Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1916-11-07


originally an American invention. 1t
is true, as David Lloyd George says,
that the big machines were built by the
munitions department and that Colonel
Winston Spencer Churchill urged their
adoption at an early stage of the war,
but the idea came from the United
Estates.
Designs of the death-dealing ma
chine were submitted to the war office
more than year ago, but Great Brit
ain declined to finance their manufac-
ture unless the tractors We're made in
England. This was finally agreed to-
The man who brought the designs to
Great Britain declines to permit the
use OF his name, declaring that for
business reasons he does not desire to
dim the glory of those credited with
their introduction. He says he has
designs for tractor which probaly
will be even more effective" The New
Hork Herald, Sept. 20, 1916.
To understand how America fur
nished the inspiration for the building
OF these effective offensive weapons
Tor the modern trench warfare, it is
necessary to so back to the early sum-
mer of 1915 to the offices of the Auto
matte Machine Company, Bridgeport.
Conn. This company has for years
supplied many of the heavy duty gaso-
line engines used in the large tractors
built in this country and was familiar
with the conditions under which trac-
tors were working in the Oregon for
ests, the Louisiana lowlands and the
streets of our large cities Norman
Leeds treasurer of the company, real
izlng that the trench fighting of the
present day had made a practical dead
lock OF offensive and defensive, con-
ceived the idea that an armored trac-
tor of the alligator tyne would
make II possible to cross trenches, en-
hiading them, and that with sufficient
power neither wire entanglements nor
shell-pitted ground nor ruined walls
nor any of the debris of the battlefield
would offer any serious obstacle to this
leviathan armadillo.
tractors OF the alligator type "a
feet between driving wheel centers were
already in use in oregon. with the
huge power and stability of these ma
chimes. it would be easily possible TO
eoVer them with armor to withstand
the nre or 3-lnch guns and a compare
lively small crew would be as effective
as many hundreds of unprotected men.
MT. Leeds proposed that at least a
thousand such machines should be
bullt for use in mass formation. The
'front.' line cruisers would be used
to conquer the territory over which
they travelled: the rear lines, mean
time. would be producing a curtain
OF fire beyond thems to protect the
'front.' line while engaged in their work
OF reducing the fortified lines of the
enemy
1t was but the work of a few DAYS to
make preliminary sketch of the
automatic land cruiser" as he called
the creation which appeared in con-
siderable detail upon his drafting
board July 9, 1915.
At this point Mr.. Leeds called in
Alec McNab, of the McNab Company.
Bridgeport manufacturer of marine
appliances and an inventor of note.
much OF whose work has been con-
nected with various phases of warfare
Mr.. McNab is retired engineer-com-
mander OF the Royal Navy and al
once became greatly interested in the
development of the project. After a
few days of joint effort, the revised
Sketch mere SHOWN was produced on
July Il, 1915. 1t is this last plan
which was submitted to the British
War Office.
From this point let US carry ALONG
the story in the terse language of Mr.
McNab who, in a signed statement
gives these facts:
sailed from New York on steamer
! Liverpool on July 25
on Tuesday, July 81. 1915, I went
to the War Office and saw Colonel
/ Holden, Chief of the Army Service
! Corps, in which l went thoroughly into
the matter and explained the ap-
paratus to him. lie. however. told
me that this was not pertaining to
his department
On Sunday, August Is, 1915. I left
I for Paris, arriving there same evening
/ On August II, / formally presented
the blueprints of the caterpillar tractor
to the officers at the French War Of
lice. Much more interest was shown
than had been accorded through
Colonel Holden. at the British War
I Office.
! On Friday, August 20, left Paris
for London. I However, previously ]
cabled Mr.. Leeds of the Automatic
Machine Company. stating that if he