for weeks, crossed trenches and
made their way through shell GRAFT
ers without difficulty. Each is Gov
ered with heavy armor, within
which are gunners to keep up a
heavy fire when the enemy is within
range. In fact the new machines
proved so effective on TIE very first
day that the attack which they led
enabled the infantry to break
through the Germans third line of
defense.
To Americans it is a matter of
special interest that American in
ventive genius undoubtedly has play
ed a fundamental part in producing
these remarkable cars. There is 1T
tie doubt that they are powerful
gasoline tractors of either the cater
pillar or the alligator type, which
have been covered with armor. With
in recent years firms in this coun-
| try have evolved these mastery ma
chimes for large-scale farming, big
numbering projects and the like.
! Later they demonstrated their mill
tarv value in a convincing manner.
One manufacturer has shipped 1000
tractors of the caterpillar type to
England within recent months, and
reports received by the concern
since then have indicated that some
of them, at least, were being
equipped for actual fighting. An
other American concern some time
ago prepared complete plans for an
armored car of the alligator type,
patterned after machines that are
| extensively used for logging in the
western forests. and submitted them
% the British authorities. The
plans were under consideration for
p time and then the matter was
dropped. 1t is the belief of this
concern that the features of the car
il designed have beer appropriated
in whole or in part by the British
/ government, and that Great Britain
is unfair in claiming the credit Tor
these war monsters.
Tho 1ictinctiya feature of the
caterpillar car is that it is supported
by a single wheel at the front and
two wide endless tracks, or belts, OF
the caterpillar type near the rea
! one on either side. Fastened to the
inner side of these tracks are end
less rails on which rest small trucks
hat support the engine. Each
broad corrugated track passes around
two big cogwheels which cause 1T
to travel forward or backward.
These corrugated real supports in
some instances have a bearing sur
face nearly Z feet long. The ALI
gator car, however. has nc forward
wheel and travels entirely on two
endless, corrugated belts, each OF
which has a bearing surface of 16
feet and can be operated indepen-
IDENTIFY of the other.
The astonishing n in when
the British tank cars have been
able to cross trenches, overturn stone
walls, and perform other feats is
doubtless made possible by these
corrugated tracks or belts. In the
case of the cars of the caterpillar
type having tracks with z feet OF
bearing surface, it has been possible
for them to crawl across practically
any gap which was less than Z feet
wide, while the alligator cars, with
a bearing surface 16 feet long can
negotiate gaps and overcome OBJ
stacles which in some respects are
even more difficult. Marked uc-
cess has attended the use of trac-
tors OF the caterpillar type by the