The weekly Alaska citizen., 1919-06-09

men.
 Construction of the guns themselves and their carriages went forward swiftly, Under the agreements the French and British were to suppl, l the first American armies with all of their field artillery and intermediate batteries with the exception of the powerful American AZ rife and how. itzer which was taken over by the trops and which proved highly eff. fective against German field guns. The American Expeditionary Force received from the French before the armistice was signed 1928 75.mm guns and 772 155.mm howitzers. They had also received from the French PIG 155-mm rifles and from the Brit. ish 123 8-inch howitzers with 40 9.2- inch howitzers completed and ready for delivery. Additional contracts were made with the British for BOP howitzers of 6-inoh calibre for deliv- cry by April, 1919.
 To fill their own factories with forgings for guns, both French and British were drawing heavily on Am erican industry when the United States entered the war. These orders were not interfered with. but on the contrary were stimulated and expand ed in order that the United States might furnish forgings in trade for completed guns and at the same time create wholly new source of supply for the bulk of it's own artillery pro gram. The report shows that between April 1917, and the conclusion of hos tilities there were supplied to the al lies forgings for 1.102 guns of cali bres ranging from 3.lnch to 9.5-inch; additional gun tube forgings to the extent of 14.623 and shell forgings to. taling 5.O1S,451.
 There were only four gun makers in the United States when the coun. try entered the contest but by Oc. tober. 1918. there were nineteen fac tories on this work During the month. with three of the nineteen factories still lacking their complete equipment, there were produced 2.031 gun forg- ings of calibres up to 95-inch or at d rate of 24,00O guns year as com. pared to the capacity for B finished weapons a year in the Spring of 1917.
 The actual production of completed guns up to December. 1919. was 4.O3o. including l.S13 of 75-mm calibre: 22o of the 3.inch anti-aircraft tyne: 21S of the 4.7-inch type: l.i5e of the 155- nm howitzers 129 of the l55-mm rifles: 191 S-inch howitzers and 9 of the monster French 240-mm howtzers which would have supplanted the smaller British guns of this type in 1919. Over tho same period the num- ber of gun forgngs produced totaled S44O.
 The report points out that the gun program in reality depended upon the ability to produce the recoil mechan- ism. This picture of what such mechanism are called upon to do is drawn:
 Not long ago touring car weigh ing two tons, travelled at a rate of 12O miles an hour along a Florida beach. Conceive of such a car going 337 miles an hour, which is much faster than any man ever travelled: then conceive of a mechanism which would stop this car. going nearly six miles minute. stop it in 45 inches of space and half second of time, without the slightest injury to the au- tomobile. That is precisely the equivalent of the feat performed by recuperator by 24O-mm howitzer ar. ter shot,"
 Summarizing the production of guns by the United States as compar- ed with France and Great Britain the report says that between April. 1917 and November 1918, the United States produced ZOOS complete artillery units as against 11,056 by France and 8,065 by Great Britain. and dur Ing these nineteen months turned out 4,275 gun bodies as against 14,492 by France and 11.S52 by Great Britain
 And our artillery capacity" it adds, was then, in the autumn of 1918 only getting under way"
 Big guns are dealt with separately. A survey of the country immediately after the war declaration located ASA weapons ranging from Finch to IA inch calibre which could be spared from coast defenses by the navy to be placed on railway mounts for use in France. There was also available one giant 16-inch howitzer built by the army before 1917. From the seacoast defenses were taken 96 8.inch; 129 10inch; 49 12-inch rifles and 150 12-inch mortars. while the navy supplied IF Finch rifles and 21 14-inch and high power 12.inch ri- fles building by the Chilean govern ment were commandeered. Practical