Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1878-05-24
A FLYING Machine,

What is now and likely to be for con-
siderable time the most attractive nov
city at the Permanent Exhibition is q
genuine " flying machine-the only
one, according to its inventor, Mr..
Charles +. Ritchel, which has yet sue
ceeded in doing any flying worth talk
ing about" A private exhibition of the
machine and its capabilities was given
yesterday afternoon in the Main Build
ing.
The exhibition was witnessed by
about 100 gentlemen, who had been in
vited to attend, including representa-
tives of the Franklin Institute, with
other prominent scientific and profess
sional individuals, and gave general
satisfaction, the machine performing
all that had been claimed for it. But
whether the thing would work equally
well in the open, stirring air is ques-
ton yet to be decided,
The name Flying machine" does not
convey so correct an idea of what the
invention is as does the statement that
it is form of balloon which can be
guided by the aeronaut. First, there is
a cylinder of oiled canvas containing
about 8 200 cubic feet of hydrogen gas.
This is horizontal, twenty-five feet long
and twelve feet in diameter. The evil
inder is bound lengthwise by II stout
woven band, and transversely by nine
or ten similar bands. These bands are
fastened to hollow, brazen rod, as
long as the cylinder and hanging par
allel to it, foot or two below. Sus-
pended from this is u framework,
mainly of steel and brass rods and some
what resembling the skeleton of boat.
This is about half as long as the cyl
inder. Upon it the aeronaut sits as up
turns double crank, which sets in rev.
olution four-paddled wheel resembling
the propeller of steamship and fixed
horizontally beneath the seat. When
the crank is turned forward this wheel
gives upward motion to the machine,
and when reversed causes descent. The
purpose of the cylindrical case of hy-
drogen is not to directly cause ascent,
for this is effected by the wheel, but to
give the entire machine a specific gray
lty very little greater than that of air,
so that when loosed from the earth it
will remain in condition of almost
equipoise, not rising until the wheel has
begun to turn.
The weight of the entire machine is
103 pounds, the cylinder weighing fifty
five and the remainder forty-eight.
Hydrogen gas, although far more
costly than the illuminating gas usually
used in balloons, is adopted for this
machine in order to avoid the greater
bulk, which, by offering more resist
ance to the air, would proportionately
counteract the power of the elevator
and propeller. Prof. King, the balloon
ist, who was one of the spectators yes
terday, said that 1000 cubic feet of il
Eliminating gas would be required to ac-
complish the result effected by the 5000
cubic feet of hydrogen. But, he added,
while the former would cost only about
three dollars per thousand, the latter
could not be obtained for much less
than twenty-five dollars per thousand.
A lad named Tuttle, weighing III
pounds, who had been trained to oper-
ate the machine, did the aeronautic
work of the day. When he first strad-
died the frame work Prof. Ritchel as
certained with a steelyard that the ma
chine was ten pounds above equipoise.
He said that gas had escaped and the
thing would not go up with so heavy
an operator, so lad of ninety-siX
pounds was substituted, but, wanting
experience, the best he could do was to
ascend, which he did, encouraged by
applause. Reversing the crank, he de-
scended upon an immense showcase,
and rebounded like an india-rubber ball,
causing great laughter. More hydro
gen being put into the cylinder, the ex-
pert young Tuttle again straddled, and
this time " flew," rising almost to the
roof of the building at its highest point
(the center) descending, going forward,
turning and moving generally as he
pleased in the still air, applauded from
below. The motion, however, was al
ways slOw-not more rapid than would
he the movement of thistle-down or the
lightest of feathers in the same atmos-
phere.
Prof. Ritchel is native of Maine-a
rather large, intelligent and serious
looking Yankee, with sandy beard. He
is an old friend of Edison's s, and, like
that wonderful individual, has for many
years been given to experimenting in
labor-saving machinery. He has taken
out thirty-seven patents in the United
States, four in Great Britain and three
in Canada, many of them being for
machinery to make brushes and to in
lay wood. The machine is to remain
on exhibition at the big show until per-
haps the latter part of June, when the
professor proposes to "fy'' with it
from the United States into Canada over
Niagara Falls.-Phitddelphid Times.