Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-10-03
A. PRACTICAL AERONAUT

There had been somewhat of discussion
going on about the counter of the hotel on
the subject Of flying machines. and as it
dwindled down to a final point. and the
discussers scattered, q very intelligent lis
tener in the company moved on toward
corner with The Star reporter and talked
to him as il he had something he wanted
to tell.
You are a reporter, 1 understand" said
the man.
The reporter didn't deny 1t, being caught
in the act, so to speak.
Perhaps" the man hesitated, you
might be enough interested in the flying
machine 10 care to listen to something /
have to say on the subject"
'Of course but before / begin to listen
| want to tell you that 1 don't believe
| there will ever be any flying through the
air until they have discovered a method
to make the air stand still or to move only
| as gradually as the currents of navigable
streams move. Nobody has yet devised a
| steamboat that will run up the rapids Of
| Niagara. or Of the ST. Lawrence, or any
| other similar rapids. and for the same rea-
son no vessel will ever be devised to sue
cessfully run in the air except when it is
still, or comparatively So"
| Il am very nearly of your belief" ad-
| mitted the man, land for that reason /
| have very little to say OF flying machines
and that kind of possibly impossible things
| but do believe in aerial navigation to a
certain extent, and have a machine that
| VIII do II successfully"
| Well, smiled the reporter, Its so out
| OF the ordinary for a man who doesn't be-
by material example that I'd like to hear
| about it."
Thanks" bowed the inventor "As 1
said. my machine isn't flying machine.
| nor has IL any especial speed, but as a
4 freighter 1t can't be beat. Neither has 1t
| got any aluminium hulls, nor aeroolane
wings. nor any kite lifters nor any other
| contraptions like that. II is only a plain
| litter and an ordinary earth power does
the balance. i am somewhat of a chemist,
| and for a long time 1 was at work trying
to find gas which had a greater lifting
power than the common gas used in bal
| looms and as practical.
About three months ago I hit upon the
| thing exactly, and at once loaded my car
| rier tank with ii. This tank, 10y the way,
is of oiled linen, and of size sufficient to
carry weight of four tons. With my
new gas the tank is only three feet deep
by five wide and fifteen long, so that IL Is
| rot at all cumbersome. The gas is general
| ed in a small retort by the admixture OF
chemicals, and is much cheaper than the
old hydrogen gas. 1t is introduced into the
tank simply by the insertion of a pipe in
the tank connected with the retort.
| When the tank is full it will raise four
tons distance of two feet from the ground
and maintain ii there for several hours.
| Al other stages, marked by a gauge, IL Will
| carry any amount down to its own weight
| according TO the amount of gas introduced.
Well. when / had it full, as 1 had it the
other day, when 1 made a trial trip with
| IL, L attached IL by the carrier hooks to q
| fcur-ton load of stone in long box L had
made. and let IL exert itself. which it did
TO the extent of raising the load about two
| feet and a half from the ground and re-
naming stationary. Then / hitched a. mule
| to the load and started him to a point a
| mile away, where they We're building a
house from the stone which they were get
| n W
Il may say here that the mule was dis
} posed to kick at being attached to any such
| looking affair. but We coaxed him into a
| different frame of mind, and in a very few
minutes he was trotting along with 1t,
across the fields or along the road, as II
| happened, and eXerting himself not nearly
as much as a canal mule would do in lug
/ glng canal boat along through the water,
| for air isn't anything like dense as Wa
ter is. nor so hard to pull against
When we got to our place of unload
ing all We had TO do was to attach a small
windlass 10 the load and draw it down to
the ground. We could have done the same
| thing by letting the gas escape, but that is
more expensive The weight of man will
| easily pull the load down when IL is neal
| the capacity of the tank, and by drawinS
n | the trace through staple driven in the
! ground the mule can always pull the load
| down to release the tank. In return.
| ing We loaded up with a lot of timber and
[ iron beams they wanted taken back to the
o railroad, but a back load isn't Away;
9 | necessary, as the gas can be let out of tn,
tank. until it is simply sufficient to carry
= | the tank and the driver.
g This. however, is not expedient excep
= | on trips of several miles. Now, you SEE
), | how simple my plan is, and i don't claim
r speed and all that fer ii. l don't even be
q leve it will be practicable upon railroads
i | for they are too fast for 1t, and Ii would
: be in danger of being interfered with b,
n | the wind You see, when il is hauled alont
i | at a horses speed the driver can walk b,
d | its side and steady il in any except a higl
! | Nlrd. SO there is no danger in that regar(
n | Ike there would be If IL were being haulet
along on the rail at forty or fifty miles al
"a 1 hour.
h Il claim for my air vessel" concluded tn,
q inventor. only the simplest and PLANES
u | accomplishments, and If il can do then
" | successfully, / take IL that IL Is of NOR
: | value than all the sky-scrapers which
h | never scrape the sky and soar successful.
only in the imagir ations Of their inven
. tors" and the reporter was fully convince'
az that, on the earth so in the air. on
N | would better crawl before he essayed to f1y
l