The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-05-24

| rerimenting along the same line He had essayed but few nights when one of his wings broke and he sustained injuries
 " hich caused his death few days later On this side of the Atlantic Prof S. P Langley conducted some notable experi
 ments, fashioning in 1896 a small steam driven aeroplane which made flight o1
 three-quarters of a mile. In the same l year Chanute of Chicago constructed g ! gliding machine which attracted some at tention. Four years later the Wright brothers, two young bicycle makers oi ! Dayton, began experimenting.
 l It was not long before their efforts be-
 gan to attract attention. But they sedu lously avoided notorety, kept their owr counsel, and devoted themselves to the ] task of solving the problem of mechanical
 flight. MT. Turner, however, gained theil confidence, and thus describes them Two lean, quiet men in a dingy, com monplace little brick bicycle shop; pleas ant, unassuming, most approachable, but | shy and silent under the oppression oi the greatest secret of the time. Orvil1e of the more social and conversational tenn rerament. did the greater share of the tallling-an amiable, kindly faced man oi 35 Wilbur-permaturely bald, about 40 with the watchful eyes, marked facial 1 lines, and dry, brief speech of naturally | reticent man."
 The brothers believe that the eventu al
 speed of the aeroplane will be easily SC miles an hour, and may be forced up to 100 miles. "Our experiments have shown, they said, that fiier designed to carry
 an aggregate of 745 pounds at 20 miles an hour would require only eight horse
 power, and at 30 miles an hour 12 horse power. At 60 miles "A horsepower would | na |. nower It Is clear that there is a cer- tain point of speed beyond which the air
 resistance makes it impossible to go. Just what that is experiment will determine. Every year gas engines are being made lighter-a fact which will increase the surplus carrying power of the machine available for fuel and operator and heav- fer construction, but at present 60 miles an hour can be counted on for the flying i machine. This, of course, means speed through the air.
 "The aeroplane running SO miles an hour will have surplus lifting power enough to carry fuel for long journeys. Our 1907 machine will carry gasoline enough to fly 800 miles at rate of some 50 miles sn
 hour. We can, and possibly will soon
 make a one-man machine carrying gaso- line enough to go 1000 miles at 40 miles
 an hour. Moreover, any machine made
  hour can be operated economically, at a cost of not much over 1 cent mile for gasoline.
 There is no question that man can make a lighter and more efficient wing
 than birds. A cloth surface, for in-
 stance, can be produced offering less sur
 face friction than feathers. The reason for this fact is that a birds wing IS really a compromise It is not made for
 flying only-it must be folded up and got cut of the way when the bird is on Is feet, and efficiency in flying must be
 sacrificed to permit this. The wings of
 seroplanes will vary in size according to : speed A slow machine will require a large wing, but the faster the speed the less will be the supporting surface nec- essary, and wings for high speeds will naturally be very small. Not only Will
 less support be needed, but the size must be reduced to reduce the friction of the air.