Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1917-12-02
ART|LL ERY FORCE
Of GERMANS GREAT
OVER EIGHT THOUSAND BIG GUNS
IN THE FIELD, WHICH Is MUCH
MORE THAN TEEY HAD WHEN
WAR STARTED.

JSulS dIHiSS nave nut ueh dlOuS L"
recognizing the greater value of ar
tillery as compared with infantry in
the method of warfare in operation
on all the European fronts since the
cessation of the war movement at the
end of 1914.
A glance at the strength of the Ger
man field artillery branch at the open
ing of hostilities showns that it then
consisted of 642 batteries. At present
it is composed of 1000 batteries at
least. AS the batteries now contain
only pieces instead of six at the be
ginning of of the war, the calculation
of the power Of the artillery in the
field must be based on the number of
guns rather than that of batteries.
Whereas in 1914 the German army
possessed only 1882 field guns it now
disposes of 5000 if the minimum fig
use of 1000 batteries with which il
was furnished at the end of 1916 il
taken as the basis of calculation.
These field artillery batteries are
divided into two kinds-those armed
with the 77-centimetre cannon (the
3-inch) and those armed with light
4-inch field howitzers. The German
3-inch cannon has been much improv-
ed and its range greatly increased
since 1914.
AS to the German heavy artillery
the increase in the number of pieces
has been even greater in proportion
than that fthe field artillery. In
peace time the German empire had
organized twenty-four regiments Of
heavy artillery. Each regiment was
composed of two battalions of four
batteries, and each battery was armed
with four guns, thus totalling 76S
heavy guns.
AS soon as the army had been mob
ilized in 1914, the German military
authorities established new heavy ar
tillery formation. Soon each artil-
lery regiment of the regular army
had attached to it a reserve regiment
consisting of four batteries of skilled
gunners, also battalion of four bat
teries of landwehr, or second reserv-
lists, and, finally, a battlion of four
batteries formed from among the third
reservists or landstrum. When the
arsenal and shell factories later an
reached a higher level of production
Of guns and ammunition further bat
teries were formed from among the
men of the Ersatz reserve. Since the
first year of the war large numbers
of the recruits of the younger classes
which have been called out for service
have been sent to the artillery branch.
Bv the end of 1916 the number CT
heavy batteries had been multiplied
more than five times and in the course
of 1917 further additions have been
made to the total.
Of the German big guns, % per cent
are long-range cannon and the re-
naming rs per cent howitzers. The
most numerous OF their long-range
guns are 4-inch, 1-2-inch and 6-inch;
but they possess also batteries OF $
Finch, 7-inch, 11-inch and 15-inch
long-range guns, although these are
very few in number. Their howitzers
are for the most part of 6-inch cali
bre; but besides these they have tn
line batteries of 11-inch, Pinch and
17-inch howitzers.
Germany had not developed any
liking for mountain guns before this
war. but she has been forced to
change her views by the developments
OF the fighting, in the Vosges for in
stance, and now has twenty batteries
of mountain guns, six pieces Of 3-inch
calibre rapid-fire to a battery, and al
so has formed several batteries of
inch mountain howitzers.
Trench artillery as we'll has been
q development of this war, and tie
German army is now well provided
with weapons of various kinds for use
in the advanced lines. It's trench NOR
tors range in calibre from inches to
10 inches. Finally the small trench
cannon Of I-2 inch, 2-inch and 2 IL
inch calibre have become very numer-
GUS in all sectors of the line.
The personnel of the gunnery branch
of the German army has become near
" as great in numbers as that of the
Infantry.