Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1907-09-04

The nations of the world are fol-
lowing with keen interest the develop.
ments in ballooning, and are bending
every energy to practical utilization
of the airship as an engine OF war. II
the secret of successful navigation of
the air is discovered there apparently
seems no limit to it's possibilities in
time of war, a1d for this reason each
nation is making experiments and
striving to be the first to produce the
armored airship. Even the United
States is to have an aerial feet, for
the giant war balloon completed few
weeks ago for the signal corps is only
the first of series of such balloons
of great size to be manufactured for
the United States army.
France has always been considered
the foremost nation in balloon expert
ments, but it is known that Germany
is specially active in the development
of the war balloon, and is ambitious Of
attaining superiority over all other
nations in this respect.
Every year there are series of
maneuvers by the German army, all
of them interesting and important ow-
ing to the military character of the
nation, but from the increasing inter-
est taken in military airships in Ger
many at the present time, it is easy to
see that these will form the chief at
traction of the coming maneuvres.
This is all the more likely to be the
case because the German army be-
lieves that it has solved, for military
purposes, the steerable balloon prob
lem. The success of the French mill
tary balloon is also expected to have
it's influence upon the aeronautical
force in the German army by melting
them to give a brilliant and ominous
exhibition.
During the last twenty three years
the German army has devoted great
deal of attention to the study of mill
tary balloons and airships, although
the greatest activity in this direction
has been noticed since 1901, when an
imperial order was issued converting
the ballooning detachment into bal
looming battalion. Splendid new bar
racks and practice grounds, fitted out
with the most modern improvements,
were erected at Tegel, the former ten
ements of the ballooning corps proving
too small to accommodate the in
creased number of troops. Since that
period ballooning in all it's phases has
been the subject of the most earnest
and thorough deliberation on the part
of the corps, which may well be said
to be the finest branch of it's kind in
any European army.
Just at present, two balloons are
monopolizing the attention of German
army officers. These are the Zeppelin
dirigible and the more resent steer
able aerostat designed by Won Parse
val. The latter is regarded as the more
important, and one on which the Ger.
man army has staked it's reputation. 1t
was constructed by the celebrated
Major Won Parseval, a Bavarian Off.
Ger, who for the last 20 years has de.
voted his life to painstaking expert.
ments with all kinds of airships and
machines.
The Parseval airship consists OF
two distinct parts, the balloon, or gas.
bag with rudder, and the car on which
the motor with propeller is placed
The shape of the balloon is somewhat
similar to that of the Zeppelin bal.
loon, namely, cylindrical and tapering
at both ends. It has, however, no
framework, and, like other balloons,
derives it's shape Simply through the
expansive properties of gas. The
length is 48 meters, diameter S.57 me-
tiers and capacity $500 meters. In the
interior of the airship two bags, OF
"balloonettes," are situated, one al
both ends, which can be inflated or de-
Hated by ventilators, so that the gas
bag itself is kept in a constant state