The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1913-11-24
Science
BY GARRETT P. sERvIss.
.HE dreamers of wars and b

!" HE dreaulers of wars and battles
still keep the lead in the dcvel-
opmeDt Of the new field Of
achievement that the conquest
of the air has opened for human iugen-
uity. One Of the latest military devices,
in which the sustaining property Of the
air plays chief part, is German in.
rention for revealing the position and
movements Of an enemy's forces during
the night,
The apparatus is called "projec
| tile light-projector. 1t consists Of q
| special form Of proiectle, which can
be fred from field gun, at a high
| elevation. and which is furnished with
parachute that begins to open as soon
as the projectile, having attained Tie
| summit of IFS hight, commences TO dc.
scend. Then an automatic device causes
the ignition of indammable material
which is so arranged that it con
tinucs 10 emit powerful light Tor a
| considerable time After tho first ex
ploson the light burns steadily in q
receptacle under tho descending para
chute, and, being projected by lenses
or rehectors in a broad cone, eliminates
the country beneath sufficiently TO re-
veal the features Of the topography and
any marching Of troops OF planting of
batteries that the enemy may be con-
Quoting under cover Of the darkness.
In the accompanying ideal illustration
the light-producing projectile has been
fred from gun on an elevation over
a neighboring valley, and the cone of
light from the descending parachute re.
veals to the watcher tho movements
of an army corps in the distance.
The advantage claimed for this in
vention is that, unlike fixed search
light; it gives to the enemy no clew to
the real position of their foe, for the
gun, after firing the proJectile, can
quickly be shifted to another point, and
80 the actual source from which the re,
vealing light originates cannot be bonn
barded by them, as q searchlight could
be. Then, too, the Illumination is bet
ter distributed, being cast from over
head, and lighting up, uniformly, a
broad extent of country.
1t is proposed to employ similar
form Of Illuminating parachute by drop
ping 1t from passing aeroplane As
its light is all cast downward there
would be no illumination Of the aero
plane, which could quietly glide away
after dropping its parachute. This
would perhaps, be better way to en-
ploy the device than by firing the ap-
paratus from a gun. There would be
~ nnSc ~ ha{r h. ~ "a
source Of tho light and it would sud
denly burst out overhead like huge
meteor. The element of mystery might
also have its effect in shaking the
nerves Of the enemy, thus suddenly
brought into plain view while their
foes remained concealed and invisible.
The apparatus can be made TO work
without noise, when not fired from a
gun, for the simple automatic opening
of the parachute may be caused to set
the light-producing machinery in ac~
tion.
4 half dozen aeroplanes furnished with
such parachutes and lowering over the
field where an enemy Is suspected to be
maneuyering on a dark night could. by
dropping one light after another. produce
an illumination of the landscape beneath
brighter than that OF a full moon, while
they themselves would be concealed in
the contrasted darkness above, a few
bombs let fall into the Illuminated field
would produce CONSERVATION and dsor-
der even II no direct damage was done.
Similarly, a. fortified position could be
protected against a night assault, by an
occasional illuminating parachute, either
fired from gun or dropped from a
scouting aeroplane. Fixed searchights
on the fertilization would be subject to
bomba rdment being always visible, while
1t would be practically impossible to hit
a falling and swaying parachute.
The advocates of universal peace may
find their account In this invention. too.
for It is another OF the things which will
render war less desirable by making II
more difficult and costly to conduct