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Aviation History
1929
1929 - 0477.PDF
MARCH 7, 1929 In this respect it can hardly be disguised that a magnificentopportunity has been missed in the reconstruction of Regent Street. • b POSSIBLY the following excerpt from the Observer ofFebruary 22, 1829, just a hundred years ago, may bring home very vividly to the present generation the progress whichhas been made in speed during the past century :— Locomotive Engine.—On Friday week the new locomotiveengine, belonging to the Bolton and Leigh Railway Company, christened the Lancashire Witch, descended the inclinedplane to the Bolton coal depot, moving at the rate of 8 m.p.h., with eight loaded wagons attached. The engine thenascended the inclined plane, a mile in length, one-half of which ascends nearly an inch in a yard. On this part theengine travelled at the rate of 6 "m.p.h. The result far exceeded the expectation of the engineer. I WAS greatly interested by an article on " British AirPosts " which appears in the January number of The Air Post Collector—a useful little monthly published by R. E. R.Dalwick, of Dorking, specially for that new "and rapidly- growing species of humans implied in its title. This article,which I gather is written by Douglas B. Armstrong, whose name is familiar to readers of FLIGHT, gives particulars ofthe various early air mail efforts carried out in Great Britain— some of which, no doubt, many of us have either forgotten orhave never even heard of. They include the " Daily Graphic Balloon post of 1907, the Blackpool-Southport experiment of1910, the " Daily Mail " air posts of 1912, and the London- Windsor-London air posts of 1911. The details of thelatter are most interesting, especially as regards the prices— the highest, £15, being quoted for the Royal Purple London-Windsor card with postmark No. 2. SIR CHARLES WAKEFIELD, at the Lyceum Club gatheringthe other night, once again entered the lists as a prophet, Sir Charles expressing the belief (and probably hope) thatthe Schneider Cup would one day be won by a woman aviator—and, if so, 10 to 1 the honour would fall to a Britishairwoman. What a scene would cap such a happening. " THE Guild of Air Pilots and Air Navigators of theBritish Empire " is the excellent title now chosen by the pilots and air navigators in this country for the formationof an aviation body similar to the Company of Master Mariners. May a full measure of success follow this veryimportant departure. Is it a dream only or will time, backed by modern scienceand enterprise, bring into actuality the great Atlantic " Seadrome " scheme now seriously put forward by Mr.Henry J. Gielow, of the Incorporated New York Naval Architects, consulting architects to the Armstrong SeadromeDevelopment Co., of Wilmington, Delaware. The first of nine of these great seadromes (to be " buoyed " about300 miles out between New York and Bermuda), is to be constructed forthwith, the full set forming a " chain " toEurope via the Azores. Each " island " consisting of a steel platform, will be 1,200 ft. by 200 ft. wide at the end, and400 ft. at the centre, with a " top " some 100 ft. above the ocean. Each float will be manned by a crew of 43 men,and be equipped with a machine shop, hotel, restaurant, and wireless beacon. Naval engineers declare that the floatswill ride any waves up to 180 ft. in height with practically no motion. They will be anchored in place with greatchains 21,000 ft. long attached to specially designed sea anchors. It is a great undertaking. May it succeed. AVIATION already, whilst still in its early youth, hasamassed its mead of slang, but although a goodly number of its pet phrases have been recorded at various times, itwill take a few decades before such a bulky little volume can be got together as "Sea Slang," just issued by Messrs. SampsonLow, Marston Co., Ltd., compiled by Frank C. Bowen, in alphabetical order and priced at the modest figure of 3s. 6d.Its 154 pages are something to be wondered at, with some 16 to 20 old-timers' expressions and epithets, with explana-tory text to each, on each page—ranging from " A-Cock-Bill " to " Zopissa." And even then the compiler modestly statesthat the book ' is not by any means complete, and as yet only touches on the fringe of the subject " ! Yes, it will besome little while before aviation " slang," expressive as it is, can hope to surpass " Sea Slang." Ontario's Forest Patrol THE HON. WILLIAM FINLAYSON, Minister of Lands andForests of Ontario, discussing the work of the Forestry Patrol Service of the Province, claims that Ontario's efforts to copewith the forest fire menace are now meeting with unqualified success. In the older section of the forest-area, some 25,000,000 acres are under hourly supervision through the system ofwatch towers, and 100,000,000 acres are under daily obser- vation by means of the aeroplane patrol system. In 1923,he stated, when the present service was organised, 2,100,000 acres of timber were burned. In 1927 the area had beenreduced to 35,000 acres. EHHHH00H 13 H The Esher Effi- ciency Trophy: Sir Samuel Hoare awarding the Trophy, present- ed by Viscount Esher, to Flt.- Lieut. S. B. Col- lett on behalf of No. 601 S q . (County of Lon- don) Auxiliary Air Force. H El 13 H 13 B H m H 13 H H m H 13 H H 13 HE H H SHE
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