The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1903-10-22
BUILD AIRSHIP
BIG rs A LINER
Or. Greth, Whose Craft Files,
Has High Ambitions.
SAYS BIRD MACHINE WON'T GO
Gasoline Engine No Factor Of Danger 10
the Balloon, He Says. When
interviewed.
SAYS BIRD MACHINE WON'T GO

San Francisco. Oct. 23.--Dr. August
Greth who on Sunday successfully sailed
the air in an airship Of HIS own invention.
intends to compete for the 10000 prize
and gold medal 70 he awarded for the
most successful airship at the st. Louis
exposition.
DR.. Greth i'm an interview explained
fully the exclusive properties OF his air
ship. as compared with the Santos-Du-
mont and Spencer machines. He said:
There are three kinds OF flying ma
chimes. so-called. The first In theory con-
sists of a machine that needs no buoyant
attanchment and can raise itself by Its
own force as does a bird.
II regard this sort OF machine as i'm
possible in the present development Of
force. The weight OF the best power we
have increases In geometricsl proportion
10 its raising power, so that II we have
an engine Weighing two pounds. for In
stance. and capable of raising two pounds
from the earth by itself and II should
be desired 10 double its raising capacity.
we would have to Increase Its weight TO
eight pounds. Manifesty. when We de-
sire 10 utilize such power TO raise a ton,
for instance, the weight OF the engine
alone would be so great AZ To preclude IL
raising itself. Birds do not grow TO too
large size because an increase In their
.
Accordingly we are left with two pos
sible problems One is an airship with a
gas bag inside and containing machinery
and steering appliances, with accommoda-
tions for freight and passengers. This
Must necessarily be on a large scale and
it's size would have TO be enormous. To
be properly dirigible and have CONNER
cial value II would have TO be as large
as our greatest ocean liners.
HAS MODELS ALREADY.
III. n H..
ship, and hope TO live TO see one COM
pleted along the lines OF my plans. The
cost OF It Is all that deters me from con-
structing one at present
"The third, and most feasible airship.
from a pecuniary point OF view. Is ma
chine modelled after the same principles
adopted in the one I used on my trip
Sunday. IL consists OF supporting ell
lipticai balloon. connected with a. frame
swung underneath II, which carries the
motor power and steering gear and a
place for the navigator. The shape OF
the balloon is the same as that I'm use
by Santo-Dumont and Spencer, but |
have improved over them by doing away
with the balloonette, which il n smaller
balloon filed with air, and designed to
equaiize the expansion In the hydrogen
balloon.
Santos Dumont met a catastrophe be-
cause his balloon b,sckled. My Balloon
will always preserve its shape. Another
thing have done Is TO swing my frame
only seven feet below the balloon. render
ing the machine more perfectly dirigible
The other models have the frame swung
20 feet below the balloon, and this makes
the framework a drag on the buoyancy
OF the machine. and renders the balloon
hard to control.
by my experiment proved that the
proximity of the gasonne motor 10 the
balloon was not dangerous factor.
''rhe greatest Improvement 7 have
made is I'm the propellers. The Santos
Dumont frames are equipped with only
one stationary propeller placed at the
end. In my perfected machine there are
four propellers. one at each cardinal
point OF the frame, and all worked
through universal shafts by one motor"