WHAT THEY ARE FIGHTING WITH.

Evening Post, Volume LXVIII, Issue 70, 20 September 1904, Page 5

WHAT THEY ARE FIGHTING WITH.

JAPAN'S SUPfSRJOR WEAPONS. Ono of tho most unmistakable olemenis of suporibrlty possesswl by Japan in the present struggle (snys the military corrospo^ulent of St. James's Qazollej lies in the splendid weapons with which she has armed her artillery and infantry. Unliko tho proferenco for the cavalry arm in moat other armios, the swagger corps in tho Japanese army is the nrtillory. There aro thirteen artillery rogimonts, eaoh of ntno batteries, or 117 batteries in all. The batterios of each regiment are again divided into campaign or field and mountain batteries, both having tho snmo calibro nnd initial velocity. Tho effective strength of each battery is five officers, ton noncommissioned officers, 112 inon, and sixty horses. Artillery officers, bosidos thoir special training m tho school of applied artillery and engineering, have all passed a year's sorvico in a rogiment as pnvato soldiors. Tl)oy ulso servo six months in tho iirtillory before being given tjioir commissions. Just beforo tho war tho Japanese field* gun was a din hardened bronjio gun, a material for which Austria has rocontly shown a prodiloction. This threw an B.Blb shell, with an initial velocity ol J3Boft per (iPAiiul. Ono of Russia's guns in ilu> fjcUl in n. *!in, with an initial volo.ity of )h>l inoro, than 1225 ft. ft thfdv/u ;i lrtirli tioavier shell (251b) 5 but, outranged hs it is by tho superseded Japanese weapons, it is easy to understand its enormous inferiority to the new Japanoso quick-firer to which it is opposed. It is. moreover, a very heavy weapon (48401b), and ill-adnptod for wnrfnro in jiilly and boggy country liko Manchuria, This is an important point against heavy Hold artillery which wo shall do well to consider in thinking of an 18-pouiidor fiold-gun for our service, liko those ut present being tested at Shoobvtrynoss. But Russia, Dosides hor " Heavy home bntterios." also possesses "light horse batteries of 3.4 in guns, throwing a 151b shell, with an jnitinl velocity of nearly 1 41 Oft, and having a rato of Bra of from five to six shots per minute. Only three batterieß of Russia's very latest Sin qinik'flrers have boon yot constructed, so that it may bo lort out of account a» fur hs the pr-vnent campaign is concerned. Both ty.>iex of Russfan guv are said to

be putraogpd and oyerpowpred by the wonderful new Arisaka gun of Japan. Tho particulars of this weapon and its equipment havo been kept a closo socrct; but t)ia|> it possesses in thp highest degree all thoso elements conducive to rapid and offect-jvo firo actipn is evident enough by tho crushing effect of its fire upon tho Russians both at the Yalu and at Kinchau. Unless tho Russians capture pup of these guns wo aro likely to remain in tho dark as to its esspntial features for some time to cpmp. Colonel Arisaka is now tho mechanical genius of tho Japanese Army, and, liko t|ip present field-gun, its excellent rjflp is due to him. It is of tho Mauser type, liko tho Russian weapon, wjth a contra! mngazino to tako fivo cartridges in a clip. Tho magazine also contains an elevating p|ato actuated by a spring. If tho magazino is empty tho soldier is warned of the fact by this plato placing its.olf in front of th,o movab}o heap after the oponing of the brepch and preventing tho closing of it. Tho backsight, without steps, is graduated from 400 to 2000 yards, tho Russian backsight boing stopppd and grnduutod from 400 to J2OO paces (of 28in each). With uayonots fixpd the Japanese rifle is rather snorter than tho Russian, being 6.44 ft against 5.7 ft. In the latter the bayonet is always carried fixed even during firing, tho'accuracy of which cannot but bo seriously affected thereby, as any ono knows who has fired both ways. Tho weight of tho Russian cartridge is 390 grains, that of tho clip when full 4.25 punces. Compared with this the Japanese cartridgo is 336 grains, and the clip loaded weighs four ounces. Thus, as both Russian and Japanese soldier carries 120 cartridges, tho weight borne by tho former amounts to .610 ounces against 48Q by the latter. In addition to this advantage, tho Japanese cartridge has » chprgp of forty grains of oxploßivo, against tbirty-thrce in the Russian, giving an initial velocity of 2378 ft, agajnst 2035 ft •, tho consequonce be?ng that l|ie Japanese weapon outranges the Russian by nearly 1000 yards, ap important matter nowadays, and in the clear atmosphere of Manchurja when thp rains arp oyer. It will be thus seen that both in thqjr artillery and infantry equipment thq Junanoso have secured notable and material advantages, and when thp history of the war is written we shall bp able tp understand more cjparly to what pxtent Japan's consistent success has boen due to hor unmjstakablo superiority in this respect, "