The Cordele dispatch. (Cordele, Ga.) 19??-1971, 1918-10-30
DANIELS TELLS OF
U.S.. ACHIEVEMENT
IN SUPPLYING GUNS

Washington. Oct 25.-Details of the
achievement of the Navy Department
in making available for use on the
Western front of the great nava
guns, which press dispatches have
been reported to be hammering the
German railway centers back of the
SerreOise front were made public
to night by Secretary Daniels.
The naval guns, which have been in
operation since Sept 16, originally
were intended for new battle cruis-
ers, but change in the design of the
vessels left the guns unavailable for
that use. Rear Admiral Earle chief
navy bureau of ordnance, then recon-
mend that the guns to be sent to the
Wester front and he was directed to
proceed with the design and construc.
ton. So wNwNT
The guns are manned and operated
by officers and men of the u. S. Uavy
under the command and Rear Adj
niral Plunkett, former director of the
office of gunnery exercises and engi-
neering performance. The first party
If officers and men to handle the
guns arrived in France June 9. the
first shipment of material left this
country June 20 and the entire or
ganization was completed and ready
to move to the battle front in France
late in August
Surpass Anything Vet Mounted
The guns are said to throw
heavier projectile and have a greater
hhuHDio FeioCiIy Illdu any weapon
aver placed on a mobile land mount
ng. The weight of the explosive used
With each projectile in many times
greater than that used in is the freak
German long range guns and in point
If their destructive force they are
comparable.
The organization to man one gun
requires an entire train, including
The gun car itself ammunition cars
crane car, and construction, said
timber kitchen, fuel, workshop berth
ing and staff radio cars.
Many of the cars were especially
manufactured by the Standard Steel
Car Company, and the locomotives,
S3-tons types with four pairs of driv-
ers, We're built by the Baldwin Loco
motive Works. One car is a complete
machine shop. equipped with forge
athes, grinders and drill presses. The
gun car as well as the ammunition
cars are heavily armored 1000 square
,eet of plate being required.
Easily Manipulated.
The gun car is convertible into a
form of pit foundation to permit fire
at high angles of elevation, and it
was said the entire process of plac-
ing the gun in that position and re-
storing it to complete mobility re-
quires only a few minutes Under test
on its steel car mounting the gun has
shown accuracy of fire at longer rang
es than every before possible with
guns of such caliber Direction of
the fire upon any target is made pos
sible simply by shifting the position
Of the gun mount on the tracks.
Plans for the gun mountings as well
as for the trains were worked out at
the naval gun factory in Washington
within thirty days and contracts were
let Jan. %. The first gun was COM
pleted in April and tests were held
at the army proving grounds at San
dy Hook n. Y, the only field large
enough, in the presence of army and
navy officials and representatives of
the Allied Governments.
Crews Specially Trained
The training of the men to operate
the big guns was of most intensive
nature. The gun crews who are COM
posed of officers from the regular
naval forces and the naval reserves
and of men taken from the Great