Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1919-02-07
LONDON SAFE FROM HUN
LONG BEFORE WAR ENDED
dir Raid Dcfcnses Kept Bombing
Raiders Away From Brit
ish Metropolis.
BALLOON APRON SUCCESSFUL
If Invader Succeeded in Passing
Barragc, Beginning Far Out al
Sea. Defcnscs Near City Gave Him
Warm Reception.


Warm Reception.
LONDON. Fob. s.--It is now possible
to tell oof the intricate scheme OF de-
Tense which finally made air raids on
London so dangerous that the Ger,
more than three years TO perfect them.
but by last suin'nor they had reached
Whit Sunday raid of last summer
sixteen times after that, but London's
d"frnses from that time on secured
immunity. for the British metropolis.
london's defenscS, began far out in
vessels attached 10 tho liarwich patrol.
carried huge microDhones. by which
he sound Of The ra,d n5, machines. ~
MAS picked up. and the warning was
dispatched by wireless 10 the coast
to London. These vessels also carried
camel atrDlancS. light land MACHINES
which we're used effectively 10 inter-
c"pt the raiders on their return from
London.
BIG BoMBEnS HELPLESS
BEFORE LITTLE MACHINES
,htackcd by these nimblc little ma
chimes, the huge bombcrs which the
Belgium. so that not until they had
machines we're used to !nterccp; the
EeIgium SO that not until thy had
actually alighted could they count
The course tho enemy was following
IN making Tor The Thames estuary
lhe river was their only. means OF
guidance TO London by nlsht--was re.
Nealcd by the microphoncs at sea. ana
hdhitionai Inicrophones on land kent
s rny,sn,iiiaS their course, Gun stations
sprinElch all over the London defense
area. which began At the North Sea
wcre uSed 10 erect barragcs against
These barrages we're erected with :,
Eood deal OF nicely. IN the exac: path
~ which the sound of the raiders In
uiSa,Si 'h"ir approach. II was i'm
possible for the enemy machines 10
pHhcsratc the barragcs without run
and their usual procedure was 10 turn
aside In an effort 10 nvadc the bar
Races, ~ means OF a skiIrul use OF
needed into areas OF sky in which o,hr,.
dangers awaited them
LIGHT SCOUT MACHINES
INTERCEPT RAIDERS
thcse other dangers con-
sisted OF light scou; machines. armed
win machine guns, which were scnt
UP from the airdromcs in the London
i n II as x soon as 81 the rail- alarm came
british machines TO pick out ;hei-
opponents by sigh. without the help
OF the searchl!Ehts.
Once the searchl'chts wcrc f,s,o,o5
onto an enemy, however, the British
machines were able to signal bv c!oc-
t!ic bulbs on their wing tips TO the
u.
then stopped a: once in the area in
which the scarchiigh,s had r,cped mn
an enrny. and the enemy. usually n
tender mcrcies OF the ninible British
scouts
E,ea. deal OF Improvement was
! nado during the course OF the war in
the searchlights used in tho London
area. The small lights. throwing q
wnitc oean,. were soon found TO be
6feaSS ., tauit; owing 10 the inability
u
moonlight. This was finally overcome
by the use OF golf leaf as n covering for
me reflector OF tho saarchlights. and
INC increasinG OF the candle power OF
the light. The latest scarchligh.s used
IN the London area were great ma
SShlnes throwins huge golden beam
. They were found very useful on moon
/ hght nights. and helped apprcciably in
the defense of London.
ANOTHER TRAP FOR THOSE
WHICH PASSED BARRAGE
Enemy machines which succeeded in
threading the continual bArrages which
were erected in their paths. and which
succeeded In Guiding tho British ma
ch!neS sent up 10 trap them, met an
other trap as they ncared the metropoi-
itan area
These wcro the balloon aprons. whose
main duty VAS 20 keep the enemy at
a certain height IN order 10 prevent
the accurate housekeeping. which
can "aly be done from a low altitude
IL WouIu. oil course. have been possible
10 come down low over the metropolis
once the aprons were passed, but any
move OF ;his sort would have necessi-
,a 1 climbing again TO get out, and
climbing machines are reduced to
speed at which successful attack IS
comparatively easy
The aprons were formed by cables
attached 10 captive balloons wiki
enough other cables hanging from tho
main cable between the balloons 10
form heavy fence across an area
OF sky. 1t vas. of course. impossibIa
TO hoist complete nets to the attitudes
reached by the enemy, hut IL was soor
shown that single strands could he
successfully suspended from trans
verse cordnCe between two observa-
ton balloons without the balloons
budding together.
FIRST EXPERIMENTS MARRIED
by SERIOUS ACCIDENT
The first experiments of this sort
were made in Richmond Park, in Lon
don. and were married by an accident
which all but led to the abandonment
of scheme which afterward proved so