THE BRITISH KRUPPS.

Waikato Times, Volume 87, Issue 13275, 2 September 1916, Page 1 (Supplement)

THE BRITISH KRUPPS.

M. A. Bashmakoff, one of the ißussian journalists, who recently paid a [visit to Kngland, has contributed to the {'Official Messenger ' ot l'etrograd his impressions of a great industrial centre. They aie quoted in the "Times" of April 18, as follows ;

We are in a celebrated city. The sky is metallic—l have never seen such bronze hue of the sun-rays as here. 'lie dismalness of tho city'is indescribable! Miles of streets stretch without any wirjdows —- a sort of nanow corridor between dark brick walls, behind which one heirs the clash of steel, and above which hangs a black smoke, almost palpable, the celebrated "palpable brown air" of Dickens. At last we come to the first uik) most amazing object of our attention, the main nest of the works of the British IviupV A dark cloud floats over our headß when we cross the threshold of this uikjaithlv kingdom. A thought flits through my head from Dante or Virgil—l knciv not which : Where is Charon and his befit, for here is Styx and Acheron.

We go back behind the backs ot the furnaces. I liero we see an abyss some 100 ft deep and about 280 ft wide. Below are rails on which engines move to and fro. Over our heads something gigantic and dark is floating at a considerable height with a roar, under the very steel and glass roof, which covers this black kingdom. This monster which is hanging up there and is running about in the air, as it were, is a gigantic steam crane which is connected with movable bridges extending over the entire width of the vault. The monster is transporting a colossal receptacle for molten steel, which will soon bo poured into it. The moment is one of solemn tension. Over the abyss, on a little steel balcony with scarcely perceptible balustrade, is seen a man doing something. A moment later, and from there comes down a terrible stream so intolerably hot we do not know where to seek cover. This is a veritable Imatra (a waterfall in iFiniancl) of molten metal. Through i the dark glasses it looks tike a waterfall of snowy whiteness. Forty tons of nietal are pouring into tho receptacle; sometimes, we are tuld, 80 tons are potued down.

Afterwards we are taken through the stages of manufacture of the giant 15in guns, which adorn the super-dreadnought, the Queen Elizabeth. First it must be remembered that the weight of such a gun is 96 tons. Tho hydraulic press which had to squeeze the metal of such monsters develops a pressure of 3500 tons, but there is another one in the works of 10,000 tons. We were shown combined steel trunks, containing potentially three 15in guns. When such Siamese twins are disunited, the boring process begins, which has for its object the formation of the barrels. One of the essential operations which is required in order to lend to the metal the necessary degree of hardness and elasticity is to lower the giant gun, in a vertical position, into an oil bath. With this object in view special wells have been dug out, into which one descends to the depth of 70 feet by a spiral stair. The crane at work there lifts 130 tons.

These works are also engaged for the Russian Government. I was shjfwn a gun ordered by our Admiralty for a Russian Dreadnought. It is 45 feet long. The making of a big gun takes eleven months. Some idea of the importance and productive capacity of these works can be formed from the fact that they employ in their various departments, scattered all over England, 75,000 workers, and that they are engaged at this particular moment on the making of 1000 guns. The firm has supplied us so far with 96 guns, and has equipped our State works at Tsaritsyn. We were then taken to another establishment which produces 800 tons of munitions a week. Here we were shown tho manufacture of 15in shells. Enormous shops full of light and air, with iron and glass roofs, but partly finished. Still half of tho benches are already at work and 15 in shells are being turned out in a red-hot condition by means of 2000 tons pressure. We wete shown mountains of these 15in shells in special depots. But shells are not the only things made here. We were conducted through a glass-cov-t ered gallery where steel is made in alb shapes and forms. It is said that this is the longest gallery in existence -abmit 12..C00 feet. The firm employs 12,0U& workmen —no females at all."

Lastly, we were shown the "National," that is, popular- workshops made by a firm which has works also in Russia."We were shown a gigantic agglomerate of buildings covering acres. They are all of one storey full of light, made of steel and glass, with light wooden partitions. About one half of them is still unfinished, but work is going on at full speed, and the whole will soon Ik; completed, judging by the time it took to complete what already exists. "In August, 1915," said the engineer in charge, "\\hen our company began negotiations with the Government, it was all fields and empty spaces here. The basis of our agreement is that we deliver to the Government a completely equipped establishment, tho Government taking upon itself all the other expenses." Though not all the shops are ready, they accommodate already 1200 benches, and some shops already turn out over 21,000 shells a week. When everything is completed, the staff will amount to 2000 men. The male department turns out Bin and the female sin shells. Hosts of girls are training here like students, under the guidance of older women, dressed in bright blue uniform. "