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Aviation History
1918
1918 - 1357.PDF
NOVEMBER 28, 191&- IT is a little curious to note that in the terms of the Armi- stice, although two thousand aeroplanes are specified, it has not commended itself to the authorities to ask for the surrender of any of the Zepps or super-Zepps. Is this a lapse, or an indication of the estimate of the value entertained of these inflated mammoths, for military purposes ? FOR a German helmet of the sixteenth century a nice round little sum of ^420 was paid the other day at Messrs. Glendinings' Auction Rooms, a figure which stands out by contrast somewhat broadly with the five-shilling Zepps which went a-begging a fortnight ago out Friedrichshafen way. THE muddle which maintains in regard to the question of damage caused by air raids being compensated for from Imperial funds, still seems to be meandering on, and last week in a memorial to the Prime Minister, the leaders of the various churches who have signed say that the acceptance of the principle of Government responsibility to make this damage good out of national funds satisfied the moral sense of the community, but the Government has only, as yet, given partial effect to that principle. Further this memorial " prayeth " that " As it is to be a condition of peace that our enemies are to pay for the war damage done to civilians we cannot think the Government will do other than give effect to your acceptance of the principle of national responsi- bility before we are immersed in the general election." The latter portion of this pleading does strike us as smacking somewhat of electoral " blackmail," but of course this could hardly be, coming from such a respectable quarter. __, A BILL has been drawn up by the London County Council for next session by which they seek to enforce the provisions of the .Metropolitan Railway Acts, under which the roof of the Temple Station as approached from Norfolk Street shall be a promenade and open space. Surely this, under modern conditions, is wasting a good opportunity. Why not make it an aeroplane landing station ? The idea opens up all sorts of possibilities and reminds one that there are a good many other stations of a similar character scattered through- out London. Think it over. THAT very admirable department of the Air Ministry, the Weather Bureau, is assuredly one which it is to be hoped the authorities will see their way, not only to maintain at its full present strength, but to elaborate to almost unthinkable capacity. What this will mean to commercial aviation is almost beyond figuring out at the present moment. It will be one of the greatest assets for favourable development which it is possible to conceive, especially within the next ten years or so, when there is so much to learn and map out in regard to the realms of the air. ' . .•'-.. AN " additional rule " in which the Air Ministry apparently are interested has been put forward by the Master of the Rolls to the King in Council, and has received his approval, for the disposal of documents which are not considered of sufficient public value to justify their preservation in the Public Record Office. We just wondered at first glance how the Air Ministry might be concerned in this, but it may • possibly be found from the suggestion that the whole thing has been held up, owing to the mind of the Master of the Rolls finding it difficult in reaching a decision on the future value of State documents, when at the present time the conclusion of legal arguments has been postponed in the De Keyser's Hotel case so that the Crown may have an exhaustive search made in the Record Office for any papers of early date which may indicate the extent of the Royal Prerogative to seize the property of a subject without compensation. These times, irrespective of legal and documentary evidence, ancient or modern, it would look more than ever as if these sort of bureaucratic ramps should be sent by the board as obsolete, as it is quite obvious from every point of view that it is neither by the authority or with the personal wish of His Majesty King George that such shocking confiscations of private property should be perpetrated in his name. A year or so ago when the ramp originally occurred we spoke plainly upon this point, as we do now. IT is to be hoped that the blank will be able to be filledin upon the next anniversary, in the " In Memoriam " notice which appeared in The Times on Saturday last, to an un-known pilot " shot down November 23rd, 1917, whilst AN INCIDENT OF THE KING'S VISIT TO THE FRONT.—Men of the R.A.F. line up on the roadside to cheer the King as he passes in a Rolls-Royce. 1358
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