BUILDING TANKS.

Taranaki Daily News, 12 February 1918, Page 6

BUILDING TANKS.

A NEW INDUSTRY. The ITolt caterpillar tractor works, with their f>00l) workingnien at Stockton, California, and at Peoria, have just finished half of their 7,500,000d01. contract to supply the United States military authorities with a tota.l of 1500 "tanks," or land monitors, to Ijo uued with the American forces in France, according to an announcement made in San Francisco. The 1500 caterpillar tractors as completed are being given their steel superstructure of armor. which makes them the big tank offensive war machine of the present great struggle, by other American firms. The caterpillars: required under the deal with the military authorities cost about 3000 dollar* each. This give, the Hold people 7,500,000do!s for l.Wfi of them, 'to encase them, in steel armor; costs a like sum, so 15,000,OOOdols j". the total cost lor the tanks already ordc-red Joas of them have been already fonv,:.rdsd to France. The caterpillar,; or the 800 tanks used in the Gambia! offensive in the great and successful battles ogam;..; the Germaus by the British commander, Sir Julian Byng, were nnde early in the war at the Holt plants in tho East. , The a.-mor superstructure :m the , caterpillar-, was tho i.l?a. of 001-mel E O. Rwinlosi. of the 'nti':is!i Army, v/ho r ' "r nndo 1, nf the first' British tank squadron used on the Western front jj, i>ranee- -it was their remr.rkable success from the very Vir.:t that made them one of the great offensive weapon successes of the v/iur, a war epoch. in fact, .ind which hai «/!*<•« the California invontoi of the caterpillars, 11.l 1 . E. Holt, both in international .id historic fftine. Colonel Swinton i:i the United States 'ast September, and gave valuable suggestions from lis tank experiences to the tractor builders. It is now a piece of unwritten history that the Holt people 7ent many caterpillars to Croat Britain both before and after the outbreak of the war, under the absolute impression that they were intended for agricultural uses.