The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1875-11-13
scHRoEDER's AERIAL SHIP.
A Description of the Working Appar-
atus What the Inventor Says he
can do How the North Pole II to be
Discovered

Work has been commenced on the ship,
and is confidently expecting that she will
be ready for her trial trip in about two
weeks. The skeleton Of the ship is made
OF double o wire, braced lengthwise by
single = wire. The ship itself is eighty-hve
feet long, nine feet high, and eight feet
wide, and in shape resembles a long steam
ship hull, with the exception that the fore
and aft projections extend about seven feet
from the body Of the ship. The iron shaft
runs lengthwIse, the pushing propeller be-
ing attached to one end, and the pulling
propeller to the other in order that they
can be worked t. ihe best advantage, and
to allow the ship to turn around on its own
pivot III the air Underneath are two
rudders, one fore and one aft, for steering
purposes. On making the ascent, the pull
ing propeller will be put IN motion, assisted
by the pushing propeller and the rudders,
and thus the invent. confidently expects TO
be able to 60 width rsoever he will
The ship is attached to the balloon by
], 496 ropes, situated at equal distance
apart, III order to preserve exact a bal
ance as possible The capacity of the bal
loon is go, 9l9 cubic feet. Hydrogen gas
will be used, and this substance Is so light
that it is calculated that one cubic foot will
have lifting power of one and three
quarter ounces, thus making the lifting
power Of the balloon ahou. 90. 900 pounds,
or nearly fifteen tons. 1t is not probable
that the balloon will be inflated to its full
capacity, inasmuch as the extreme rarefac-
tion Of the air at great attitudes tends to
withdraw the outside pressure from the
balloon, and the hydrogen inside, thus re-
heved OF outward pressure, will expand
the more readily, and perhaps burst the
billOon. But estimating the capacity at an
amount less than that given, the balloon
will easily have lifting power of ten tons,
while the weight of the apparatus, the gas,
balloon, netting, ship and machinery is but
A, 800 pounds, or two and two-tfths tons.
The balloon is fastened to the ship in such
a manner that il cannot sway to and fro,
80 that it is impossible for the balloon TO get
out of perpendicular position. The ship
has two masts, fore and aft, which reach
up to the equator Of the balloon. On the
top Of each mast a large wire cap is fastened
to the netting perpendicularly, and the
balloon itself Is fastened to the netting all
around its equator. In case of an explo-
sion the lower part of the balloon ascends,
falls into the netting, and half of the bal
loon form large parachute. The balloon
decen3s for short distance with great
rapidity, when the air presses up under
meath, the parachute spreads out, and the
decent is made more gradually. The
steering apparatus and propeller are set in
motion, the rotary movement commences,
and the balloon goes down in circle like
an eagle spreading its wings. The balloon
L.. L..
yards have been used in its manufacture,
and the length of the rope used is nearly
twenty one miles.
The pulling and pushing propellers are
worked by cranks. four men at each crank,
and work in the lower currents about three
hundren and fifty revolutions a minute,
increasing the number of revolutions with
the increase in height. Aided by the pull
ing and pushing power, the inventor claims
that he well be capable of making the ship
stand still in the air over any given point.
Practical use will be made of this advan-
tage by taking photogr along. for
the purpose OF securing Photographic views
Of certain sections Of the country. From
certain height IN the air he says he can
see the bottom of any body of water, no
matter how deep The Photographic views
which he PR poses to have taken will be
chiefly useful to the Typographical Crops.
Mr. Schroeder says that his experience
has proven to hlm that in the higher at
mopherse approaching the North Pole,
where the lower currents increase in cold
the upper currents increase in warmth, and
he is therefore confident that he is capable
of sailing over this region, and gndi that
for which millions have been spent, and
many valuable lives lost-a passage to the
open Polar Sea.
The first ascent will be made In about
two weeks.-CinciHndti Commercial