The Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 191?-19??, 1919-08-16

menu OF $50 guns per regiment, o.
eighty times as many.
! The entire number of American
machine guns produced to the enc
of 1918 was 227,000.
American production of rifle am
munition amounted to approximately
9,5OO,OOO,OOO rounds, of which l.,
| 500, 100000 were shipped overseas.
Artillery.
When the war was declared the
United States had sufficient light ar
tillery to equip an army of 100000
men, and shortly found itself con
fronted with the problem of prepar-
/ ing to equip 100000 men.
To meet the situation it was decid-
ed in June, 1917, to allot our guns to
training purposes and to equip our
forces in France with artillery con-
forming to the French and British
standard calibres.
Up to the end of April, 1919, the
number of complete artillery units
produced in American plans were
more than 5000, or equal to all those
purchased from the French and Brit
ish during the war.
The number of rounds of complete
artillery ammunition produced in
American plants was in excess of TO-
100000 as compared with 100000
rounds secured from the French and
British.
So far as the Allies were concern
ed, the European war was in large
measure fought with American pow
der and high explosives.
During the war America produced
10000 tons of poison gas, much OF
which was sold to the French and
British.
Out of every hundred days that
our combat divisions were in line ir
France they we're supported by their
own artillery for seventy-five days
by British artillery for five days, and
by French by one and a half days
! Of the remaining eighteen and one
half days that they were n line with
out artillery, eighteen days were in
quiet sectors, and only one-half of
one day in each hundred was in &C
tive sectors.
In round numbers, we had in
France $500 pieces or artillery, of
which nearly 500 were made in Amer
lea, and we used in the firing line
$3.50 pieces, of which over 100 were
made in America.
Airplsnes, Motors, Balloons
! On the declaration of war the
United States had fifty-fve training
airplanes, of which fifty-one were
classified os obsolete and four others
as obsolescent.
When we entered the war the al
lies made the designs of their planes
available to US and before the end
of hostilities furnished us from their
, own manufacture $500 service
planes, --
Aviation training schools in the
United States graduated 1902 men
from elementary courses and 4,02S
from advanced courses. More than
5000 pilots and observers were sent
overseas.
The total personnel of the air SER
vice, officers, students and enlisted
men, increased from 1900 at the out
break of the war to nearly 100000
!, at its close.
There were produced in the United
States to Nov. 80, 1918, more than
5000 service planes and more than
10000 training engines.
The De Haviland-4 observation anC
day bombing plane was the only
plane the United States put into
quantity production. Before the
, signing of the armistice 1927 haC
! been completed and 1885 shipped
5 overseas. The plane was successful
ly used at the front for three months
: The production of the 12-cylindel
: Liberty engine was Americas chic
contribution to aviation. Before thu
armistice 1854 had been completed
q 4,435 shipped to the expeditionar!
forces, and 1925 delivered to the al
: lies.
e The first flyers in action wearing
: the American uniform were member
/. of the American Lafayette Esca
drille, who were transferred to tn
Y American service inDecember, 1917
: The American air force at tn
: front grew from three spuadrons il
: April to As in November, 1918. o.
: November IL the 4g squadrons hat
an equipment of TAO planes.
OF 2,69S planes sent to the zonl
of the advance for American aviator
! 667, or nearly one-fourth, were 0,
i = ~ - -.