The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1897-11-15


DDS of Applying It,
Two generations ago and long before
man generally was content To move In
| ruts Then he began To move on rails, ana
civilized mankind has certainly and per
manently been elevated thereby. From
ruts 20 rails Is vast Improvement. But
| it's about time to begin now TO think of
another move-its time To begin To think
| of soaring; and if wei O., you-are afraid
20 soar, then let us at least try to ilutter.
If on Mars there dwells a race superior
| TO man, who, among other superior appli'
ances have also superior telescopes they
will be apt TO believe that the many bicy-
| clists rushing around everywhere are poor
terrestrians frantioally and vainly endeav-
| oring to fly-it really looks that way from
distance, at least TO observers who have
seen old hens and other heavy birds strug-
| Cling to rise over fence or wall And IL
the Mars chaps think so, they are near to
truth
For the success of the bicycle has stimu-
lated effort To perfect the motorcycle, or
horseless carriage This effort will sooner
or later extend TO the application of aero
propellers, and the application of the aero
propellers in any department. of transpor-
chanical flight. O., practical mechanical
flight
In France the motorcycle or horseless
carriage, has already become fixture, and
its general use in this country, as pleas
ure vehicle at least, is only question of
time. May we then get such excellent roads
as France can boast of, and may 1t stimu-
late us TO surpass French and German and
English motocycles-make the European
invention flutter so to speak.
There is exceeding crudity in the pres
ent methods of applying propulsive force
to road vehicles by mechanical means. 1t
is applied through cog Wheel chain or
band on one of the axles of the wagon
wheels. Therein lies the crudity. 1t is not
applied on the rims of the wheel, because
that could be done only at the expense of
speed, and there is no speed to spare.
One can easily form u correct idea of
the vast difference in the amount of force
required respectively in the two cases
Just try to move a buggy or other light
vehicle by exerting your force while catch
ing hold of the spokes near the axle and
next exert your force while grabbing the
fellies. No additional scientific explana-
tion will then be wanted. Hence it must
be of high importance to find some propel-
ling device which operates on the rim of
the wheel instead of on its axle, while yet
permitting the attainment of high speed.
The reader understands, without scien-
tific explanation, that extraneous push or
pull exerted horizontally on vehicle
preferably at right angles to the axles-
operates, so to speak, through the rim of
the wheels. Theoretically such extraneous
propulsion by mechanical means is posi-
bod In 1Iar tpu,
hitting force through the resistance of
the surface over which the vehicle passes,
and with propellers operating by force
transmitted through the resistance of the
air. The first of these two methods opens
vast field for fanciful devices, but it Is
hardly rational to suppose that anything
practical will be achieved herein; at least,
those best qualified seem TO have abandon
ed, perhaps never entertained, hope of sue
cess in that quarter. The second method,
however, is certainly applicable to large
extent
Even many intelligent people are puz-
Zled by the expressions pounds of pulp
and pounds of push, frequently occur
ring in trcatises on locomotives etc. It's
an easy one, though. If you push or pull
the hook of spring balance so that the
indicator marks five pounds, you exert a
push or pull of five pounds, of course.
See?
Well, according to the above, one pound
of pull will start II pounds placed on
wheels resting on rails, and will move
over 100 pounds when the vehicle has &C
quired momentum. This appears in accord
with the statement made long ago and Of
ten that pull or push of ono pound will
propel 20 pounds over u fairly good, say
macadamized, road.
Now let us consider some fgures-fig-
ures which it happens don't lie. Mr.. Hi
ram 5. Maxim has on exhibition at Bex
ley, Kent, England, two propellers oper-
ating on the air which at different times
have developed push of 1000 pounds. A
pull of 1000 pounds would propel a load
of 200, 900 pounds over the rails at II speed
of IL miles an hour or load of 80, 900
pounds over macadamized road. 1t does
not matter how much money and steam
were expended to obtain the now famous
1000 pound pull--at first it suflices TO
| have incontrovertible assurance that such
| tremendous pull altogether is obtainable
| by operating solely on what so many peo-
| pie still lazily believe to be wholly unre-
sisting air
At different times mention has been
made of the theoretical possibility-the
mathematically demonstrative possibility
of obtaining ten times more propelling
force in the air than is obtained by the use
of the screw propellers, such as are en-
| ployed by Mr.. Maxim, or, say, so pounds
of push or pull per horsepower. push
of 80 pounds would move 1880 pounds-a
wagon, motor or riders-over good road.
An aeropropelled motorcycle is possible,
say theoretically possible. Hence, let us try
| to flutter
Let it be understood, however, that such
an aeropropeller certainly requires too
much room to permit it to travel through
city streets. But it would be available on
open country roads, for rapid transit across
our vast prairies-aye, even across the i'm
mense Sahara Let those who will flutter
there. --St. Louis ost-Dispatch.