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About The North Platte semi-weekly tribune. (North Platte, Neb.) 1895-1922 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 22, 1918)
THE 8EMLWEEKLY TRIBUNE, NORTH PLATTE, NEBRA8KA. "7wJ (NEW AKPL ANE5 PROMINENT IN MANY STATES ;iI5Y were Just airplanes two yenrs arc), but the demnnds of war Imvo stimulated tho evolution of aircraft so Intensively that in the laHt few months at least throe different spe cies of airplanes have been devel oped, and these are as distinct from each other as condors, pigeons and swallows. The monoplane bus gone the way of tho hlKh-wheeled bicycle; It Is seen no more In tho air. And In stead of just airplanes, wo Imvo bombing machines, reconnaissance machines and battleplanes, each a specialized type designed for & specific duty. Then, .In n class by themselves, there are tho hydroplanes, writes Arthur Benlng ton In the New York World. Bombing machines arc the heavy artillery, tho condors, tho Percherons, the bulldogs of tho air. Itcconualssance machines aro tho Intelligence tcrvlce, the carrier pigeons, tho hunters, tho pointers, of tho ulr. Battleplanes, which combine tho duties of light' cavalry ami machine-gun squads, nro tho swnl ows, tho thoroughbreds, tho terriers, the wnsps, of tho nlr. "You -might ns well usk mo whnt kind of horso t consider the finest," replied an Italian aviator when auked for his opinion on tho llnest airplane. MIt all depends upon what servlco you want your piano for. For dropping bombs on cities thero Is nothing like our own CnpronI ; tho llnest climbers C personally have encountered wcro German ma chines; the swiftest llyer tip to date Is tho Italian S. V. A.; and I think tho Austrlans have tho most reliable liydroplones." Of courso this wns merely tho aviator's personal opinion, and It Is given hero not nt all becauso of Its valuo as a Judgment on tho several makes of machines, but merely to Ulustrato tho diversity of typo and tho wisdom of not confusing tho differ ent types In ono's mind. , For n bombing machine tho prlmnry require ment Is ability to carry a heavy load. Then, In order of Importance, como: Medium speed (80 to 100 miles an hour) ; climbing power (13,000 foot) ; defensive armament and a radius of action from CO to 100 miles. Load-carrying power Involves strength of construction, great stability, and en gines that shall develop tremendous power nnd yet bo us light ns possible. Types of the bomb ing machine aro the Italian Capronl, tho British Hondloy-Pnimer, nnd tho German Gothn a III and Frlederlchshafen 0. II. Tho reconnaissance mnchlno must have room for nt lenst two persons tho pilot nnd tho ob server; installation for wireless apparatus and cameras for taking both still and moving pictures; fuel capacity sufficient for three or four hours of lllglit; fairly high speed sny from 11(5 to 120 miles an. hour nnd nblllty to carry n macblno gun with which to defend Itself if attacked. Tho camera Installation makes great stability neces sary. Types of this machine aro tho Italian , Pomlllo S. V. A, nnd Snvola-Pomlllo ; tho French Volsln, and tho Germnn Brandenburg, Albatross O III nnd Avlutjks 0 III. Speed nnd climbing power are tho cssentlnls In a bnttlepluno. Tho latest types of this sort tho Itnllnn S. V, A. nnd a now model of Pomlllo; tho French Nlouport and Spad, and tho Gormnn Al batross D I and Albatross But can enrry only ono man, who acta as pilot, observer and gunner. Most of them Imvo onlj ono gun, whlchjs not mounted on n swivel "but is .oTTTntegrnl part, of rtho ongino itself, for, ns It discharges Its bullets between tho, blades of a propeller revolving so irnpldly that it cannot bo seen, it must bo perfect ly synchronized with tho motor, otherwise n bullot might strike n bindo of tho propeller. Thcso machines aro nothing but flying cannon. They carry no passenger, no cameras, no bombs, noth ing except a single oporntor nnd tho ammunition ;or tho gun. ' The difference between reconnaissance and bat tleplanes nppear slight when set down In figures, 1ut then ovory fraction of an inch affects tho fipecd nnd stability of an airplane. Somo idea of the differences may bo obtained from the dimensions, and these can bo given only approximately except In ono or two enses. It is, of courso, impossible to describe our own Ameri can planes, so the comparisons that follow nro "hueed on foreign mnchthes. Ono of the smallest of the battleplanes is n 'now Pomlllo which has not yet been tested In America. Amoricnn representatives of tho Ansnl lo compnny of Genoa, which makes tho S. V. A. iunutber very small our docllno to make Its di mensions public nt present, but Oapt. Alcssnndro Pomlllo, designer of tho machines that bear his name, has no objection to it being stated tlmt tho Pomlllo which flew from Fortress Monroo to Mlneola and which soared over New York on Lib erty Loan duy, has a wing, spread of approximate ly 38 feet. This, however, Is a reconnaissance nutchlno. Tho ono that is coming Is a bnttleplnno and Its wings havo a sprend of only n fraction over 80 feet. Both these Pomlllo machines havo exactly the snmo motor, a 200-horBe-powcr Isetta Fraschlnl, but tho greater slzo of tho one already hero enables it to carry a passenger and cumeras, while tho smnller ono can carry only ono man. Tho reconnnlssanco Pomlllo makes 120 miles an "hour; n scout Is wild to havo made on testa In Itnly 100 miles nn hour. So fnr as ofllclnl touts tiro known, tho S. V. A. holds tho record for speed. This is tho mnchlno Hint mndo tho sensational flight from Turin to Home, 300 miles, in two hourH nnd fifty minutes, jivernglng 130.8 miles an hour. Tho French Nlou port machines aro unofficially reported to havo made as high ns 175 miles nn s ' Tho dimensions of tho aormnn Albatross D I nrc known oxnetly, having been published by the French mllllory authorities niter measurement of omturcd nvuMnes. Its wlngi hnvo n sprend of 207 feet: !! fuselngo Is 2tf.O feet long; Its speed l I'M mUmim hour and It can climb to 18,150 feet. It enrrli- two rapid-fire discharging through '-"ALBATROS t VE' - ' - , ' , , . ; .$!;:. : '- v. ' s SMA f - :- x - - -' -Alt y' .i A tho propeller, and 100 cartridges for each gun. Itcturnlng now to tho bombing machines, tho types best known are tho German Gothn, which Is vlrtunlly a copy of tho British Hundley-Palmer, and tho Italian CnpronI. Tho dimensions of tho latter cannot Ijq given, for tho machines are In several sizes, the smaller being biplanes, tho largest being it trlplnnc. Those of tho Gothn G III aro known. It Is a blplnno with a wing spread of 77.7 feet, and fuselage 40.38 "feet long; It can go 00.8 miles nn hour, ascend 14,850 feet and carry n load of 1,320 pounds of 'bombs besides nt least two men. It was necessnry to put three planes on Jho larger Capronl, In order to carry the immense weight nt high speed. It has three fuselages, each with Its own motor, tho ono In the middle being much shorter than the others. Tho right and left fuselages havo propellers In front, tho middle fuselago has u propeller behind. The mo tors nro 240-ltorse-power Isotta-Fraschlnl. Tho Capronl nro slow machines only about 1)0 miles an hour and Is capable of lighting single handed against the little wasps of tho air. They aro unique in that any ono of their motors suf fices to propel tho mnchlno; therefore, all threo must be stopped by bullets before It Is disabled. In this last respect Its only rival is so far ns known nt present writing tho great German Gothn, which has two motors, either of which will propel It. Ono of tho most striking facts about the evolu tion of air craft since the war begun H thnt'tho monoplane hits virtually disappeared. Quito early In tho war tho French Nlouport grew an extra pair of wings. The principal renson why two pairs nro better than one Is tlmt lifting power In the nlr depends upon the aren of the wings. Now tho Gotha's two pairs of wings are 77.7 feet long nnd 7.320 feet wide, which gives nn area of &09 square feet for each pair, or 1,138 square feet as tho total wing surface. If this were all Ut a single plane, the wing would havo to be about 153 feet long If they hnd the same breadth as now; and tho leverage of tho wind on their ends would ho so great that the machine would be absolutely un manageable. ' For this same reason the biggest of the Capronl, which Is by fnr tho largest thing In the nlr, has three planes Instead of two. The Gothn is, however, more than n bombing machine; It Is a verltabto aerial battleship. Over It bow on a swivel Is n machine gun that can shoot forward over n horizontal arc of more than 180 degrees, and over n perpendicular arc of about 240 degrees. On Its fuselage, behind Its wings nnd buhlud the propellent, Is another gun that Rhoots astern over a horizontal nrc of nearly ISO degrees and over a perpendicular arc of about 100. Besides theso two guns the Gothn bus a third, mounted on a pivot In tho body of tho fusel ngo nnd pointing downwnrds, hrough a port hole In tho bottom of tho fuselnge. By means of this last gun It enn defend Itself from enemy ma chines nttncklng It from below and behind, n po sition In which nil other machines but tho Gothn are vulnerable. Tho Germans have been most Ingenious In de signing their airplanes for maximum effectiveness of gun fire. Their slnglc-scntcd Albatross D. I and D III, Fokker D, Hnlberstadt Roland D. nnd Ago D hnvo two fixed guns firing abend through the revolving propeller, nnd theso mnchlnes nro able to carry 2,000 cartridges for each gun. Their two-place rcconnnlssance mnchlnes Albatross, Bumpier, Avlntlk and L. V. G. have one fixed for ward gun firing through the propeller nnd n sec ond lighter gun on n swivel mounted behind the planes nnd firing to the rear over nn angle of ISO degrees. Tho French have ndopted this system for tho airplanes of similar type. The most Ingenious armament, however, Is thnt of the now Pomlllo scout plane. It is not ndvls able to betray the secret of this plane nt present, but It is permissible to say that the single pilot controls five guns, nil shooting abend simultane ously, and thnt four of these are so perfectly concealed that oven a photograph does not show where they are situated. It is In reality a live barreled Gntllng gun on wings. This mnchlno Is now on Its way to America, If Indeed It has not nlrcndy nrrlved. -Talklig with the Italian aviators now hero about motors, 1 found them deeply Interested In the new Liberty motor, but none would venture to express nn opinion about It. "I could not Judge of Its value," said one of them, "until I hnd taken it up 5,000 or 100,000 feet In the nlr and watched how It behaved there. The Flat compnny, which has been making mo tors ever since these were first Invented, needed two whole yenrs of experimentation before, it wns able to turn out a satisfactory airplane motor. Soveral times It thought It hud It; several times it offered n motor that performed perfectly under tho most exacting laboratory tests, but each time it failed when tested In the rarefied nlr of 10,000 feet nbove the earth. After two years of trial tho Flat people produced the wonderful motors now so extensively used. The Isottn-Fraschlnl company hnd n slmllnr experience. We nil nd mlro tho perfection of mechnnls'm of tho Liberty motor nnd wo nil hope that actual flight will prove It to bo as perfect! as It looks, but no ono of us would venturo to glvo n verdict on It until he had flown with It nt all possible altitudes." Theso men, all of whom are youths who havo had thrilling experiences In nctual warfare, are fond of discussing the probabilities of a flight across the Atlantic. Any ono of them would bo willing to nttempt It, but they dlsngree ns to tho machine most likely to bo tho first to mnko It. Some say tho giant CnpronI, which would need at leust 24 hours, and probably 40, to fly from New foundland to Ireland (the shortest route), while others sny some such machine ns the S. V. A., ns it could make tho flight easily between sunrise and sunset. In tho one ense it would be like n glnnt condor relying on the power oO Its wings to sustnln It n dny and a night In flight! In tho other case It would bo a sen gull or a swallow relying on terrific speed to enrry It over by daylight. NAMING OF WARSHIPS. The law requires that all flrst-class battleships "shall be named for states and shall not bo named for any city, plncc, or person until the names of the states have been exhnusted," nnd n recent article by Walter Scott Meriwether in the Rud der points out that Secretary Dunlels' recent or der assigning the nnmes of New Mexico, Califor nia, Tennessee, Mississippi, nnd Idaho to tho flvo superdreadnnughts now under construction com pletely exhausts tho list of unused names. In selecting nnmes for the flvo buttle cruisers au thorized by the Inst congress, recourso wns hnd to nnmes which never should hnvo disappeared from the navy register Constitution, Constella tion, Saratoga, Hanger, nnd Lexington. Tho fa- mdus old frigates Constitution and Constellation, now preserved ns relics of the wooden fleets of u century ago, will bo known us "Old Constitution" nnd "Old Constellation." The present Saratoga was formerly tho New York, tho armored cruiser which served ns Admiral Sampson's ling ship. EVERY MAN TO HI3 LAST. i Because you are on excellent carpenter, de clnred Socrates In his famous Apologia nt Athens, It does not therefore follow that you ore tho wisest of men. Yet the tendency persisted nnd persists, nnd Alexander Cruden, n great maker of concordances, wns found offering his services to the British government, over 150 years ago, as "corrector of mornls," Just ns many rich business men In Enghuid today aro offorlng their services to tho government "under tho conviction thnt they can do In ono dny whnt nn expert can bnrely iimnngo In three. Christian Science Monitor. IN MONTENEGRO. There's n neeullnr Riinorstltlnn in Mnnt nnntfA whoro the peasants bellevo that tho Iron kettle chain over tho hot flroplaco will not hent nt nil on Christmas night, as nt nil other tlmos, but rcmnlns cool to the touch. To explain this thoy clnlm tuat u similar cunin nung over tho fire built tho floor of tho stnblo nt Bethlehem, and thnt tho birth of Christ, tho vlruln mother umsnmi for support. It beenme cool at hor touch lest iiuru tuo Bninur mum. Senntor James Hamilton Lewis la a "Rnlnbow division" nil by himself. No, this Isn't Intended to be pcrsonnl, although, of course, Senntor Lewis Is rather famous for his whiskers and' his haberdashery. Senator Lewis Is u "Kulnbow" In tlmt his enreer has been spread over u large part of tho United Stutcs. Ho has been n dis tinguished son In more different states thnn nny other public mnu today. "J. Ham" Lewis is forty-eight years old. He was born In Virginia, raised nnd schooled In Georgia, went to the University of Washington, hop ping way across the continent, beenmo: a member of the legislature thero; later became congrcssman-at-largo for, tho stato of Washington; moved toj Chicago, and, nfter holding oevcralj public offices, became United States; senntor from Illinois. If that Isn't a' real "Rainbow" much mistaken. enreer, wo aro very. J. Hamilton Lewis' hadn't been practicing lnw in Washington very long before he was elected to : the upper house of the legislature. After becoming congrcssmnn-at-largo he was boomed by the Northwestern Pacific const states for vice president at the Democratic convention of 1000. Senator Lewis also-has hnd n military career.. He was an officer in the Spanish-American war, being n member first" of the staff of General Brooke In Cuba and then of Gen. Frederick D. Grant in Porto Illco. Ho also was accredited a member of the commission which settled the Alaskan boundnry disputes between the United States and England. AVOWED ENEMY TO KAISER It has been said thnt tho kaiser has somo friends whether they in tend to be or not In congress, but ono thing Is certain, Senntor Henry Cubot Lodge of Massachusetts is not one of them. Senator Lodge hns been one of the bitterest enemies the kaiser has had to reckon with. He hns been strongly nntl-Germnn since the begin ning of tho world war In 1014. The power of a United Stntes sen- 'ntor Is great enough In itself, but Sen ator Lodge's power In the senate Is added to by reason of his nsslgnment to three of the most Important commit tees, those on foreign relations, flnnnco nnd naval affairs. Henry Cabot Lodge was born In Boston May 12, 1850. He graduated from Harvard college In 1871 and from Hurvard Law school In 1875, with the degree of LL. B. In 187G he was given tho degree of Ph.D. by Harvard uni versity. He served two terms In tho lower house of the Massachusetts legislature, for being literary by disposition, ho was popular In the Bean City. After several terms In congress, Massachu setts elected hlra to the senute. That was In 1893, and ho has been thero ever since. If It will encourage the kaiser any, It Is permitted to announce that Senator Lodge's term of office will end on March 8, 1023, which, doubtless, Insures his being on the job until the end of tho war. j AMBASSADOR IN HARD POSITION The neutrality of Carrnnza In Mex ico Is generally viewed as tantamount to a pro-German attitude, and tho po sition which Senor Ygnnclo Bonlllas, the Mexican ambassador, occupies in Washington Is thereforo Increasingly, aimcuic. 'nero is tniK or Jt'resiucnt Wilson losing faith In Carranza and Carrnnza losing hiff power with the Mexican people and of Felix Dlnz hav ing embraced a pro-American, pro entento policy as a preliminary to starting another revolution. Tho Mexican ambassador knows, that tho future is certain to be shaped by tho policy which Carranza pursues townrd tho German legation In Mex ico City. Reports In Washington ar that the German minister now vir tually controls Mexico's foreign policy. Will tho ambassador tell Carrnnza frankly whnt his confreres in Wash ington are saying and thereby make his own personality a dominant flguro in the situation? Or will ho follow tho old school of carrying out Instructions nnd nothing more? So far It Is impossible to say. WANTS GREAT AMERICAN ARMY One of tho strongest advocates of military preparedness of tho present Sixty-fifth congress, nnd of many con gresses preceding thnt, Is a fighting Cnllfornlnn yes, n Cnllfornlnn, al though born at Kuppenhelm, grand duchy of Buden, Germnny. This Call fornlnn Is Representative Julius Knhn, ranking Republican member of the military affairs committee of tho house, nnd representative of tho Fourth Congressional district of Cali fornia, which means the city of Son Francisco. Through eight different congresses, not Including tho present one, Repre sentative Knhn fought for prepared ness. And now that tho United States Is at war with tho country where he wns born nnd whero his pnrents wore born, Representative Knhn Is still found fighting for n greater nrmy and for greater effort to win tho war. Congressman Knhn hns drawn plans for an nrmy of Americans not less Hkft. 4,000.000 strong. Ho realizes that we nro up against a serious business and ho proposes that Unci Sum shall make such glguntlc preparations now us will Insure this serloi business being brought to us speedy nnd as victorious a conclusion as possible.