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Show British Libyan Campaign Tests New U. S. Tanks Superior Type of Mechanized Units Developed; 'Sea Otter,' Powered by Auto Engines, To Be Used as Carqo Vessels. By BAUKHAGE ml ' National Farm and Home Hour Commentator. WNU Service, 1343 H Street, N-W, Washington, D. C. Is this statement true or false? 'A popular military song now being be-ing widely sung has in it a line to the triumphs of American soldiers in Africa." The answer is "true." But do not be alarmed, the song is the hymn of the United States marines and the line is: "From the halls of Montezuma Monte-zuma to the shores of Trip-o-li." It refers to our fight with the Barbary pirates in 1801. Nevertheless, the United States army is now celebrating celebrat-ing another American triumph of arms, in Africa not human arms but tanks. Whether the British can drive those tanks to victory against one of Germany's foremost generals is another matter, but the superiority of our little 13-ton iron wagons in the early engagements of this British Brit-ish offensive is evidence, military experts say, that the United States still has the mechanical genius that can outmatch any in the world. I have just talked with a high officer of-ficer who has served with America's Amer-ica's new first armored division. He sa,ys that America has a mechanized mech-anized army in the making that will be superior to any Hitler can produce. pro-duce. This officer credits our success suc-cess to an old Ameican characteristic character-istic which some people were afraid bad run to seed in this push-button age; the ability to do things with Dur hands. Fine Mechanical Experts "The new army," said the officer, "is developing the finest set of mechanical experts I ever saw. Americans are natural mechanics and it is coming out as a result of the training of our motorized units." When the army laid aside "May West," the heavy tank the United States built first, and concentrated on the smaller and far more mobile 13-ton unit mounted with a 37-mm. gun, many people wondered if it could stand up against the heavier German tanks with their much higher high-er caliber weapons. In the first week's fighting in the present offensive of-fensive in Libya the American creation crea-tion proved superior. The antitank anti-tank guns it carries because of their high muzzle velocity have a greater penetrating quality than the Germans' Ger-mans' heavier guns. But the superior mechanical integrity, in-tegrity, the greater speed, and the other qualities that go into the American product are only half the battle. Just as horses have to be watered and fed, so tanks must be cared for. Maintenance is a vital factor. And this is where the mechanical genius of the individual is important. When a tank division rolls out, tools, spare parts, machinery ma-chinery must follow after. And the American ordnance unit, really a rolling machine shop, which moves in the wake of the mobile units, is able to make any repairs short of those requiring the equipment of an arsenal. At home, American motorized units have been submitted to all practical endurance tests in the field that they would have to meet in battle except being shot at in action. Now, thanks to the fact that the British in Africa are using. American Amer-ican tanks, they are getting the necessary nec-essary final test without risking American lives. That is one reason why army officers of-ficers are celebrating America's bloodless battle of Africa. Perhaps somebody will write a song about it. Sleek Sea Otters And Lease-Lend Cargoes Overlooking DuPont Circle where once the children of ambassadors played under the watchful eyes of their nurses and one could hear the chatter of half a dozen foreign languages, lan-guages, there is a modest office. In that office has been carried out a typical American venture which may shape the final course of the war at least it will help launch a thousand ships. On the second floor there is a gentleman with a straggling gray mustache. He is Starling Burgess, one of the nation's leading marine architects. At the back, downstairs sits a man with thinning gray hair and the energy of youth. He is a structural engineer, the man who makes the blueprints work, J. B. Weaver, head of Weaver Associates. This organization has just made an idea work. It was conceived by Hamilton Bryan, a retired naval commander, and Warren Nobel, an automotive engineer. The idea was to build a small cargo boat to be driven by automobile engines to help get lend-lease supplies across the Atlantic. In addition to- making the wheels go round, these were the problems to be faced in such an undertaking: 1. Speed in construction. 2. Method of building and use of material which would avoid use of over-taxed shipyards and an under-supply under-supply of expert shipbuilders. 3. Material which could be obtained ob-tained from small mills not now busy. 4. Low cost. As to design, the ships had to be of shallow draft and produceable in large numbers, so that the loss of one would mean small losses in material ma-terial and manpower. 'Otter' Passes Tests Weaver Associates took the job and produced the sleek "Sea Otter," a creature which has now passed all tests, a characteristically American enterprise because it was conceived and executed on private initiative', a result of typical American inventive inven-tive genius. There are many remarkable technical tech-nical qualities of this revolutionary craft which to the layman seems to be a glorified outboard motorboat. Aside from technicalities some of the features of the achievement are worth mentioning: Instead of making mak-ing use of the large steel plates for the hull usually used in shipbuilding, ship-building, a smaller plate has been? adopted. These small plates can be made in small steel mills, many of which up to now have been unable to get materials because they are not equipped for the work required by the big shipyards. In order to do away with the need of expert hand welders a special device has been created so that the welding can be done, automatically. Because the shipsvare only 250 feet long they can be taken through the Great Lakes. They require such a shallow draft that inland factories on rivers can be utilized. So simple is their construction that great speed in manufacture can be attained. And when it comes to operation, instead of a skilled engineer en-gineer any good auto mechanic who doesn't get seasick can take care of the engines. The automobile engine is virtually fool-proof and is so cheap that it can be replaced economically with spares which can be carried on board. These sleek little otters cost less than one-third of the ordinary ship of the same size. As soon as the practicability of the "Sea Otter" was established the plans were submitted to the navy department. de-partment. Like all revolutionary ideas many obstacles were thrown in the way of its consideration, but it appealed to President Roosevelt immediately, who, with Secretary of the Navy Knox, pushed it through. British Reasons For Hope of Victory In the last few weeks American officials have been telling us here in Washington that the British are taking a much more optimistic view of their chances of victory. I asked one prominent Briton in a position to know, why this was the case. Here are the reasons, as he outlined them: 1. It has been demonstrated that American-British collaboration can produce the necessary sinews of war more rapidly and in greater quantity than Germany can. 2. Hitler made a fatal mistake by treating the conquered nations so badly that German has no chance of obtaining willing or whole-hearted co-operation from them no matter mat-ter what their puppet governments may decree. If the Nazis had been more tactful and less brutal this situation might have been very different, dif-ferent, 3. The feeling is growing that the German army will crack up when the men in the ranks and the people at home realize that victory is no longer around the corner. The last point he elaborated. Although Al-though the German army was beaten beat-en in the last war, he pointed out, it was not really defeated until the home-front cracked and the effect ef-fect of the attitude of despair on the part of the civilians broke the fighting spirit of the armies in the field. |
