McNairy County independent. (Selmer, McNairy County, Tenn.) 1902-1969, 1918-06-14
BROWNING GUN FOR
AIRCRAFT IS 0. K.
RATE OF FIRE sYNcHRoNlzEp
WITH REVOLUTIONS OF THE
TRACTOR PROPELLER.
BASEBALL CAPTURES LONDON

Il
American Army and Navy Teams
Draw Big crowds-British Officers
in v. s. Give Instruction In Gas
Defense.
The Browning machine gun has sue
cessfully undergone q test to deter
mine Its value for use with aircraft.
This Is one of three types of machine
guns with which the rate Of fire can
be so synchronized with the revolu-
tons Of the propeller Of tractor air.
plane that the gun can be fired by the
pilot Of combat plane through the
revolving blades.
Airplane propellers revolve at from
300 to 1000 revolutions per minute.
The machine gun is connected with
the airplane engine by a mechanical
aDr hydraulic device, and impulses from
the crank shaft are transmitted to the
machine gun. The rate of fire of the
machine gun is constant and its fire is
synchronized with the revolving pro-
peller blades by wasting" a certain
percentage of the impulses 1t receives
from the airplane engine and by hav-
Ing the remaining Impulses trip or pull
the trigger so that the gun fires just
at the fraction of the second when
the propeller blades are clear of the
line of fire.
The pilot operates the gun by means
of lever which controls the circuit
and allows the impulses to trip the
trigger.
"As the latest wonder of the world
London has taken to baseball" says
committee on public information
representative In London. ''The Eng
fish never before had much use for
our great game. They called it an ex-
aggerated form of FOUNDERS and won
uered what the noise was all about,
but the American and Canadian SOL
ders In England have been educating
them.
"a regular league of eight teams has
started a summer schedule, and the
English public Is learning what 1t has
missed. Big crowds witness the game
which is played every Saturday, and
the sport bids fair to become widely
popular. Here Is the way Thomas
Burke. the short-story writer, reports
a game In the London Star of May
~.
"Last week / discovered baseball.
The match between the Army and
Navy teams was my first glimpse of
pastime that has captiyated CONT
nent and | can well understand its APP
peal to a modern temperament. Be
lieve me, it's good goods. And the
crowd! had heard and read much of
baseball fans and their method of root
ing, but my conceptions were nothing
near the real thing. The grandstands,
crowded with army and navy fans,
bristling with megaphones and tossing
hats and demoniac faces, would have
made superb subject for Autograph
by Sir Frank Bragwyn.
"'The game got hold of me before
the first pitched ball. The players in
their hybrid costumes and huge gloves,
the catcher in his gas mask, and the
movements of the teams as they prac-
ticed runs shook me with excitement.
Then the game began and the roofing
began. In past years have attended
various football matches In mining dis
tricts where the players came in for
certain amount Of Raging, but they
Z were church services compared with
the furious abuse and hazing handed
to any unfortunate who failed to play
ball.
"There was, for example, an expl0-
sive. reverberating "A-h-h-h-h-h" which
have been practicing In my back yard
ever since, but without once catching
its true quality. You should have
heard Admiral Sims, as college yell
leader when the Navy made a home.
run hit, with his "Atta boy; oh. alta
;way to play ball." and when they got
IAN error he sure handed the Navy
sthelrs.
eyes; I've got 1t. From now on I'm
a fan. I'm going to see every baseball
match played anywhere near London.
shall never be able to watch with ex-
element cricket or football match
after this; it'd be like tortoise race,
Come along with me to the next match
and Join me In roofing and in killing
the umpire"
In March and April the secretary Of
agriculture, on recommendation Of the
Office Of public roads and rural engi.
neering, approved 212 state road-bulld-
Ing projects involving more than $500
miles Of highways under the federal
aid road act. The estimated cost of
these improvements to the states is
about SI5,OO0,OOO. The federal aid al
lowed Is more than $5000,000.
Bott|ers Of soft drinks in the United
States may save approximately 10000
tons o. sugar annually by using other
sweeteuing materials. according to in
,yestigasions by specialists of the bu-
reau Ct chemistry. United States de-
partmeat of agriculture. The bureau
of CHEMISTRY is preparing to furnish
bottles with sweetening formulas that
will allow the actual sugar content in
soft drinks to be cut to so per cent or
less ard at the same time will preserve
the customary taste OF the beverages
Starch sugar, starch sirup, maltese sir
up and honey are the substitutes used
:. Increased demands for common Ia.