Evening star., 1937-05-10

Government, and its export was pro-
hibited by law, except in special
cases in which the President had
to win consent Of the Secretaries of
War, Navy and Interior. There is
enough helium in the United States,
Bureau OF Mines experts testify, to
supply existing passenger traf7ic for
$50 years. In Amarillo. Tex, are
50,o00,000 acres Of natural gas
fields, with potential production Of
24,000000 cubic feet OF helium per
year. This rarest Of gases averages
in these fields l.8 per cent Of tho
natural gas supply and there Il. ac-
tually,, an average production OF
l0,000,000 cubic feet per year. Fiji
teen years ago it cost $4,000 a cubic
foot. but today it can be produced at
! cent per cubic foot and increased
demand for production might have
reduced the price.
United States Offer Rejected.
The fear of war which hampered
the free sale OF helium affected both
the United States and Germany.
The United States placed restric-
tions on its export, but President
Hoover is understood to have signi-
fed his readiness to release helium
to Germany for use in commercial
dirigibles. Germany, however, did
not accept this offer, possibly be-
cause Germany did not want to adapt
its dirigibles to the use of gas which
might not be obtainable during war
time.
These are thoughts to be borne In
mind among the charges, loose
and until now totally unsupported,
that the Hindenburg disaster was
caused by sabotage. Two commis-
slons, a German and an American,
will investigate those charges and
until they report the layman must
withhold judgment. One can only
remark that the incendiary bullets
the So-called Buckingham ammu.
nition-Which alone might have
brought down the ship as q private
act OF war, are extremely difficult
to obtain, and that a shot at the
SA1Ap AAA OIL oll DOi 1lllSO Will ODs
servers would have been tremen-
dously hazardous.
The accusation of sabotage arises
wholly from the fact that hundreds of
thousands OF persons in the world to-
day have intense reasons for hating
the German regime. From the fact
that 10000 men, women and children
have been driven from their homes
and that hundreds Of thousands more
have had their existences threatened
and have been humiliated for no fault
OF their own or for political viewpoints
which, when the great airships were
built, were perfectly legal opinions
IN Germany The resentments are
comprehensive, the threatening let
ters are also comprehensive, though
not pardonable, as way OF hamper
Ing German trade. But it would take
more than outrage or even hatred to
move = man TO perpetrate so vicious
crime against the innocent Of all
countries and the Germans themselves
do not believe that this is the ex-
PLANTATION.
Nevertheless, and in a far more
profound sense, the destruction of
the Hindenburg was an act of
sabotage. For the peaceful world
today. the world that seeks to Join
hands in the perfection Of greater
technologies, that seeks mutual en-
richment and mutual understand
ing by all means of physical, INTEL
lectual and spiritual intercourse, Is.
indeed, being sabotaged by the
fear and the threat OF war. The
Hindenburg represented the world
and for that reason our eyes lighted
when We saw its silver grandeur in
the sky. 1t contended with another
world which might make 1t at any
moment an object of terror and Of
hatred. Therefore it few with q dan
gerous gas Of home production; there
fore the restrictions and the red tape
which prevented technique, genius and
character from combining in q COM
plete safety.
CCopyright. 1871