New-York tribune., 1918-12-20
Peace Terms
May Bar Foe
From the Air
French Press Advocates For
bidding Germans Build
ing Any More Airplanes
BY hampton Hunt

Copyright 1918, New York Tribune Incl
PARIS, Dec. 1e.-Shall the Germans,
as one Of the conditions of peace, be
prohibited from building airplanes of
any kind, commercial or otherwise?
This is subject that is exciting keen
interest here, and several newspapers
/ have devoted long articles urging the
Allied delegates to pay special atten-
tlon to the question.
IF we allow the Boches latitude to
construct commercial airplanes," ;" says
one journal, "in ten years they will
have 10000 of them. The new COM
mercial airplane can be transformed
into bombarding war plane in one
hour. The mobilization and concentra-
ton Of these 10000 planes would not
require even one clear day. We know
that the enemy airplenes that bonn
barded Paris never numbered more
than 1876 in all available at any one
time. What could they do with 10000 ?r
Could Destroy Paris in Night
Lieutenant Rene Fonck, the French
ace of aces, after pointing out that
by this time, if the armistice had not
interviewed, the French army in the all
would have been strong enough to de-
stroy whole cities in a single night
asks what is to prevent the Germans
if they are allowed to construct air
planes, from attacking the capital and
virtually wiping it out.
Commercial airplanes which could
carry industrial cargoes," says Lieu.
tenant Fonck, "could just as easily
carry loads of explosives and asphyxi-
ating bombs. In one night the great
capital would be no more, and the
next day other cities might suffer the
same fate"
Fonck pleads strongly that the
French government, instead of demo
bilizing the air army, as has been sug
gested in some quarters. shall, on the
contrary, continue to develop it ir
every way and by all means possible.
Planned Big Fire Raid
Strength is given to these argument:
by statistics relating to aerial bonn
bardments Of Paris, which the govern
ment allowed to be published las
night In 1914 forty-fve bombs wer,
dropped on Paris. In 1915 sevent,
were dropped, of which sixtytwo wer,
dropped on March 20. In 1916 sixty-on,
were dropped. In 1917 fourteen. II
1918, during the last six months of tn,
war, 396 bombs were dropped, which
made a total of 1,211 victims, including
40. killed. Shells thrown on the cit,
by the Big Bertha numbered 1853, which
killed 1876 people and injured Alt, while
Zeppelins dropped 228 bombs, killing
2O6 people and injuring 392. One o
the bombs, which failed to explode, i
preserved at the municipal laboratory
1t measures nine feet in length ant
weighs $50 pounds. 1t contained 90
small incendiary grenades, and wa
apparently the first Of it's kind used.
1t is now known that the enemy wa
manufacturing this type of bombs il
large numbers and planned, if tn
armistice had beer refused. to carr,
out frequent bombardments of tn
capital this winter. Sand alone, appar
emily, would prove efficient to extin
guish the flames started by thes
bombs.
The enemy's plan was immediatel,
after the first squadron of airplane
had set the city we'll aflame, to follow
with q second similar force and com
plete the destruction of Paris.