Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-06-30
QUICKEST WAY To- END WAR
Is by SUPERIORITY IN AIR
How Vital 1t Is for U. s. to
US Act mt Once.
j RAIDS ACROSS SEA POSSIBLE
Experts Admit, He Says, That 1t May
Bc Only Question of limo Which,
Germans Have Paris and London
at Their Mercy.

~
Germans Have Paris and London
IS at Their Mercy.
/. HAsHlNGToN. June 2o.-''The final.
deciding. material influence. for victory
s5ofG either the allies or Germany. and
& hence for early peace. will be an over
: Whelming superiority of one side in
the number and efficiency Of it's air
craft"
~ John Barrett. director of the Pan
American Union. believes this is the
quickest and most effective way Of end
ms the world war. He studied the en-
tire aviation subject on the field Of bat
tile and gave his views to the subcom-
mittee on aviation Of the Senate Mil
!, itary committee to-day.
O Mr.. Barrett told the committee that
y In discussing the seriousness of the
present situation this country faces he
would be neglectful of fact II he
omitted to refer to the Zeppelin raid
on London IN September. 1916. which
he personally witnessed.
S.'The full truth Of this" he told the
& committee. has never been published
z in tho British and American papers
that is. there was no admission or
: record OF the impressions on author
! ttative persons as to the actual danger
!. in tho future based upon the facts of
this raid.
nT''From what personally saw. and
from what English army officers. engi-
sneers and others personally told me in
. intimate talks. came to the unavoid-
: able conclusion that raids may yet be
= made which will carry extraordinary
destruction of both life and property
n n nd IN vt. !,
inland cities Of England and France
+ Experts admitted that 1t may be only
q question of time when a large and
powerful enough fleet of German Yep
pelins and aeroplanes, operating und er
favorable and protective weather cen
& ditfons, may be able to destroy by
dropping bombs, aerial guntire and con-
ssseQuent explosions and confagrat.c
great sections OF London and otner
cities. munition plants. and even the
assembled Dreadnoughts of Great Brit-
aims large navy.
d MAY BE ABLE TO SEND
MACHINES TO AMERICA
FINALLY, 1t is to be emphasized that
tho consensus of opinion of aeroplan,
3 and other air service experts whom
met In England and France was that
Z It was entirely possible that within
year the Germans. through
their wonderful inventive skill. and
acting under the same impulse as had
+ enabled them to send submarines
across the Atlantic, would develop Yep
pelins and monster aeroplanes which
could cross the Atlantic and 20 i'm
measurable damage TO such cities as
New York. Boston. Philadelphia. and
even Washington. before hey would
be brought down obliged to lana
through exhaustion OF fuel Our plans
therefore. for the development OF air
service should include a great defcn-
sive as well as offensive equipment
AS a further convincing evidence of
the inestimable value and immea sur
able usefulness of the aviation service,
1t can be safely stated that the present
almost unbroken and steadily con-
tinued advance which the French and
British are making all along the bat
tie front from Switzerland 10 the Eng
lish Channel could not have been sue
cessful without that degree of supe-
L riority OF the command of the air.
which. permits accurate knowledge OF
the enemy's movements and prevents
In turn. the enemy from securing cor
responding Information about their
foes.
I x, without intending to disregard any
confidence. / can say that the chief
British and French military war
leaders and directors told me last
autumn that the success or failure
of the proposed campaign for the sum-
mar and autumn of 1917 would de-
pend upon the success or failure OF
ftheir air service to match and surpass
q that of the Germans. and that. con-
sequently, every energy would be di-
rccted to perfectins that service.
AIRPLANE MORE DECISIVE
THAN SUBMARINE SERVICE
~ II trust II will not appear unfair to
the confidence imposed in me by a
certain high German officer, whom
met at prison camp in England, when
II repeat that he said the majority of
the several hundred German officers.
whether military or naval, held in
8 that camp honestly believed that Ger
many would win the war through it's
ability to make use of air service more
effectively and efficiently than could
the British and French. They believe
that in the long run the air service
would be more decisive than the sub
marine service.
This officer indicated that by the
autumn of 1917 or spring of 1918 Ger
many would have ready such vast
S,equtpment of new and most powerful
\ sirplanes and leppelins. then being
iSplanned or building, that she would
mot only check the British and French
B drive. but gradually recover lost
ssKgonnd, and ultimately have Paris and
& london at the mercy of her air
:Ysquadron
y This officer did not at that time
think there was any prospect of the
& United States entering the war. and,
3 therefore, spoke to me as a neutral.
- had. moreover. known him personal
& ~ and we'll before the war. II he was
Right, the United States must bend
i every energy in money. machines and