South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1918-07-01
Other Editors Than Ours
LIBERTY WINGS.
BY Theodore vi. Knappen.
In the New York Tribune \


Dayton, Ohio.-We darting through space at 80
miles hour when we drove through a heecy cloud
six thousand feet above Dayton didn't know then
but Howard Rinehart the pilot, told after
That cloud was a eymbol
In Washington the day before an areonautical "au-
thory" had called aside give me grave counsel
in this manner: Don't let them fool you have rea-
to believe that no Liberty motor has ever been in
the air yet" Then he told how good aviation
motor could be made by machine processes In the
presence OF authority 1 dumb.
The thunderous buzz or the mighty motor that was
projecting through the air at a rate at which
few had flown before was the answer
We were shooting through the cloud of ignorance re-
sarding the Liberty motor The reucence OF the signal
corps, the abilities enemies OF the motor
and the we'll known difficulties that have been en-
countered in its production have created generally
believed legend of the failure Liberty motor
Seeing is believing. The lesend was being demolish-
better than miles a minute.
The motor that developing this speed was lust
plain Packard production Liberty motor No. $40
Three or four weeks ago it pile OF about 1000
parts. These parts had been quickly together
Detroit rushed 10 Dayton. placed in De Havand A.
and the composite climbing stairs of
skies faster than the finest handsome motor the
derful machniss of France, England and Italy have
produced.
And they said it couldn't be done
The wiseacres telling public that after
all the Liberty motor would develop speed that it
is only mediocre creation best, but here We were
shooting through the blue in a faster
any German has sped horizontally in a single
and faster than OF the allied lighters have
ever flown in action.
The enormous power OF the Liberty motor in pro
portion to its weight has given tVo-seater
and Outright the very pursuit machines for
failure develop which there has been so much
criticism. This is another chapter of
has enshrouded the Liberty motor II is the most
powerful flying motor the world has yet developed
can climb with unprecedented rapidly in the right
sort OF plane and it overhaul run away from
any II gives tVo-seater plane every advant
age single scatter in the matter 81 quick
maneuverab ility.
greater than its merits a 8 the man
OF its production by machines II thereby solves
the problem OF supply. The time Is comparatively
near hand when the six factories that are now at
work will De able 10 it the rate OF
500 day 1880 month. II took many years
TO develop quantity production OF automobiles. The
OF attaining quantity production Of Liberty mo-
tors performed in less than a year
Perhaps IL might have been done sooner. II was
believed that could be The disappoint-
ment the Liberty motor neither in the motor
nor in the time taken 10 attain produc-
ton. but only the failure 10 fuIhu the
prophecy. We have done wonderfully but not so
/ wonderfully foretold. aircrafters into
outer darkness II YOU will for their SHORTCOMINGS
prophets give them just OF praise for the
actual achievement
made. quantity production passed the
great DaytonWri5ht factory, there they mskins
planes BY quantity production methods match the
machine made motors.
What the prophets wrote has been fulfilled.
Their chronology was poor. but their vision was
! clear.