In exceptional instances, the
range was higher.
The function of artillery in a modern battle is constantly extending.
Both the big guns and the howitzers were the deciding factors in most of
the military decisions reached during the war. Artillery is divided
first between the big guns having a comparatively flat trajectory and
the howitzers whose trajectory is curved. Then there is a further
division into these four classes:
Field artillery,
Heavy artillery,
Railroad artillery,
Trench artillery.
The type of field artillery is the famous 75-millimeter gun used
interchangeably by the French and Americans. It is a quick-firing weapon
and is used against attacking masses and for the various kind of
barrages, including an anti-aircraft barrage.
Included in the heavy artillery are guns and howitzers of larger caliber
than the 75-millimeter. Three distinct and terrifying noises accompany
explosions of these guns. First, there is the explosion when the shell
leaves the gun; then there is the peculiar rattling noise like the
passing of a railway train when the shells pass overhead; then there is
the explosion at point of contact, a terrific concussion which produces
the human condition called "shell-shock," a derangement of body and
brain, paralyzing nerve and muscle centers and frequently producing
insanity.
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