South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1919-05-14

states was forging. before the arm
istice was signed, weapons gigantic
and powerful. counted upon 20 make
ultimate victory certain. In the
American artillery program alone
the fun fruition OF which could not
have been reached before 1920,
there was in creation an agency be-
lieved BY army men here 20 be Of it.
self able 10 bring the victory.
An oficia1 and detailed account Of
that program is contained tn the
chapters made public today Of
Americas Munitions the historical
report prepared under the direction
OF Asst Sec'y Crowell. who was di-
rector OF munitions during the war.
shows Partnership Spirit
The whole story OF guns from the
90 nm. infantry cannon" with its
inch and one-half bore. designed for
use in the front lines OF combat, 10
the 16-inch mortar on a railway
mount which was 20 work havoc on
the enemy from points miles behind
the lighting front. the story OF the
extraordinary efforts Of American
industry TO equip an army with ar
tillery on a scale never before at
tempted is graphically pictured.
Through It all runs the same spirit
Of partnership in the war enterprise
between industry and the govern
nent that made possible such an
undertaking
The chapters devoted 20 guns are
so extensive as 70 make up a con
siderable volume in themselves.
statistical records OF achievement og
all the firms that worked on guns or
ammunition and this official COM
mentary will have a place IN the
records Of those firms in the years
10 come.
Among the many interesting
things I'm the report is the account
now officially given OF the reasons
that impelled the war department to
cast aside except for training pur-
poses all or the three-inch field ar
tiIlery with which the American
army was equipped when the
United States entered the war, and
TO su bstitute for these weapons types
OF guns htted 10 take ammunition OF
the IS nm. type employed BY the
French light pieces
Problem i'm Production.
There has been much controversy
because OF the alleged failure 10
adopt at the outset Of the war the
French TO. famous for it's perform
ances in the war. as the standard
American piece OF this type. The re-
port shows that the gun was adopt
ed for combat purposes. but that its
production in quantity in the United
states proved 20 be even more of a
problem than the governments eX-
perts had anticipated. For that rea-
son the American 5-inch gun, rede-
signed for 70 ammunition, and the
British 3.3-inch field gun, similarly
rechambered, were both put into
production in order to make use OF
every facility for manufacture. The
American and British type were in
tended primarily for training work
and were 50 employed. But the wis
dom of putting these guns into pro-
duction on a quantity scale is EN-.
phasized in the following paragraph:
I'm the year and one-half Of our
war experience the manufacturing
production problems were all prac-
tically and completely solved with
one exceptiOn-that OF building
French hydropneumatic recuperators
for the 75mm guns. This. perhaps
The hardest manufacturing job i'm the
whole range OF war industrial enter
prises and naturally the last one TO
come through, had not been solved
when the armistice was signed. How
ever Il is only fair 10 state that the
solution OF this recuperatOr problem
was imminent on Nov II. 1918"
Built First Devices.
The recuperatOr is the recoil de-
vice which makes these French guns
what they are. Their construction
was a French secret and TO build
them there is required a degree OF
precision comparable only, the report
states. to that necessary in building
as delicate an instrument as a sex
tant. IL was with difficulty that any
American manufacture was per
suaded TO undertake il. yet on April
IS. 1919, 81 OF these recuperators
had been completed and SO OF these
passed by French experts and ac-
cepted by the government They
were the first OF these devices built
out OF France or by other than the
skilled French workmen.
Construction Of the guns them
selves and their carriages went for
ward swiftly. Under the agreements
the French and British were 90 sup
ply the first American armies with
all OF their field artillery and inter
mediate batteries with the exception
or the powerful American Al rifle
and howitzer which was taken over
by the troops and which proved
highly effective against German field
guns The American expeditionary
force received from the French be-
fore the armistice was signed 1.S2S
15mm guns ami 10 155mm howitz-
ers. They had also received from
the French 216 155mm rifles and
from the British 123 S-inCh howitz-
ers with 40 92-inch howitzers com
pleted and ready for delivery. Ad-
ditional contracts were made with
the British for 3O2 howitzers of g.
inch calibre for delivery by April.
1919.
FIJI Allies Orders