Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1913-05-15
To Try For $4,000 Prize Of
London Paper.
SUCCESS PREDICTED
Brown and Law, England, Herr Rum
pier, 6leriot and Colonel Cody Will
Make Attempt-Dr. Bell Believes
reat Possible With Course In Rare
fled Atmosphere.

offered as a prize by the London Daily
Mail. The men are Henry Brown and
Rodman Law. Americans. forming a
man; Herr Rumpler. a German inven-
tor: Bleriot. inventor Of the %monoplane
Of his name. and Colonel Cody. former
ly an American. but now Il British sub
ject.
The Mail offers it's great prize on the
complished inside of Seventy-two hours
Of continuous flying. There is no re-
striction against the machine alighting
on water and replenishing it's fuel from
ships.
All those who contemplate making
the attempt declare they will do so
within a few months. They see no
great obstacle to the feat The Ger
man aeronautical experts. however,
whose attention has been mostly con-
cerned with rigid dirigibles. say the
trip will not be made for several years:
that it will cost $4,000 and will re-
quire a vastly far advanced machine.
DR.. Bell Enthusiastic.
DR.. A. Graham Bell. inventor of the
telephone and a pioneer in the use of
heavier than air flying achines. en-
Enthusiastically discussed recently Lord
Northcliffe's offer Of $4,000 for the
first flight across the Atlantic in q hy-
d~roaeroplane within seventy-two con-
secutive hours. While certain modifica-
tons in existing machines ought to be
effected, DR.. Bell repeatedly said that
as aerial science stood today the Eng
fish publishers offer is a good sport
ing chance for air men.
There are machines existing today"
said DR.. Bell. (which. if they can con
tinue doing for twenty hours what
they have done already for shorter
periods. will make the flight possible
in a single day. The seventy-two
hours is 4 much longer time than will
be needed. If the ocean is to be tray
ersed in an airship ut all it will be in
far less time than Lord Northcliffe
allows.
IF | We're to make the flight" went
On the veteran inventor with boyish
enthusiasm. 81 wouldn't make any al
lowances for aliehting at sea and re-
p%lenishing my fuel. To make the trip
at all it ought to be done in a single
squirt. While hydroaeroplanes can
take to the water and arise again into
the air. their chances are against their
doing anything of the sort. There is
also very little likelihood of their find
ing the supply ship from which to re-
plenish their tanks. Even if the wings
Of the airship are not injured by the
descent the chances are that once on
the water it would remain there until
picked up or until. under the buffet
ings of the sea. it went lower still and
disappeared"
Would Fly In Rarefied Air.
Dr.. Bells idea. based on his inTesti-
cations then made with Mr.. Baldwin.
is that the greatest service will be got
from the ~aeroplanes flying at great
heights. Mr.. Baldwin advanced the
idea. which DR.. Bell at One accepted.
that the resistance to the forward rush
of an airship diminished in exact ratio
with the density of the air. He found
that life could be sustained at a height
Of five miles and that at that height
the density Of the air was one-third
the normal density at sea level.
Therefore at that height Il machine
capable, with sufficient propeller revo-
buttons. of driving forty miles an hour
at sea level-and much greater speeds
had actually been attained-would go
at a rate Of 120 miles an hour.
"Mr. Baldwin saw in his plan said
DR.. Eell. "the objection that the suffer
ing Of the aviator for want of air
would be too great at this altitude for
any prolonged effort" But DR.. Bell at
once met the objection by saying that
obviously. even if the atmosphere
were thinned to one-third it's normal
density. a speed of three times the
normal rate would project the avi-
ator against exactly the same number
Of particles of oxygen as if he went
forty miles an hour on sea level. In
other words. the onward rush of the
machine. increasing In precise ratio
with the diminishing density of the
air. would automatically condense the
air and preserve a normal atmosphere.
At the same time the higher speed
would give the lighter air precisely the
supporting power Of heavier air at sea
level with the lower speed that would
be the best attainable in that density.
"Go up as high as you like" said DR..
Bell. land your speed will go up with
you. We used to think a balloon or
dirigible the best for high flying. But
now we know that is not true. A bal
loon in the rare atmosphere Of the high
skies would need to be expanded to
triple its size to carry the weight with
which it started. And. once aloft. IL
could not descend without letting OF
gas. The nirship adjusts all this au-
tomatica!ly by varying Its speed"