SHREVEPORT 



5364 



SHRIKE 



bears a definite relation to the caliber of the 

 gun. In naval guns the total weight of the 

 shell is equal to the cube of the caliber divided 

 by two. For example, when speaking of a 

 6-inch gun, that means the caliber of the gun. 

 The approximate weight of the shell fired by 

 that gun would be 6X6X6=216, divided by 

 2=108 pounds, total weight of the shell. The 

 length of the shell is usually SVa times the cali- 

 ber, so that the 6-inch gun would fire a shell 

 108 pounds in weight and 3% times 6, or 21, 

 inches in length. The shrapnel shell is SVa and 

 sometimes 4 calibers in length, the 3-inch field 

 guns thus firing shells of lO 1 /^ or 14 inches in 

 length. F.ST.A. 



See the articles AMMUNITION and ARTILLERY, 

 and the note following 1 the last-named title. 



SHREVEPORT, shreev'port, LA., the county 

 seat of Caddo Parish, and the second largest 

 city in the state, ranking next to New Orleans. 

 It had a population of 28,015 in 1910; this had 

 increased to 35,230 in 1916 (Federal estimate). 

 The area is more than nine square miles. The 

 city is situated in the northwest corner of the 

 state, 170 miles east of Dallas and 326 miles 

 northwest of New Orleans. It is on the Red 

 River, at the head of navigation, and is the 

 junction of the Houston & Shreveport, the 

 Kansas City Southern, the Louisiana & Ar- 

 kansas, the Louisiana Railway & Navigation 

 Company, the Missouri, Kansas & Texas, the 

 Saint Louis Southwestern, the Texas & Pacific 

 and the Vicksburg, Shreveport & Pacific rail- 

 roads. 



The city has Lakeside, Princess and Schum- 

 pert parks, a Federal building erected in 1912 

 at a cost of $100,000, a parish courthouse which 

 cost $200,000, a city hall, Masonic temples, 

 Elks' Club, Hotel Youree, and fine churches 

 and banks. Centenary College (Methodist), 

 the State Charity Hospital, two private hos- 

 pitals and the Genevieve Orphanage are the 

 principal institutions. A municipal market is 

 one of the city's industrial advantages. At 

 Shreveport is held the Louisiana State Fair. 



Because of its fine trading facilities and the 

 natural wealth of the surrounding country, 

 Shreveport has become an important distribut- 

 ing center for a wide area. Caddo Parish has 

 rich oil fields, and the yearly value of the out- 

 put of the city's refineries runs into millions of 

 dollars. Cotton is the chief crop of the adja- 

 cent country. The principal manufactures are 

 window glass, bottles, machinery, sash, doors, 

 blinds, safes and vaults, silos, stoves, fertilizers, 

 cotton and peanut oil. 



Shreveport was settled in 1827 and was incor 

 porated as a city in 1834. In 1910 the commis 

 sion form of government was adopted. J.E.H. 



SHREW, .s-ftroo, a family of insect-eatinj 

 mammals, including among the several specie 

 the smallest animals known that suckle thei 

 young. They are widely distributed in botl 

 the eastern and western hemispheres, and an 



THE SHREW 



found chiefly in fields, woodlands and gardens 

 though some live part of the time in watei 

 and others frequent the marshes. As may b 

 seen from the accompanying picture, shrew 

 look very much like mice, but in habit the; 

 are more nearly related to the moles. The; 

 have long, slender snouts that can be movei 

 at will, and tiny eyes and ears, and their bodie 

 and tails are covered with dark, short hair. In 

 sects and worms form the chief part of thei 

 diet, but some species feed on young birds an< 

 other small creatures of the woods. 



Several larger animals prey upon the shrews 

 such as weasels, foxes and owls, but thei 

 strong, musky odor protects them from som 

 of their natural enemies. The smallest shre\ 

 known is found in Italy and is but an inch am 

 a half in length. In America there are severa 

 species,' the largest, the water shrew, being si: 

 inches long. The short-tailed, or mole, sln^ 

 of Eastern United States is a flesh-eating spe 

 cies. Another American shrew, called shrei 

 mouse, is found in large numbers abou 

 marshes and streams. It is much lighter ii 

 color than the mole shrew. These little crea 

 tures are harmless, and they are useful in gar 

 dens because they prey upon insects and grubs 



SHRIKE, shryk, two species of North Ameri 

 can birds, known respectively as the northern 

 shrike, or butcher bird, and the loggerhecu 

 shrike. The former ranges from the far nortl 

 in summer to Kansas and Virginia in the win 



