The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1901-03-13
A CONFEDERATE AIRSHIP.

/ From Charleston News and Courier-l
A few days ago person who had
been reading an account of an expert
mental trip Of Count Zeppelin's air ship
remarked that in a few more years peO-
pie will travel in the air instead Of on
the solid earth Iron and steel rails viii
lose their value, because railroads VIII
got out Of use. The new mode of travel
will be more pleasant, for there will be
no dust, and, by rising higher, as neces-
sity may require, the happy traveller
Travelling in the air by means Of bal
looms is not OF very remote date The
first successful experiments in this line
We're made in France about 1888, when
the balloon sailed across the Seine and
a part Of Paris, remaining in the air rs
minutes. A balloon was used for mill
tary observation at the battle Of F'leu-
rus fought in 1894.
A great deal concerning aerostation
can be found in books and newspapers,
but there is one experiment that seems
to have escaped the notice Of the cur
ious-
In the winter of 1se4-ss5 Gen. Robert
F. Lee and his army were defending
Petersburg, Va. The troops were
at the rate of one to every one hundred
yards
AfcGowan's brigade held the works
not far Arom Battery As Cor the Star
Fort). and near where the great dam
was built. One cold, raw day the brig
ade was called out, without arms to
hear a speech from a scientific person
age who was introduced as Professor
Blank The old soldiers crowded around
and took their seats on the cold groun !,
and he unfOlded his scheme for demon
alizing and driving away Grants army.
He had just invented an air ship.
In shape it was something like a bird
and for that reason he had called it
Arts Avis or 1.-The Bird of Art
which was the meaning of the two La
tin words. The frame was made of
hoop iron and wire. 1t was covered
with white oak splits. Tt was to be run
by a one horsepower engine and one
man to each bird would be sufficient
The engine was to be in the body of the
bird and to furnish power for keeping
the wings in motion A small door at
the shoulder was opened or closed TO
control the direction of the Bird of Art
\ door under the throat was opened
when it was desirable to descend and n
door on top Of the neck when the Oper-
atqr wished to go higher There was
machinery by which the tail could be
spread out or closed. In the body of the
bird there was room for a number OF
shells, and the operator, by touching
spring with his foot, could drop them
upon the enemy from a safe distance
The professor said that he had COM
pleted one bird and made a test of its
speed and how it would work. He tied
it to a fiat car. which was cOl1pled fo a
fast engine. 1t was attached to the fiat
car with a long, strong rope The word
was given, and the railroad engine star
ted off at great speed. The Bird of Art
did the same and had no trouble in
keeping up with the iron horse with
out pulling on the rope
The professor concluded his "a
marks by saying he needed a little more
money to make birds enough to destroy
Grants army, and asked the old sold
1erS to contribute one dollar each to fha
cause Many Of them did, and the
professor moved on and disappeared.
No doubt many of the survivors have
forgotten this incident, but not long ago
the writer met John W. Butler. a com
mercial traveller, who belonged to the
l4th s c. v. in 1864, and asked him:
Did you ever hear of the Art Avis?''
He replied: Il certainly have heard Of
1t, for I gave a dollar to If