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Show COLONKL E. M. HOUSE, who has arrived hi France to represent the president in deliberations of the allied war council. HI ", ."' U.S.HH GUN USEDJPH Pershing's Men Equipped With Most Powerful Weapon in War. WASHINGTON, Oct. 25. Details of the achievement of thc navy department in making available for use on the western west-ern front thc great naval guns, which press dispatches have reported to bo hammering the German railway centers back of tho Oise-Serre front, were made public tonight by Secretary paniels. The naval guns, whiehMiave been in operation since September 16, originally were intended for new battle cruisers, but a change in the design of the vessels left the guns unavailable for that use. Rear Admiral Earle, chief of the navy bureau of ordnance, then recomnnded that the guns be sent to the western front and he was directed to proceed with the design and construction. The guns are manned and operated by officers and men of tho United States navy, under the command of Rear Admiral Ad-miral Plunkett, former director of the office of gunnery exorcises and engineering engineer-ing performance. The first party of officers of-ficers and men to handle the guns arrived ar-rived in France, June 9; the first shipment ship-ment of material left this country Juno 20, and the entire organization was completed com-pleted and ready to move to the battle-front battle-front in France late In August. The guns are said to throw a heavier projectile and have a greater muzzle velocity ve-locity than any weapon ever placed on a mobile land mounting. The weight of the exploslvo used with each projectile is many times greater than that used in the freak German long-range guns, and in point of their destructive force they are incomparable. Tho organization to man one gun requires re-quires an entire train, including the gun car itself, ammunition cars, a. crane car, and construction. Hand, timber, kitchen, fuel, workshop, berthing and staff radio cars. Many of the cars were especially manufactured by the Standard Steel Car company and' the locomotives, eighty-three-ton types with four pairs of drivers, driv-ers, were built by the Baldwin locomotive locomo-tive works. One car is a complete machine ma-chine shop, equipped with forge, lathes, grindery and drill presses. The gun car as well as the ammunition cars are heavily heav-ily armored, 1600 square feet of plate being be-ing required. The gun cur is convertible into a form of pit foundation to permit fire at high angles of elevation, and it was said the entire process of placing the gun in that position and restoring it to complete mobility mo-bility requites only a few minutes. Under Un-der test, on its steel car mounting, the gun has shown accuracy of fire at longer ranges than ever before possible with guns of such great caliber. Direction of the fire upon any target is made possible simply by shifting the position of the gun mount on the tracks, "plans for thc gnn mountings, bs well as for the trains, were worked out at the naval gun factory in Washington within thirty days and contracts were let January Janu-ary 25. The first gun was completed in April and tests were held at the army proving grounds at Sandy Hook, N. J., Jhc only field large enough, in the presence pres-ence of army and navy officials and representatives rep-resentatives of tho allied governments. The training of the men to operate the big guns was of a most intensive nature. Thc gun crews, who are composed of uffi- (Continued on Page Four.) us. in m USED Oil DOGHES (Continued from Pae One.) rers from the regular naval forces and tlio naval re?rve and of mm bokati for the moat part from tlv fJreat Iikns training station, werts employed as innpeMorK at th plants man,!. factoring the gutts. Thin training, combined with experience R.ilm fl in handling heavy projectile 8 and power charges ut the naval proving K''"UI"f. Secretary Daniels said, made possiMe the obtaltdnK of a thoroughly efficient force, DetJiils of the construction of the kmus and tho part they have played In the victories on the western front, havo been Withheld for mllltnry reasons. |