Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1916-09-22

hoiuS uvcuuc VI dppIOdCu AAnCAeo'
The mortars throw a new order OF
aerial bomb which is said to be more
effective than shrapnel in dealing with
heavier-than-air flying machines. The
maximum elevation Of these pieces
gives a nearly overhead fire.
During the tests over Friedrichshafen
on Lake Constance the super-Zeppelin
showed that she was capable of mount
ing aloft at an astonishing speed and
a maximum altitude Of $4,000 feet was
attained. With her nose pointed up
ward and her engines adding their
lift to the buoyant gas in the bags. the
dirigfble climbed skyward at the rate
Of 1000 feet q minute.
The aeroplane that can ascend at
velocity Of 800 feet a minute Is doing
well.
The super-Zeppelin will cover the
entire field Of aerial scouting. She
can do this without fear of inter-
ference from below. The best of the
anti-aircraft guns have a vertical
range Of but 10000 feet, while the
newest Zeppelins can mount securely
to an added height Of 5000 feet.
At a height of 5000 feet an observer
over the water has a radius Of OBJ
servation of something like 80 miles.
From such a coign of vantage 1t would
be extremely easy to watch the fall Of
shot at ranges Of $4,000 yards and
more. 1t gives to the gunner afloat
the power Of telling hits by indirect
fire, assuming that bank of fog in
tervened. The admiral without such
means Of aerial spOtting is to all in
tents and purposes blind.
Send and Receive Wireless.
1t must be remembered that while
the aeroplane can dispatch wireless
messages it is incapable of receiving
them owing to the racket made by Its
noisy engines. The Zeppelin, on the
other hand, is not so hampered, and
therefore can both transmit and re-
ceive wireless communications.
The super-Zeppelin Of the latest pat
tern carries a crew numbering some
thing like 40 all told. During cruis-
ing periods half Of these men are
on duty at a time. All Of them are
engaged only when the aircraft is in
action and every gun manned.
Heretofore the cruising endurance Of
the Zeppelins has been roundly a mat
ter Of 1000 nautical miles. The greatly
increased buoyancy of the super-Zep-
pelin suggests that 1t will be entirely
practicable to carry more than double
the proportion Of fuel per unit of horse
power. Not only this, but the i'm
proved form of the hull has greatly re-
duced the air resistance and therefore
augmented the propulsive effort of the
engines. 1t is not improbable that the
dirigible which made her maiden trial
trip a month ago is able to cover some
thing like 1900 knots before replenish-
ing her supplies.
Just as the fighting submarine
blazed the way for the cargo-carryiug
submarine Deutschland, so the newest
super-Zeppelin points logically to the
practicability Of a transatlantic fight
and the carriage Of either passengers
or cargo. OF course, the quantity Of
freight would be relatively less than
that of a submarine Of commerce. but
then the element Of time saved and
the value Of the freight might easily
make service Of that sort well worth
the while. Indeed, 1t is quite conceiv-
able that the aerial trader could make
the journey from continent to CONT
nent with far less likelihood Of cap
ture or interference than that menac-
ing the underwater cargo carrier.
Navigation Problems Solved.
The transatlantic aerial freighter
would be stripped Of its military char
acter just as has been done In the case