Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-08-08
AIRSH|P LAUNCHED
Partial Success of Professor
Langley's Model.
IT SAILED 500 YARDS
THEN STRUCK THE WATER AND
SANK.
Recovered Without Serious Difficulty
Its Speed Was About Forty
Miles an Hour.
Special Dispatch to The Evening Star.

| W1bE"AIEf, va, August S-LangleyS
| hfteen-foot model aerodrome was shot off
| the houseboat In the Potomac of this
! place. at 9;35 o'clock this morning, and the
| experiment was a partial success. The ma
! chine got away with velocity of 30 feet
|. per second. She travelled 600 yards, coming
down to the surface with considerable
force The water splashed UP all around
the strange craft. The next moment It
was beneath the waves
instantly the tug D. NJ. Key, which is
used as tender for the houseboat; the small
naphtha laurch and three rowboats put out
to the spot. Within forty-five minutes after
the start from the launching table the
aerodrome was again inside the houseboat
Her start was beautiful. At a given sig
nal the launching carriage was sprung
from its fastenings. The apparatus dashed
across the houseboat's top to the south
side. where 1t came up with a short Jerk,
but lust at that second the clamping device
released its hold and the airship was off
upon Its strange voyage.
This was the crucial moment Everybody
on top of the houseboat watched with bated
breath. Taking the air squarely she kept
beautiful course for few seconds. but
then some detection in the winds occur
ring. she pointed slightly downward. Then
she turned in graceful curved line toward
the Maryland shore and struck the wafer
Her brief flight was over in a second and
she sank beneath the surface.
Recovery of the Model
The tug was the first to arrive Grappline
irons were cast overheard from the small
boats but for thirty minutes the search
went on in vain. Chief Assistant Charles
r. Manley was in command of the rescuing
expedition He ordered the tug and launch
back to the houseboat, when from his small
batteau he directed the movements of his
men. Finally a workman called out here
she is His graphing apparatus had stuck
fast in the machinery of the airship. The
next moment the top of a sail was visible
above the water.
BE careful there with those cylinders
ordered Manley, one of the hooks was
seen to have fouled a part of the machinery
The greatest precaution, however did not
serve to entirely protect the aerodrome. A
part OF wing was torn away; one of the
boilers was fndented. and in various ways
the air cruiser showed an unfortunate lack
OF adaptab1lity for submarine navigation
Happily the water at that point was NOT
over twenty feet deep that the work of
rescue was not especially difficult.
AS soon as the aerodrome was located
Manley ordered his boats to surround 1t,
both for security in getting 1t out and for
protection against the gaze of newspaper
reporters. a few of whom We're fortunate
enough to have reached the spot before The
craft arose.
Attempt to Conceal the Craft.
Private Allison stood in the rear of Man
ley's boat '-th a big piece of cloth like a
sheet in his hand. 1t was soon apparent
that this was brought along to cover up the
body Of the aerodrome as soon as 1t was
taken from the water to keep 1t from be-
ing seen by reporters. But such were the
conditions that this was practically i'm
possible. The Star boat with a camera
was not twenty feet away. and the whole
or the aerodrome was visible before any
one could conceal it. The framework was
exceedingly intricate, being about fifteen
feet from stem to stern, and comprising
great number Of delicate steel rods, each
with Its specific and carefully studied pur-
poses. A solid body, such as has been de-
scribed. was conspicuously lacking There
were two small boilers and a small gaso-
line engine generating something like two
horse power From the motor delicate
steel rods passed to the propellers, two in
number. which were situated. not at the
rear of the machine. but just aft of the
forward wings. These propellers were two
blade affairs, made of strong, but the thin
nest, steel. They were not covered with
silk.
But the strangest thing about the strange
craft was the wings. OF these there were
four, two on each side. In flight they were
spread, of course, but even then their full
surface was not spread to the air. for the
shape of the wings was somewhat tent like.
There is central rod from which the tex
ture Of the finest silk SLOPES down each
side and at each extremity from the body
is another decline that the spread really
embraces above angular shaped section or
air.
Wings Delicately Constructed
The wings could not have been construct
ed more delicately. They We're made
strong. though, by several pieces of stout,
but light rods, something like bamboo.
They were from body to tip, about six feet
long and about four feet wide Behind was
the propeller, which was made Of thin, but
strong material and is somewhat different
from the apparatus which has been de-
scrfbed for the major flying machine. That
apparatus will be embodied in the steel
propeller, which will perform both the func-
ton of steering and propelling. AS was
predicted in The Star, the flight was made
right against what wind there was blowing
at the time This, however was not strong.
Its velocity was about four miles an hour
and the wind gauges showed that its main
direction was from the southeast.
There was some hitch in the proceedings
Of getting the machine started At the
last moment something untoward must
have occurred as the whistle of the tug d.
M. Key sounded without any response from
the force Of men sent above for the
launching. But within ten minutes, with
the turn-table swung around. pointing
down stream, the signal was given, the
lever was sprung, the car dashed across Its
short course. its scientific burden was re-
leased in an instant and away she flew
on it's explorative voyage.
At the time the vessel shot out into space
Chief Photographer Smillie covered it with
his musket camera and made an instan-
taneous photograph. Another and yet an
other picture was made as the flying ma
chine described its graceful course With
the amount of steam in the engine when
the flight was begun she could have trav-
eled anywhere from half to three-quar
ters of a mile, which was the hope of tie
scientists.
Did Well at First.
At first it seemed that their desires
would be realized. for the initial stage o:
the flight was splendid, but a few seconds
more it was evident that the experiment
would prove only partly successful.
When she took her slightly downward
course Assistant Manley at once realised