Omaha daily bee., 1908-07-20
MILLION FOR AERONAUTICS
Big Appropriation Will Be Asked
After Fort Myer Tests.
OMAHA BALLOON HOUSE GOING UP
Real work of Signal Corps VIII Beain
when New MOdern Plant is Com
pleted Under Direction of
Captain Chandler.
From staff Corresrondentl

WASHINGTON, July 19.-(Special Tele-
gram)-within a few weeks Brigadier
General James Allen, chief Of the signal
corps, hopes to pull off satisfactory tests
in aeronautics at Fort Myer, Va, which
will justify the board Of ordinance and
fertilization Of the War department in rec
o%mmending an appropriation Of 100000 to
the next congress for aeronautical purposes
purchase of balloons and equipment Of sta
tons at Fort Omaha, Fort Monroe. Va,
and New York.
The balloon house at Fort Omaha. under
the direction OF Captain d. F. Chandler, is
nearing completion and the gas generating
plant which is being built in conjunction
with the balloon shed will shortly be COM
pleted. all the cylinders for the making of
hydrogen gas being on the ground. Elec-
trlcity for supplying power for the plant
will be purchased from the Omana Electric
Light and Power company, a satisfactory
contract having been made through Colonel
Glassford, commandant at Fort Omaha
The hydrogen plant now in process of
erection at Fort Omaha is the first modern
gas plant to be built for the army. The
present plant at Fort Myer being temper
airy and inadequate. When the plant at
Omaha is completed the officers studying
in the service school at Fort L~eavenworth
will be trnsferred to Fort Omaha for in
struction in aeronautics.
Last winter the signal corps asked for an
appropriation from congress Of 100000 for
balloons, and a bill was introduced by Sem
ator Burkett to place the signal corps on
an equal footing with the artillery and
calvary branches Of the army. Both these
measures had the support of President
Roosevelt and Secretary Taft.
Treasury Needs More Space.
The force of clerks in the office of Rob-
ert Persons of South Dakota, auditor for
the Interior department, is to be moved
from the Treasury department to new quar-
tiers in the Union building on G street.
The work Of moving the auditors office is
now going on and visitors to the Treasury
department are made aware of this by the
| presence of clerks and desks in the COR
ridors. The files of the Interior depart
ment occupy 1900 square feet of space
in the fourth corridor of the building on
tho Fifteenth street side and In the middle
corridor Of the fourth floor, and every
inch of this space will be used just as
soon as the necessary changes can be
made and tn, rooms fitted up for clerks.
, The growth of business of the Treasury
department has been so pronounced in the
last few years that 1t has become neces-
sary to rent space in various office build
ings to enable the several bureaus of the
department to transact public business.
With the removal of the force of the
auditor for the Interior department and
the 1900 square feet that will thus be
made available. the treasury officials will
not have any more space than can be used.
This is explained by the statement that
within three years more than 300 employees
have been added to the force, and at pres
ent a large addition has been made neces-
sary by legislation providing for emer-
gency currency and the putting in Of new
machinery.
New Postmnsters.
Postmasters appointed: Neb~raska-Giles,
Blaine county. Lucy E. Moger, vice a. D.