The St. Mary banner. (Franklin, Parish of St. Mary, La.) 1889-1931, 1909-10-23

Wartime efficiency of the aeroplane
IS at the moment a much discussed
subject among army men. 1t is admit
Ted by many that the possibilities il
aerial warfare have yet to be develop
90, but recent achievements by Blerio1
and Orville Wright have given rise to
considerable speculation. There are
apparently few, officers who are pre-
pared to assert that modern warfare
would be revolutionized by the intro
ductton of fleet of Bleriot mono
planes or Wright biplanes. But there
are many who go so far as to say that
such fleet would be of value to any
army.
Speaking of Bleriot's fight across
the English Channel, Gen. Brun, the
new French minister of war, charac-
terized the aeroplane as 1.-The wasp Of
war"
AS soon as 1t is perfect" he de-
clared, the French army will be pro-
vlded with swarm of these wasps"
Inc figure according to officers of the
regular army, was well chosen. 1t H.
lustrates. they say, exactly what the
mode of aerial warfare is likely to be-
There is plainly less skepticism
among army men concerning air
craft than formerly. Perhaps the
great majority is still waiting to be
shown" but many have come to the
conclusion that it is high time to con-
slider seriously the adaptability of
aeroplanes to military purposes. 1t is
the Signal Corps, of course, that has
taken hold OF the matter officially, but
interest has spread to every branch Of
the service. Indeed, the impression is
gaining ground that after the Signal
Corps officers have been won over to
this new vehicle of warfare, it will be
Tor the officers of the cOmbatant
branches Of the service to put the
aeroplane to practical use.
Col. Heistand a Believer.
1t is the opinion of Col. H. O. s.
Heistand, adiutant general of the De-
partment of the East, that the aero
plane will play an important part in
the warfare of the future. 81 am not
an expert" he said, 'in fact, have
never seen an aeroplane in a real test.
Last summer l had an opportunity
20 see Farman fly here, but his per-
formance was tame compared to the
1eats that were then being perform
ed by the Wright brothers here and
abroad. Nevertheless, am convinced
that our government ought to be lib |
eral In its appropriations for aeronau-
tics. There is no doubt that the aero |
plane, even in its present stage of de-
Velopment, would be of service in time
of war.
think that comparison of an aero
plane to wasp is good one 1t sug-
gests what could be done with a feet
OF these craft. For purposes of recon-
NOTHING and scout work single aero
plane would have its place, but with a
whole feet of them, an army would be
able to do considerable damage.
Imagine, for example, what might
be done If they were to be employed in
an attack on New York city, or any
city for that matter. With one aero
plane going at the rate Of forty miles
an hour, it would be difficult to do
much harm in the way Of dropping ex-
plosives or inflammable materials
down upon our heads, but with feet
OF them it would be different. It
would then be the same as a volley
fired by troop of soldiers; some of
the shots would be almost sure to take
effect.
An Attack by Sea.
Nov suppose a fleet Of warships,
an attack OIL New York har-
Dor, came equipped with lot Of these
wasps, as they have been called. While
still out Of range of the harbor guns
they could launch their aeroplan-s
and keep them lowering over our for
with more than an even
chance of doing us considerable dam
age. Anyway. they would make things
for the non-combatants
Of the city. AS for the Notifications.
the feet might succeed in dropping
explosives so as to strike our mag
azines and storehouses, and you can
readily imagine what that would
mean. II
All this would be accomplished
more easily with aeroplanes OF the
Wright or Bleriot type than with dir
igibles, because they would furnish
less of target for our guns. Besides,
they are safer. A dirigible is always :
In danger Of spark from its own mo- 7 1
tor, which would be sufficient to ex-
plode the gas that supports 1t. I
Perhaps all this sounds rather far l
fetched. but you don't know what it ,
means To an army on the defensive to :