THE LARGEST ARSENAL IN THE WORLD.

Manawatu Standard, Volume IX, Issue 115, 21 April 1885, Page 2

THE LARGEST ARSENAL IN THE WORLD.

The greatest manufactory and store-house of cannons and war material is. Woolwich Arsenal. It has within its enclosure 280 acres of land of which .some 160 acres are Icovkred/ Mth bluings. Wiien m full operation it employs 18,000 persons. The amount of ammunition Stored here is immense, and cannon can be counted by the hundred. lv the store-house a stock of ; 20,000 cavalry saddles are kept constantly on hand, with a corresponding amount of horse-shoes, nails, halters, traces, collars* harness., ior.. transportation, trains, &c. One of the' most interesting sights ; is the. manufacture of rifled cannon, the many processor of which, are going on indifferent shops all the time. These range m size from three pounders to one hundred-tonners, and the machinery required to make and handle them is very heavy, the largest forginef hammers having 600 tons force. The steel coils of the cannon are made from steel bars, the, largest of which are 300 feet long and a foot thick. These are coiled m a spiral by a heavy but nicely- working machine, and are welded together by the heavy hammers as perfeotly as an ordinary piece of iron m a black* smith's shop, and with comparatively few blows. The machinery used m some of the best m the country, and much of it was made m Manchester. One lathe-room has over- an acre space, closely filled m with 2000 lathes; and a busy sight it w to see them all m motion. One machine for the manufacture of fixed auiuwnij tion turns out 205 cartridge moulds every revolution, and lias the capacity of 250,000 daily, the several shops and buildings are connected with railways for moving material. These aggregate^ great many miles. »