The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-08-08
4 NEW FORM OF
 A|RSH|P INVENTED Said 10 Be Improvement On
 Zeppelin Type BY A GER VAN ARCHITECT Will Use Wood Instead of Metal in the Construction-Sub Mag net Is lnvented-New Ma
 chine for Naval Warfare.
BY A GER VAN ARCHITECT
BY MALCOLM CLARKE,

BY MALCOLM CLARKE.
 Berlin, August IA new form of diriei ble airship has been invented by a Ger man architect Herr Rettig,, who claims that 1t is a very considerable improve ment on the Zeppelin type. Herr Rettig is well known in Germany as the collab- orator with Herr WaIlot in the con struction of the reichstag buildings as the architect of public buildings in Dres- den, Munich and other towns, and as the constructor of racing boats. The im- pulse to devote his attention to the con struction of airships was given him by the catastophe to Count zeppelin's air ship at Echterdingen, and at once realized that there would be far less possibility of an airship being imper- fled by electrical discharges if the frame were of wood instead of metal The knowledge of the qualities of wood gained in the construction of racing boats stood him in good stead and he imme- diately proceeded to utilize 1t. He selected Canadian fir as being the most advanta- geous for the purpose. To save weight, Herr Rettig employees hollow rods formed In the manner of lead pencils, leaving the wood solid only in places where there Is an extra strain. The greater lightness of the frame thus gained ena- bles Herr Rettig to built his airship with capacity of from 5000 to 7OoO cubic metres, whereas the Zeppelin type must have capacity of at least 10000 cubic metres.
 imnrOUad shape of the airship. The form of the Zeppelins and their relatively small di- ameter does not permit the car to be placed immediately under the center, but compe1s the use of two cars of equal weight at either end. The new airship is given an eliptical form, with the greatest diameter just in front of the axis. This form, it is claimed, Is supe- rior to the cylindrical shape in that 1t reduces the dead weight and increases the resisting power against pressure and shock. It also reduces the resistance to the force of the wind to minimum. Another advantage that the wood frame possesses Is that 1t is elastic, and thus much more unlikely to be injured by col lision or by a fall than one made of metal. Finally. the Rettig wooden frame neither generates nor conducts electricity, so that there is nothing to prevent a wireless telegraphy apparatus being fitted in the car. Herr Rettig points out, fur ther, that metal frame is apt to rust, whereas wood properly vanished is prac- tically impervious to meteorological in- fuences. He calculates that the carrying capacity of his airship Is about 30 per cent greater than that of Zeppelin, and this assures him a far greater radius of action, which will be invaluable in time of war and will enable him to take
 
 pleasure trips in time of peace.
 The face that the single car is hung from the center of the airship greatly increases, according to Herr Rettig, its steering and maneuvering capabilities. The "meshes" of the Zeppelin frame measure 26x10 feet; those of the Rettig frame can be reduced to 10x10 feet. This. of course, enables the covering of the Rettig airship to withstand far great CT pressure from within than In the case of the Zeppelin covering, and thus per- mits the Rettig airship to remain longer in the air without landing. It Is claimed that such airships can easily travel from one continent to another, and can n1a- neuver for days over the enemy's coun- try without needing to land.
 A "submarine magnet" which is to be used as weapon of destruction in the naval warfare of the future, has been patented in Germany and experts believe that this country has thereby acquired a valuable asset in maritime operations. If their opinion is correct, the twentieth century will have realized a fable of the Arabian Nights" Patents, 1t must be remembered, are only granted In Germany after all aspects of the in- vention in question have been thoroughly investigated by numerous experts, all of whom incline much more to scepticism than to credulfty. The mere fact of an in- vention being patented in Germany Is thus to some extent a guarantee of a cer- tain amount of practicability
 The weapon in question consists of huge magnet far surpassing in strength any, of the kind that have hith erto been manufactured. The magnet which has the same shape and form as q gigantic cog-wheel will be connected with the shore by means of electric cables running into a power station which will be quite invisible from sea- wards, and will be what is technically called sunk" The magnet will be placed primarily at the mouths of ports or rivers or bays, which have to be protected against hostile attacks. The effect on steel ships passing near tn csc magnets will vary according to the size of the ship; but the general re- suit, 1t Is claimed, would be to render them unmanageaDle ana enllfely at the mercy of their adversaries on the spot. The attractive force of the magnet ac- cording to the inventor, would be so tremendously powerful that all iron and steel machinery on board would cease to operate and would be thrown out of gear probably coming to a standstill or working so erratical1y that disastrous results would be pro- duced.
 In the case of smaller ships, it is even asserted that they would be drawn from their set course by the attractive force of the magnet. It would thus be possible to run hos tile ship of a moderate size ash ore by means of this weapon. In the case of still smaller ships, 1t is further sug- gested that they might be drawn under water by the attractive power of the magnet. Experts declare that this weapon can be effectively used, not only for home defence but also ln offensive operations far away from home ports. It might be possible, for