The Hawaiian gazette., 1908-09-08
HONOLULANS
SAW A|RSH|P

Dr. and Mrs. Walter Hoffman, of
Honolulu, who have been in Germany
for many months, had the good fortune
to witness the fight of Count Zeppe-
lin IS airship at Mannheim. While the
Doctor and Mrs. Hoffman, were at
Heidelberg, the former announced that
the great "Luftschiff had left Kon-
stanz in the morning and passed
ship message" so they concluded to
take the train and see.
So great was the crowd at the rail
Iroad station that they could not get
to the ticket window, and adopted the
American method of going to a man
far up the line and asked him to buy
three tickets instead of one. So anx-
ious were they to catch the train, Mrs.
Hoffman, says, they fairly snatched
the tickets from the mans hand and
rushed onto the cars. Luckily Mrs.
Hoffman, found a seat. This was on
an extra train supposed to get to
Mannheim before Count Zeppelin did.
The train finally started and they rode
for few minutes, every one on the
qui vive and looking out of the win
dows wondering if they would see the
airship.
Presently, man sitting in the cor
ner of the compartment, who had said
the least up to then, shouted, "There
he isl" Then he took a good look out
/ of the window himself, then stepped
back to let others take a turn. The
Doctor looked and instantly his face
became all excitement and he called to
Mrs. Hoffman, to come. She strained
her eyes to see but couldn't make it
out. That did not suit the Doctor or
the man who had sighted the air ves-
sci, so both, one at one ear and the
other at the opposite ear, tried to ex.
| plain to her that it was "there just
by that big cloud, to the left Of the
church spire," and "lo, saw it hang.
ing in midair like a big cigar you
sometimes see over the entrance to a
cigar store. Not very elegant like
ness, but that is just how it looked, -
writes Mrs. Hoffman,.
"But, oh, it was steady and grace
full, she continues. "Naturally as our
train sped along it grew larger and
larger, as we came closer to Mann.
helm, and then we got splendid view
of it for over ten minutes. Then we
could get very good notion of it in
deed with all its graceful lines and
steady carriage. 1t was sight. The
people really overdid themselves in
their expressions of joy. The Count
crossed Mannheim and was out of
sight before we could get off the train
and nastle to the end of the town, so
you can get some idea of how fast he
went, and Mannheim is no village. 1t
has 10000 inhabitants. The Count
went to Mainz, back over Heidelberg
in the night with his searchlights,
down to Stuttgart and some little dis
lance beyond. They came down to
look after some little pilikia in the
motor. The Count went back in an
auto to Stuttgart.
elm the meantime there came up a
most terrific lightning and thunder
storm, the worst I've seen in many a
day. The airship was in place where
the wind had tremendous sweep and
there not being people enough to hold
her down the engineer could not man
age things and there was collapse.
When the Count saw the ship wrecked
he cried like child, but he had COM
pany. All Germany sympathized with
him and in less than twenty-four hours
over two million marks had been sub
scribed for him, because he has proved
his invention. The Kaiser gave half a
million, Berlin, $4,000; Mannheim, So
900, and SO on.
o o @ o 90 o o o o o o o o o o
ed that the destroyers are prone to
leak, especially in the cabins of the
officers This is due to two things.
First, the thin skin covering the ship,
and secondly the terrific humping of
the machinery which strains the plates
apart and let's the moisture in.