The evening world., 1914-08-28
NEW ART OF OBSERVATION IN
MIoAlR,

The asroplans scout must ny high
and swiftly. to avoid hostile bullets.
At An altitude of 5000 feet. At which
no 10 fairly safe. no has q range Of
vision OF four to five miles. Troops
ON the march can be seen and their
number estimated by the road space
occupied. Artillery In action 10 eas.
lily guishable, A. are cavalry
and Transport OF all kinds on the
move. Aassed infantry In the open
10 fairly distinct, though khaki clad
mon IN open order or moving over
stubble or ploughed folds are difficult
to distinguish. and they are not al
ways readily seen on grass. The n.y.
Ing scout can readily obtain an Idea
OF trenches. outposts and methods of
occupation Of bridges and fords. Field
works, II their color and outlines do
not blend with the landscape, can be
seen at q distance OF i've miles.
though they are not readily distin-
guishable. It IL difficult for the avia.
tor to tell dummy" trenches from
real ones.
French aerial scouting Is superb.
The commanding general can count
on having any specified region exam.
ined. The art of observation from
midair mas been reduced TO q systsm
a. exactly regulated as that OF cav
airy Reconnaissance. British aviators
have also distinguished themseiyes
by their success in aerial SCOUTING.
Yet there II another side to thu
story, for aviators are az far from
perfection as their fellow mortals are
In other ways. At tho 1919 man.
oeuvres French general and his
stan were surprised and captured
despite the utmost vigilance of his
aerial scouts. A British BLUE" divi-
sion OF 12.O00 mon with horses stole q
march Of sixteen miles on the on the
Rcd" division while tho aerial scouts
OF tho latter were hunting for It. The
mon skulked along under Indigenous
and other cover. while guns and
transport wagons were hidden under
straw 30 that they might be mista ken
for farmers wagons. Whenever q
Red" aeroplane came into view q
whistle from the Blue" lookout
warned every man to crouch in his
tracks or under the nearest cover.
Aerial scouts have been repeatedly
deceived In German manoeuvres.
Although the Germans claim to
tude Of 5000 feet on target fifteen
feet In diameter, extravagant claims
regarding tho effectiveness of aerial
bombs must be accepted with reser-
vations. In lecture before the
Brooklyn Aeronauticai Association
Mr.. Hudson Maxim. who must be
conceded to be an authority on explo-
sives. said that explosives 30 power
full and destructive when employed In
aerial bombs as to fulfill expectations
and predictions Of the scaremongers
could not be made. The. destructive
power OF torpedoes and shells Is enor-
20 In A,sA
never so great as the average man
supposes after q short course In
blood-curdling aerial fiction. Expert
ments with dropped live shells and
explosives showed that although they
might land within a remarkably short
distance Of tho target, 1t was Just
that distance that made all the DIFF
ference In the resulting damage, for
the effects OF high explosives ara very
local. Furthermore. the momentum
Of a heavy object falling from q great
height Is 80 great that It 10 buried In
tho ground and the force of tho OK
from analogy with artillery practice
against towns, aerial bombs are not
worth tho time. energy. ammunition
and risk to life involved. In the
Boer war Ladysmith withstood the
batterins Of 10000 or more shells with
practically no damage. Similar re-
suits were observed at Pretoria. Lyd.
dito shells dug caves and made
breaches In the walls of q fort at
Omdurman. but did little real dam
ags.
Experiments In defense a. Ainst
hostile asroplanes and airShips have
besn quite a. elaborate - those In
offensive operations. II has been
found. for instance, that ct 5000
fest IN aeroplans 10 o hard thing TO
bit. though experience. In actual war
fAyo has uhoWn that IN aagop2sno a.