The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-06-28
Alien TurviIle, of France. Uses Same
Idea as TINT ON which Professor
Langley IL working.
HE FIRST TRIED BIRD WINGS"
LATER HE ADAPTED BICYCLE IDEA,
AND THE MACHINE REALLY FLEW.
Not Likely Soon tn he Of Any Prac-
teal Value, but Suggest Inter-
esting Possibilities.

NEW 1OIAh, Juut Nv ltNtht tAPta~
iments of Professor Langley with his ''aeri-
al planes" near Washington. have their
counterpart in the exploits of a young
Frenchman who has lately attracted some
attention in his native land because OF
the success of his experiments. France
seems latterly to have taken the lead in
aerial sport and research, just as she has
already done in autocar racing and auto
mobile manufacture. And when one comes
to think of Il, there does not seem to be
much difference between 100 kilometers an
hour in motor carriage. and actual flying,
after all.
OF course, Santos Dumont, who recently
constructed his ninth airship. has come in
for the bulk of attention lately owing to his
repeated attempts to win the Deutsch prize
for a time-limited trip around the Eiffel
Tower. But he is only one OF a score OF
prominent experimenters. and really owes
his prominence in the public view chiefly to
the possession of large number of friends
in the newspaper business. II will be some
thing of surprise for those interested in
aerial navigation to learn that there is an
other young experimenter. native Franch-
man this time, who has of late done more
in practical way toward solving, the prob
ieiu VI ulSHts tildn ptIildpc any oilt clAtNo
the tragic death of Professor LilIienthai.
whose experiments with soaring machines
resulted in his death just when he seemed
on the eve of mastering the problem.
Alien Turville is the name of the modest
new conner in the field. and most of his
experiments have been carried on at his
fathers estate of Cienport in the south OF
France. An account Of his progress has
Underwood, Washingtonian who is inter
ested in aerial navigation. and who spen
some weeks with Turville early this sum-
mer. Turville is only twenty-six years OF
age, but OF independent means, and born
athlete and mechanic. At the same time,
his experiments have not involved any
thing like the outlay Of money represented
by the costly trials Of Count Zeppelin and
Santos Dumont.
TWO AERIAL THEORIES.
There are two schools of aeronauts. one
of which clings to the old idea of a naviga-
BILE balloon sustained in the air by gas
bag and steered by some form OF rudder and
propeller. Such are Santos-Dumont. Count
Zeppelin. the German Andrewain. and
number Of others less prominent The Sec
ond school. represented In America by Pro-
fessor Langley, in England by Hiram
Maxim. and lately in Austria by Professor
Lilienthal, hold that practical flight is only
to be accomplished by wing planes approx
mating those of the soaring birds. and that
If man can once master the art of balancing
himself on these wings in the air. he will no
more need a gas bag to hold him up. than
does the hawk or the buzzard which hangs
for hours In space on motionless wings.
waiting some gastronomic attraction to call
him down TO earth.
1t is TO this school that Turvflle belongs.
He started some years ago on the theory
that the first practical flight would be ac-
complished by some man who had the dar-
ing and persistence to learn to fly just as
most men learn to swim-namely. by keep
ing at it. This. in fact. was the Lilienthal
idea, and the great experimenter had devel-
oped his wing planes and his skill in using
them to the point where he could soar a
quarter of a mile or more when starting
from an elevation, and If at all favored by
the wind could come back approximately
to his starting place.
Tulville does not claim any great orig
irality in his work. He began by copying
Lijienthal's apparatus and methods. He
correspondent with the pioneer ''man-bird'
and kept in close touch with his work until
LilienthaI was killed But he was not
daunted by that fatality. He merely modi-
fed his own apparatus in accordance with
the fatal lesson of his masters death and
put the center of gravity lower TO guard
against similar accident.
Turville had experimental with motors
to some extent in connection with his aero
plane models. for. like Langley and Maxim.
4
may be possible. 1t is still desirable to have
additional driving power In case OF need
This he decided was especially necessary in
starting the fight Of the aeroplane. since
the condor, the most skillful OF the soaring
birds, needs short run and a certain
amount of wing Tapping to get started in
his flight. OF course, IL is out OF the ques-
ton to devise an aeroplane with wings that
will flap like birds and yet have rigidity
enough for sustained flight so like other
experimenters he had recourse 10 the pro-
peller and motor. But in spite of the fact
that the weight OF motor per horse power
has been greatly reduced in the past few
years. he decided that practical light mo-
tor still thing of the future. and he
then hit upon what he claims is the one
original and practical feature OF all his ex-
| perlmental Work. lie called into play the
humble bicycle and fitted IL with set OF
soaring planes. Practically all the interest
in his experimental work dates from the
| inception of this idea.
THE FIRST EXPERIMENT.
The first device was naturally crude.
Turville started with set OF bat-llke
wings connected with the frame and ham
dlebars OF his wheel. They were as close
an approximation OF bird winks as IL was
possible TO devise. They were modelled In
the form OF. and on corresponding dimen-
sions to. those OF the condor. There was
more than blind imitation In their shape.
Turville said that he reasoned that one adj
vantage of the great spread OF wing among
the soaring birds was that IL acted like
the balancing pole OF a tight-rope walker,
and enabled the bird 10 keep its balance
in sudden gusts OF air. He had spent
days lying on the top OF a hill on his home
estate. studying the hawks and the ravens.