The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-06-10
From the New York Glove.

From the New York Glove.
 N ID,you hear that fine shudder that VU ran over England when the
 O cables carried the news that
 Count Ferdinand Zeppelin had sailed
 about 900 miles with his airship, follow
 ing true course, and being practically
 unhampered By difficulties-only. of
 course, the airship stuck her silly nose
 in the ground up to the middle of her
 back when she landed? This means to
 make it certain, according to contempor
 aneous British opinion, that the fall of England is scheduled for a later day. Count Zeppelin will likely swoop down
 in one of those dirigible balloons of his, and grab King Edward by the nape of the royal neck, and maybe put in Mrs.
 George Keppler and two or three others of the Kings set, so this ascetic monarch may be happy, and then will hike for Berlin. And if he furnishes a round trip
 ticket King Edward will probably enjoy the experience. For the undaunted ruler
 of Britannia seems to be the only one on
 the island who Is still of the opinion
 that Britons never, never will be slaves
 All the rest have ordered their shaclzles
 in advance, with especial instructions that
 they be of model 1909 and easy fitting.
 Zeppelin did most of this England had
 a fit of the horrors a year or so ago when she learned that 1t was possible for
 competent German skipper to pilot boat
 quite into the mouth of the Thames, pro-
 vided he had been furnished with the proper maps, and the bellbuoys were ring
 ing loudly. All the pubiosts- of Eng
 land seem to have devoted themselves at
 that period to proving that Germany would experience no obstacles whatever
 in settling down in the city of London
 and opening franlxfurter stands all over
 Buckingham palace. There came @ na-
 tional demand for moro battleships.
 And then, just as Britain was removing
 from the first shrieking spasm, along comes this Zeppelin person with a balloon he can sail every which way. There's nothing to prevent him showering ad vertisements of German food sausages
 momb, all over the right little, tight little island. The chances are that it has never occurred to him as yet, he being completely occupied in the endeavor to get up and come down again all in one piece. But if it ever does seem to him
 rather a classy little adventure, look out for him. That's all. For he Is one of the one-ideaed persons other people call cranks until the moment blossoms for every one to catch them about the neck. and drip hysterical tears down their spines, and shriek in their ears the in- formation that they are the nations sav- iors.
 And Zeppelin is crank-a Class A, Division No. l, crank. Seventeen years ago, having been retired from the Ger
 man army. he took up the study of aerial navigation just to pass the time away Then he had a daughter and a fortune of s750,0O0 and the respect of the war depart ment for valiant and worthy career. As an officer in the Union army during the civil war he had covered himself with honor and later, in the Franco-Prussian war, he led several of the most daring reconnoissances.
 He might have settled down with his stein and his pipe and been utterly happy. In place of which he spent his fortune
 and that of his daughter, and became the target for pert paragraphs in the File gende Blatter, and generally treated the German nation to one of the best little laughs it has had since 1t taught Paris to like horseflesh And then, at the age of Fl. he has suddenly blossomed out as the first man in the world to construct a dirigbe balloon that will really dirige, and is regarded by a perfectly friendly neighboring nation as a desperate per- son Wha nught tn be ninched for interna-