Show MEXICAN 75 MM GUN READY FOR ACTION 7 7 7 27 Z 5 7 1 0 1 17 7 I 1 A M the mexican army has a number ol 01 these 75 win mm guns which are of the same type as aa the famous french field NEW battleship IS EQUAL TO TWO pennsylvania could demolish vera cruz from 16 miles out at sea HAS PICKED CREW OF navy men say she could do more damage than any other two ships burns oil and has fourteen inch guns norfolk Norf oln va while the united states is making active preparations to get the navy ready for possible sen ice in mexico there Is unusual activity on board the battleship pennsylvania the latest and what bat naval men say Is the most powerful ship in the american navy this big ship but recently commis has never seen any service her big guns have never been fired and her hull haa ban only once ventured outside the virginia capes and that when she was on her speed trial runs but she Is ready for service and navy men say she could do more damage than any other two ships in the navy with her big 14 inch guns her crew too Is made up almost entirely it men from other ships in the navy unlike mot of uncle sams ships the pennsylvania has practically no rookies or recruits among her crew of men they are till all trained seamen engineers electricians machinists and various other mechanics her gun crew ew Is composed of gunners of long experience most of 0 them corning coming from the new hampshire the lo 10 louisiana and the vermont the latter ship sent 72 trained men to the pennsylvania vermont new 11 hampshire and louisiana have been added to the reserve fleet and their crews sent to the pennsylvania and various other ships whose complements were not complete burns oil exclusively the pennsylvania burns oil exclusively nod and in a single day she took on heard board gallons pil lions just one third of the quantity she will need when she goes on a cruise she can fill her tanks in three hours and only two men are required I 1 in n the task tall on coaling days it required nearly half of the crew to store the fool foci in the bunkers it also meant a dirty ship after the task was completed with the use of oil there is no dirt to clean up after the vessel completes talan taking on a fuel supply sufficient to last from ten days to six ix weeks navy men say the pennsylvania would proe of inestimable service in case of war with any nation they say that american erlynn ships of deep draft cannot lay very close to vera cruz or other mexican ports during a storm the mexican lexicon coast they say Is cursed with what marine men term a torm storm etli a wind velocity often reaching miles an hour when these storms break warships tire are forced to go out to sea to escape danger of being driven ashore at vera cruz when nhen one of those these hits the coast all warships KO go out to sea for ir 15 miles sometimes they are required to remain there for three or tour four days her long range guns the pennsylvania with her big gun would be able to bombard vera cruz if it became necessary from 10 miles at sea she could remain that far out and drop shells from her 14 inch puns guns right in the heart of vera cruz ns as easily as she could at a 1000 yard range the battleship nevada of the same type as is the pennsylvania has been trying out her big guns off tangiers Tan giers sound in chesapeake bay exploding big shells against the sunken hulk of the old battleship san marcos formerly the texas and the ram both of which were sunk by shell fire from ships of the atlantic fleet |