The sun., 1918-12-01

insane asylum director. Yes. to come
right in? Yet in the war flying boats
have achieved cruises OF /. 600 miles
above the sea without replenishing
their fuel and without escort of ships.
When the veil OF secrecy is lifted we
shall hear Of flying boats that have ac-
complished the destruction OF two en-
envy submarines and two Zeppelins in
one fight. or boys-mere kids-out
scouting for hostile submarines, who
outstayed their gasolene, Topped down
into the wild seas. where the pontoons
below the wings kept them afloat, and,
when bad winds began cavorting the
wings, themselves got out on the
wings to balance them, and stayed on
those wings twenty-four hours tin
picked up by n war vessel. And Of yet
another seabird boy, who in wild
Zoom to get momentum to come down
on an enemy bird pried the gasolene
tank from his boat as he mounted so
he could get the offensive from above
to dart down behind. and so downed
his foe.
These are everyday commonplace
Of the flying game that began with a
Who says we Won't go to Mars by
1908 or that the end OF the war will
ee the end of the airplane game?
CIR take some rather CHASTITY military
acts. I am almost afraid to state
hem. They seem incredible on the
face. Yet they are facts,
America's Advance.
Do you know that when the war
broke out We had only between six and
eight disable airplanes in the country,
though the airplane was an American
invention? Germany is reputed to
have had $50 airplanes and 1000 pilots,
80 seaplanes and 20 pilots. 80 Zeppe-
Inns and so pilots. OF the United
States I say between and because
when one was not out of whack an
other was. and OF those 6 or s, espe-
c!aliy those with good engines, some
were loaned TO the War Department
by private individuals for use on the
Mexican border.
To-day, what? In spite OF our boot
ing AT the Liberty motor $4,000 such
engines were ordered for use in the
war and almost 10000 were delivered.
These will now be used largely for
mail work.
When the war broke out you could
almost count on one hand the Ameri-
cans who could operate a flying ma
chine. To-day We have almost 5000
airplane mechanics in France alone,
| We have thirty flying fields in the
United States, seven special training
schools, 10000 aviators and 49,, 600
men in some stage of training for avi-
alton. That is, We have more flying
men to-day than we had soldiers be-
| fore the war
or, to put IL differently, we had over
| 5000 aviatorG on the wing in France,
5000 on the wing in the United states,
| 1000 trained ready for machines 3d.
600 in process Of being trained and of
mechanics. officers and extra helpers
| from 10000 to 10000. We have thirty
one balloon companies. S29 war ball
| looms, 35J army air squadruns.
New Industry of Aviation.
! but Yesterday we were wailing and
re!teratins in frantic Mysteries to high
| heaven that in spite Of having appro-
| priated SG40.0O0.O00 for an airplane
army we had only one plane actually
on the fighting front. To-day we read
OF 140 airmen having gone in Ameri-
can planes on a long range bombing
expedition over Germany. In three
months our American fiiers downed al
most 600 German planes.
Three months between our howl Of
woe and our incredulous jubilation
The nirmen may not have been saw
ing wood and saying nothing, hu
they have been humming in high
heaven and saying nothing.
Before the war it Is a question /
there were 1000 skilled workers EN-
ployed on planes and engines in all tn,
United States. Certainly there wer,
not more than three plane plants o
the first rank as distinguished from
motor engine plants for planes in thi
country. day in one airplane plan
alone covering seventy-two acres II
Buffalo are many thousands Of EN-
ployees. In one engine plant 70
planes alone in New Jersey are 800
employees, and in the three other lead
ing airplane plants are not less thai
5000 skilled employees.
Put II differently: In one airplan
plant alone to-day are more slIille,
a.Iplaue workers than there were me
chanics in all the shipyards of tn
United States before the war. Doe
that sound as IL our airplane pro
gramme had stalled or would stall az
ter the war?
| There are at least eight airplan