Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 64.djvu/392

388 ride around to breakfast or afternoon teas. He is now finishing his No. 10, the omnibus, which is 157 feet long and 28 feet in diameter, with a motor of 46 horse power. Fares are to be charged for by the pound of passenger when it comes out next spring.

Emulators of Santos Dumont there have been that have come to grief. Mr. Roze built in 1901 a catamaran consisting of two twin balloons, which, although 148 feet long, failed to raise their own weight serviceably. Mr. Severo built in 1902 a navigable balloon which was so injudiciously constructed that the car broke away in the air, and the inventor was killed as well as his engineer. Later in the same year DeBradsky built a navigable balloon equipped with a gasoline motor located so near the vent for the gas that the latter took fire, exploded the balloon, and the inventor and his engineer were killed, thus for the second time verifying the fears of the experts who discountenanced this combination.

Some meritorious projects have been published but not yet carried out. Among these may be mentioned that of Mr. Yon, now deceased, and that of Mr. Louis Godard. The latter project was for a balloon 180 feet long and 36 feet in diameter, with two steam motors of 50 horse power each. It was expected to attain a speed of 30 miles per hour.

One navigable balloon which was built this year, that of the Lebaudy brothers, has achieved a great success. It is 185 feet long, 32 feet in diameter, and is equipped with a gasoline motor of 40 horse power. It has beaten the speed of Santos Dumont, having on many occasions, it is said, attained 24 miles an hour.

There is also a navigable balloon being built in Paris by Mr. Tatin for Mr. Deutsch, the donor of the famous prize. This is 183 feet long, 27 feet in diameter and is equipped with a gasoline motor of 60 horse power.

Besides these there are said to be a number of navigable balloons either being built or proposed in France. They are those of the Marquis de Dion, of Pillet & Robert, of Girardot, of Boisset and of Bourgoin, but there is no telling how many of them will materialize.

These are all French balloons, while there are in England the balloon of Mr. Spencer, 93 feet by 24 feet with nominally 24 horse power; of Mr. Beedle, 93 feet by 24 feet with 12 horse power, and that of Dr. Barton, now in construction, with dimensions of 170 feet in length, 40 feet in diameter, and equipped with a number of aeroplanes and three gasoline motors of 50 horse power each. It is a question whether the weight of the aeroplanes will leave sufficient margin to lift 150 horse power.

The ultimate practicable size for balloons is not yet known, but the mathematics of the subject are now tolerably well understood. The larger the balloon the more speed it can attain, and it is possible