The rational use of coast-artillery, and the development of a correct system of defence, are based upon a knowledge of the means of defence, of the capability of those means, and of the method of employing them.
It is almost universally conceded that to-day, as in the past, fortifications play the most important rule in the. defense of coasts and harbors. In the United States, submarine mines and other obstructions are officially regarded as auxiliaries...
The following Syllabus of Examination for Gunners, published as an Appendix to General Orders, No. 141, War Department, August 27, 1904, is republished for the information and guidance of the Coast Artillery.
The accompanying instructions for the care and cleaning of recoil cylinders of seacoast carriages, prepared in the Office of the Chief of Ordnance, are published for the use and information of the Coast Artillery.