The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1904-10-29
Santos DumOnt Builds Balloon
to Keep Aloft For Days.
EQUIPPED LIKE APULLMAN
Well Known Aeronaut's Latest Airship
Is to Contain Many Of
the Comforts Of
Home.

Navigation Of the air dlscOunting all
previous daring as heavily as balloon
ing itself discounts surface transporter
ton is to be essayed soon BY III sam
tos- Dumont, the well known aeronaut,
who il hard at work on his thirteenth
airship, says a Paris cable dispatch to
the New York Press. This newest in
vention Of the world famous aeronaut
is called a balloon, but the word fails
in two ways TO describe it. In the first
place, il is not one balloon, but two,
for inside the giant gas bag is to fioat
a much smaller sphere The inner bal
loon win be inflated with steam. II is
intended TO offset the leakage Of gas
from the larger bag. Santos-Dumont
is convinced the compensation will be
adequate, and experts who have seen
his plans agree with him. He is not
prepared to divulge to the world the
secret OF the arrangement whereby the
smaller globe will keep the larger in
continuous full imitation II is said by
the few friends IN whom he has con
fided, however, that it win astonish sci.
entlsts by its extreme simplicity,
The second respect in which Tie bal
loon falls short of conveying 4 com
plete idea Of the invention Is IN its ac-
commodation Santos Dumont expects
to stay aloft for several days at time.
and he is providing for his comfort in
such aerial cruises by equipping the
car like miniature Pullman sleeper.
The car is to hold four passengers. II
will be tiny home in the air and not
SO terribly small at that, for 1t IS to be
divided into several sections.
One part will be given over to tile
steering gear and other machinery. and
In it will sit the conductor or whoever
may be 'the man at the wheels in his
stead. Another section will be a com
bination dining and observation com
partment. There the passengers not
engaged in running the airship viii be
able to enjoy Incompatible views while
taking their meals. A third compart-
ment is the sleeping section ana lava
tory. IT Is to contain two beds, with
all the other comforts Of home possible
| TO SO small space, The berths will
fold against the sides much in the
fashion Of those in an American sleep
ing car. Both will be made SO that
they can be let down by day as well Il
BY night, being useful as divans al
well as touches.
The almost microscopic laYatory will
be supplied from water tank OF
course the host and his guests viii be
careful not to waste the fluid, but it Is
expected enough can be carried for a
four day cruise. Back Of the layatory
win be a kitchen, where the passenger
acting as cook viii hold undisputed
sway. The kitchen is to be a reprodue-
ton in little of the now widely popular
kitehenette invented in New York and
| quickly adopted in Paris, 1t will con
tain everything essential to such Gull.
nary achievement as the inventor will
attempt in midair All the utensils
VIII be made Of the thinnest alumini-
um. which metal win enter largely IN
to the interior construction Of most Of
the compartments.
NJ Santos Dumont thinks his new
airship will travel about ten miles an
hour on an average. although 1t is pos
sibie he Will attain higher speed in
short flights. He hopes to have it ready
for trial this year. The next balloon
he builds-that is to say, the four
teenth-it IS expected by his friends,
Will be capable OF making six day
cruises and Of going fast enough to
cross the ocean. Even the projected
thirteenth, 1t is said. viii be useful for
| cruises over the Mediterranean. The
inventor attaches no significance to
the number but superstitious acqualnt-
anees shake their heads graveiy