Show Plenty Guns of Supplies Where ere We A Are re A At By Harry B. B Hunt Special Staff Dispatch ASHINGTON D. D C. C WASHINGTON March 2 The Tho United States entered the war weak in artillery as in every other branch of the army service As long ago as In 1910 General Crozier chief chiet of ordnance ordnance ord ord- nance in asking congress for tor ap appropriations appropriations appropriations ap- ap sufficient to procure additional batteries of field feld artillery which would give us batteries or two guns per 1000 men for an army of ot said Ammunition and mobile artillery artillery artillery artil artil- lery are the items of material in which the thc military preparation is most behind And congress provided for eleven batteries at batteries at which rate it would have taken ken till tm 1923 to complete even oven this limited pro pro- gram grac From that time until we were face race to face faco with war late in I 1916 no artillery appropriation as large as was made i in any anyone one year In 1916 congress congress con con- II gress provided pro for ai- ai tillery How meager this sum was to prepare us for our real war re requirements requirements re- re ia is shown by hy the fact that after we really were in war congress provided for art artillery Of Ot this sum was appropriated Juno June 15 15 10 1917 and October October October Octo Octo- ber G G. G In addition to government go arsenals arsenals ar ar- ar there were in this countr country country coun coun- tr try when wo we entered UIO tho war just two plants c capable of producing producing producing pro pro- steel forgings the Midvale Mid lId vale and Bethlehem Steel com com- Since last April six large forging forging forg forg- ing lug establishments for the production production production pro pro- of artillery artiller have been brought into existence and the tho same number of great machine shops have been erected and ami equipped for the manufacture of or these forgings into finished guns While these plants are getting under wa way we are getting for forthe forthe forthe the equipment of or our artillery forces abroad the famous French 7 75 millimeter 5 field guns and I millimeter guns and howitzers Andre Tardieu French high bight commissioner says bays From the tho industrial viewpoint vie tho the unity of effort created will produce happy happ results without precedent From rom the financial standpoint It is possible to hope that the purchase by tho the United States of or French artillery material material material mate mate- rial will create an improvement in exchange much to be do- do sired From the military point of oC view it Is evident that uniformity uniform uniform- ll ity of or t type pe of guns and munitions munitions muni muni- for armies fighting on the same samo battlefields is an appreciable guarantee of efficiency 1 I General Bliss former chief of staff stare after a personal investigation I tion lion in France reported that the production of ot artillery had been established upon so largo large a scale that our allies ames would be he able to equip completely all American division as they a arrive e in France Franc during the year 1918 and that resolutions requesting the United States to take this course had been adopted by br the tho French ministry of munitions As sorel sorely as ns the army has I needed for or men menat menat menat at homo home and aud equipping them abroad the na navy has lias needed guns oven worse Great praise has lias been given the navy for the efficiency shown in providing and arming hundreds of patrol boats equipping our merchantmen with naval guns for defense against submarines and fitting out a rapidly rapidly rap rap- idly increasing number of ot de de- de The war department was contributing from Its j an- an re resources sources for the armament of or these vessels At the Watervliet arsenal arsenal arsenal-a a war department gun bun plant pro plant pro production has been centered not on field artillery or heavy guns for forthe forthe forthe the arm army but upon guns for tho the nav navy particularly upon the 4 inch naval gun most desired for Cor I submarine work From thirl thirty y to fort forty of or these gnus have befit turned out at Watervliet each month for tho the navy nan As a Inch 4 nay navy gun Is inches or sev sov- seventeen seventeen enteen and a half hair feet long as compared to a length of or about bout nine nino feet for tho the army 4 47 17 7 field gun un or seven feet for Cor the regulation regulation reg reg- army array inch 3 gun it can be seen that man many more of or these guns gun than of or the nay navy guns could have lave been produced in tho the same sarno time The Watervliet work IB is merely an instance War Val de department do- do resources have havo gone ono to supply naval guns of or calibers from inch 1 to 16 Production of ot guns guna has been but one phase of or the tho departments department's work A vast variety va va- variety riet and aud volume of ot equipment has been necessary to meet our expanding artillery program and to meet this the resources available for production have ha had lUll to he tremendously augmented Scores of or highly technical types of instruments havo been beon required required re re- re in the tho production of or which tho the most skilled and exact work is necessary Range Range- and position position position tion finders Cinders telescopic and panoramic panoramic panoramic pan pan- sights wind computing indicators prismatic compasses telemeter gauges and altimeters are but a few o of the tho delicate instruments Instruments in instruments In- In for tor which our capacity to produce has had to be in in- in creased The problem of transporting our heavier artillery In the field has called for tho the placing of orders for powerful tractors tractors trac trac- tors deliveries of ot which began last November and are aro proceeding proceed proceed- ing on schedule O Of a second type of or tractor 63 have ha been bought on which deliveries are already well under way wa For or other types of or artillery transport the ordnance bureau has bought automobile trucks ammunition bodies trailers 2460 store an and batter battery battery bat bat- ter tery wagons caissons and limbers for mm 75 guns carriages and limbers f for r mm guns the latter two Items in at ad ad- to quantities ordered in France 2750 caissons for Cor the American inch 47 47 inch gun and along u x ulong long list of similar equipment from carriages and limbers for inch 12 howitzers to tucks trucks for mounting antiaircraft guns buns guns ami anti special railway carriage for long range artillery o of the heaviest caliber The sizes of or artillery Y we Voe are mobilizing against the the- boche run from our st standard inch 3 field fieldpiece fieldpiece piece and the French 75 75 ter gun to guns gUlls throwing Inch 12 projectiles Between limits there will wUl be inch howitzers 47 inch inch field fJeld guns G inch G-inch howitzers howit howll the tho l French rench millimeter guns and ho inch howitzers inch 8 howitzers ho and inch 95 howitzers Althou Although h our present actual output of or artillery Is small the tho capacity has been BO so increased that by July this year car we willbe will I be he turning out guns suns of all calibers calibers cali cali- I bers at approximately six times the tho rate possible last July In InI I tho the meantime ample artillery Is waiting In Franco for tor every evory ar artillery artillery artillery ar- ar tillery unit that can be sent over up to an array army of or one million men |