Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 34, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 18 February 1918 — Page 2

EVEN THE CHILDREN WEAR GAS MASKS IN REIMS

The clouds of asphyxiating gases with which the Teutons drench the allied lines are no respecters of persons, •o even the little children in the districts close to the fighting lines must wear gas masks to protect themselves from iHun frightfulness. The tots in this group on their way to school in Reims are all provided with masks.

AIR FEATS OF THE LAFAYETTE MEN

(Walcott, Since Shot Down Over German Lines, Tells of Comrades Daring. MAKES OWE OF 10,000 FEET Aviator Reaches Ground Safely Although All the Wires on His Machine Are Loosened Spend Holiday In Air.

Washington. —Word pictures of the work of the members of the Lafayette Squadron and other American aviators In France are given in letters which Dr. Charles D. Walcott, secretary of the Smithsonian institution, has received from his son, E. S. Walcott, whose airplane fell “somewhere behind the German lines” along the western front. The allusions to the work of the American aviators contained in these letters are all the more Interesting at this time in view of the fact that the men about whom Walcott wrote have just been commissioned in the American air service on the recommendation of General Pershing. Doctor Walcott has received a dispatch from Paris informing him that ■his son fell within the enemy lines December 12 while fighting three sin-gle-seaters, after having demolished an enemy two-seater, and that his fate is uncertain. Inquiries are being made ;to ascertain, if possible, from Germany whether young Walcott was seriously Injured or not. In a letter dated November 13, in response to an Inquiry about Campbell, an aviator from Chicago, who was reported lost, young Walcott wrote as •follows: “Campbell was in the Lafayette Escadrille, and they are a member of the •same group as Squadron 84, so I have asked them about him. He was on a patrol with another chapthey attackicd some Boches, and when it was over •the other chap was alone. Campbell was brought down in German territory ■and so reported missing. I believe the chap he was with has seen and talked 'to Campbell’s father or some close relative since. “Another chap named Bulkely was brought down in similar circumstances about the Ist of September. Ten days ■•ago w’ord was received from the American embassy, that he had communiseated with them, a prisoner in Germany. “There are many similar cases where men brought down with crippled machines, or wounded, escaped destruction by a miracle. The only sure tiling is when a machine goes down in Iflames or is seen to lose a wing or two. . “For instance, there are two officers tin the group who are in the best of health and daily workings Several (months ago they were on patrol tojgether and collided in the air. One cut the tail rigging completely off the other plane, and then they 'separated, one plane without a tail land the other machine with various iparts of a tail mixed among the cables land struts of one side of his machine. (They both landed in France, one on his (wheels,- followed "by a capotage, or •somersault turnover, .the other quite completely upside down. Then a term •in the hospital, and back they are again. “Kerifieth Marr, an American and a ; frlend of Pete’s, had the commands of iboth his controls cut in a combat, the .•rudder and elevator, leaving him nothllng but the aileron, the lateral balance control, and the motor. He landed with •only a skinned nose for casualties, and igot a decoration for it Dives Vertically 10,060 Feet. “Another chap, iii an attack on captive balloons, dived for something like |IO,OOO feet vertically and with full moitor on, thereby gaining considerable •speed, as you can imagine. He came : right on top of the balloon, shot and, 'to keep from hitting it, yanked* as roughly as he could, flattening out v his idlve in the merest fraction of a second. Imagine the strain on the machine! When he got home all the wires had several inches sag in them; the metal connections of the cables into the struts and wood of the wings ! had bit into the wood enough to give the sag. “Machines are built to stand Un-

mensd pressure on the under side of their wings. In some acrobatic maneuvers I was trying the other day I made mistakes and caused the machine to stall and then fall in such a way that the full weight was supported by the upper surface —by the wires which in most machines are supposed merely to support the weiglft of the wings when the machine is on the ground. “Yes, the Spad is a well-built machine, the nearest thing to perfection in point of strength, speed, and climbing power I’ve seen yet. Of course, it’s heavy, and that’s why they put 150-230 horse power in them. The other school, that of a light machine with a light motor, depending for its success on lack of weight rather than excess of power, may supplant the heavier machine in time; I can’t tell. “Yesterday there was a review here in honor of Guynemer, and decorations for the pilots of the group who had won them. Three Americans received the Croix de Guerre —members of the Lafayette Escadrille. Lufbery, the American ace, carried the American flag presented to the escadrille by Mrs. McAdoo and the employees of the treasury department, besides the two aviation emblems of France. He was called to receive his decoration for having in the course of one day held seven combats, descended (six) one German plane in flames, and forced five others to land behind their lines, (which means that he is officially credited with one—his thirteenth —and that the other five, though probably brought down, do not count for him because there were not the necessary witnesses required by the French regulation.) “Aviators are not very military. The chief of one of the escadrilles was commissioned to command the mechanics, who are plain soldiers with rifles and steel helmets, for the occasion. He is a bit of a clown and amused the entire gathering, kidding with the officers. The pilots of each of the five escadrilles were in more or less formation, most of them with hands in their pockets, for it was chilly, and presenting a mixture of uniforms unparalleled in its heterogeneity. Every branch of the service represented endless personal ideas in dress. Spent Their Holiday in the Air. “Because of the occasion, repose had been granted to the entire group for the afternoon, another group taking over our patrols. So that after the review every one had the afternoon to

AN AIRPLANE CAMERA

TJrfs type of camera which no doubt will be used by American aviation corps men for reconnaissance work is attached to the airplane and Is operated by the pulling of strings or the pressing of buttons. The camera is almost automatic, as everything can be set in advance and the entire operation of taking the picture is the pressing of the button or the pulling of the strings. The camera makes an almost perfect view of the terrain and will be invaluable in the reconnaissance work of the army. The camera is loaded with plates and a number of pictures can be taken successively without additional work. A British royal flying corps man is in the machine.

THE EVENING REPUBLICAN, RENSSELAER, IND.

waste —-a sunny day, which is quite unusual this month. Within a half hour every machine that was in working order was In the air, forming into groups and then off for the lines, just looking for trouble —voluntary patrol, they call it, Which opened my eyes a bit as to the spirit in the French aviation service after three years of war.’’ In another letter, written December 1, young Walcott says: “I tried to give you some Idea of the strength of a Spad in a letter a while ago. At home people speak of a factor of safety, meaning the number of times stronger the machine is than is necessary for plain flying. The Spad is made so that a man can’t ‘bust’ It, no matter what he does In the air—dive as far and as fast as he can and stop as brutally as he can, it stands the racket. Of course, motors do stop, and if it happens over a mountain range—well, that’s just hard luck. “Have had a few patrols since last I wrote. One at a big height—4,ooo to 4,500 meters, considerably above the clouds, which almost shut out the ground below ; a wonderfully beautiful sight, but beastly cold —and a couple when the clouds were low and solid. The patrol stays at just the height of the clouds, hiding In them, slipping out again to look around. If it stays below the enemy antiaircraft guns pepper It whenever near the lines, and at a low altitude that is rather awkward, so the patrol shows Itself as little as possible. “It's lots of sport to try to keep with the patrol; be behind the chief of patrol, see him disappear, and then bump Into a fog bank, a low-hanging cloud, and not see a darn thing, Then dive down out of the cloud, wondering whether the other guy is right underneath or not; dart out of the cloud and see him, maybe 500 yards away, going at right angles. Then back up and turn around fast and give her the gear —full speed to catch up—and so on. See a Boche regulating artillery fire, start to maneuver into range, and, zip; he’s out of sight in the clouds, and the next you see he Is beating it far back of his lines. Not very dangerous this weather, but lots of fun.” In a letter from the front, dated November 30, the following passages occur: Yesterday was Thanksgiving day, and, praises be! the Lafayette bunch invited me and my partner to dinner, or rather to the feast. They have the most remarkable chef. Soup and fish prepared the way for a most remarkably big bird called the turkey, barricaded by chestnuts. And then a plum pudding—a regular American one —and as good as I ever tasted. I sat at the table with Captain Thenault, Lieutenants Thaw and Lufbery, and some Frenchmen. “An early patrol this morning, despite low clouds. Lots of fun it was, ducking in and out of the clouds, keeping from hitting other machines in the clouds and from losing the patrol. Saw a few Boches, but all they had to do was to slip up out of sight when the patrol approached. Every now, and then their antiaircraft guns would blaze away a bit, but there was lots of room for them to miss and for us to leave the place they were shooting at.”

USES OVERCOAT AS BANK

Negro Proves Ownership to Garment by Disclosing Location of Savings. New York. —Monroe Smith, a negro, insisted in the court of special sessions that he had not stolen the overcoat of Leslie Davis while he entertained Davis in his home. Smith said the coat was his own property and he had.a right to pawn it. “I can prove I own the coat,” said Davis. “There is nine dollars sewed in the lining.” Promptly the justice ordered the lining ripped open and the money was found.

KILL DEER TO REDUCE COST

Chippewa Falls Park Board 7 Forced to Slay Because of Cost “-•n of Keep. Chippewa Falls, Wls.—An'lncrease in the herd of deer at the public park in this city and an increase in the cost of food for the animals, has caused the park board to have five of the deer slain, and the venison placed on sale in one of the markets. Permission to kill .the deer had to be obtained from th* state conservation commission

HOME TOWN HELPS

PLANNING FOR SPRING WORK Wintry Days Aid In Mapping Out Landscaping to Be Done Very Early in the Season. The dreary days of winter hause many to reflect on how much more beautiful they could have made their grounds the past summer, and already plans are being laid for landscaping the coming spring. All landscape gardening should express some thought or feeling and a deep study of the site and surroundings should reveal upon what specific foundation the theme should be built. If for a home place for a man well along in years’, retired from business, it should have an air of quietness, seclusion and retirement. This conception would be most easily realized on a country place of some’ acres and would more closely conform to nature than any other type. Fortunately this would wreak few changes in the natural aspect and would closely approach the ideal In landscape or natural gardening as distinguished from other and more formal or picturesque styles. Landscapes may also be bold or gay, or even florid —perhaps .lurid, says a landscape gardener; but when they get to be too bizarre it passes out of the realm of landscape gardening, which is to either build close to nature or merely assist nature in touching up bare spots or insufficient and unsatisfactory effects in the existing wildness. When the process is finished it should present a picture, a perfect picture. The true test is: Will the artist come to paint or to photograph? For, Insofar as you attract or repel him, just to that degree have you succeeded or failed. Harmony must also be the keynote, a picture is not composed of a collection of interesting objects or features except these are in harmony. Neither will change in topography or mere planting make a picture, for good pictures are strong in character and this is possible only in a broad comprehensive plan that first considers and treats the landscape as a wholeall effects, grading, planting, even buildings are, or should be, but incidentals I

USE FOR THE OLD MATERIAL

Second-Hand Lumber and Other Building Necessaries Can Be Picked Up for Little Money. One of the most interesting and profitable ways in which one who contemplates building a house and wants to economize in doing it can spend an hour or more is in one of the establishments devoted to the buying and selling of second-hand building materials. There is one which is particularly Inviting to “prowlers.” It faces on two streets In an out-of-the-way part of the city and consists of a number of old buildings with yards between, in which there is an overflow of old" statues, columns of porches, metal spouting, garden seats and other “junk.” One could pick up many a thing here that could be incorporated in a new-old house, but inside the buildings there Is a greater wealth to choose from. Here one may find hardwood floors, as good as new, takeq from houses that have been torn down to make way for larger and more modern structures. Here are beautifully carved mantels of marble and wood, Borne of them having cost hundreds of dollars, which can be purchased as cheaply as a commonplace one that w;as turned out from the factory yesterday. There are doors and, casings of beautiful wood, bookshelves with glass doors, ceilings, cabinets of all kinds, sideboards, windows, bath tubs and all bathroom fittings; slnks v tubs and all the paraphernalia for the kitchen. It is hard to think of anything that is needed in the construction of a house that is not here or of anything that is here which would not fit in some kind of house.

Next Transportation Problem.

That aerial rapid transit lines connecting the roofs of the world’s large cities may be the next transportation • problem to demand solution was predicted at a recent convention of owners and managers representing the bulk of the big building Interests of this country. Congestion of traffic on street and elevated lines is not the only consideration leading to this conclusion, remarks Popular Mechanics Magazine. .Time and convenience are also essential. Plans for connecting adjacent skyscrapers by means of aerial tramcars running on cables and operated by haulage cables, such as are used to connect several peaks of the Alps, have been proposed to meet this problem.

Lighting Problem.

The importance of the lighting problem in the home is being more and more recognized by the architect and the . builder, and greater attention is being given to design thap ever before. For many years past there has been a tendency among the designers of buildings to bring about a pleasing harmony between the architecture of the new home" and the style of lighting fixture to be installed, and with the entrance of electricity as a necessity and hot a luxury, this Idea is rapidly growing.

BUILDING FREIGHT CARS TO RELIEVE SHORTAGE AND SPEED WAR MUNITIONS

The photograph shows a scene in the great freight car assembling yard) at Los Angeles, Cal. Due to the great shortage in freight cars this new plant has been opened! to turn out cars at a rate never even Imagined. The method is the same a® in the assembling of automobiles. The trucks are first lowered into place, then the frame is set on top of them. Following that, the sills are set up and! boarded and the car Is painted and finished. This remarkable 4 assembling! is accomplished at the rate of one an hour, and there are scores and score® of crews working in the yard.

ENGINE IS UNIQUE

Powerful Locomotive of New Class Built for Western Roads. QUITE PECULIAR IN DESIGN Necessary to Dwarf All Protuberances on Top of Boiler to Permit Operation Beneath Low Bridges and Tunnels. ” Most striking is the appearance of a powerful locomotive that has lately been constructed for the Denver & Rio Grande railway. Although it is one of the largest engines of the single-ex-pansion, nonarticulated class, its chief interest to the layman doubtless lies in the peculiarities of its design. The boiler is of such- height that it was

necessary to dwarf all of the upper protuberances in order tb permit operation beneath low bridges and through certain tunnels. In building it, the sand boxes were Installed at the sides, Instead of at the top, the steam dome was built exceptionally low and broad, the smokestack was given a height of only a few Inches, and the bracket supporting the bell was attached to the front of the smoke box above the headlight. The engine, which is one of several of a type being placed In service, is thoroughly equipped with devices designed to facilitate operation and lighten the work of the enginemen. A mechanical stoker, actuated both by steam and compressed air, feeds pulverized coal to the fire. In cases requiring hand stoking, the door of the fire box is opened and closed by power. There are no large, heavy levers for the pilot to manipulate, for .compressed air again is brought into play. Alone, the locomotive weighs 428,500 pounds, and , with the tender, 624,900 pounds.

USE LOCOMOTIVES FOR HEAT

Large New Jersey Plant Saved Necessity of Shutting Down by Two Railroad Engines. A large manufacturing plant at Arlington, N. J., was cold as a refrigerator one winter’s morning, and there was no immediate rellefSn sight. It seemed as if the three eight-hour shifts of 3,000 employees might have to be dismissed. There was no time to install a new heating plant; besides that would have been too costly. The superintendent wanted just enough steam to furnish heat for a few hours. Two Erie/ locomotives were placed on a side track, a steam line connection was made between the hot water pipes and the steam dome of each engine, and the plant was heated at an expense of SSO for the day, which was the cost of the engine and fuel. Valves •were placed to enable the source of steam to be controlled. Cold water was supplied to the tenders by an underground pipe. Popular Science Monthly.

ONE CAR IS ASSEMBLED IN AN HOUR.

New Locomotive Is Unique.

NOVEL TYPE OF LOCOMOTIVE

Engine Introduced In New Zealand' Can Travel Farther Than Compound Without Taking Water. A new type of locomotive has been employed on the Woodvllle-Taihape section of the Main Trunk railway of New Zealand during the last three months, according to a recent issue of the British (government) Board of Trade Journal. The first of the class was constructed at the government workshops in Dunedin for service on the Canterbury Plains some two years ago. After severe grade tests, which proved successful, four of the new engines were sent to North Island some months ago and have been used on the Welllngton-Taihape section with good results. It appears that this engine can travel farther than the compound engine without taking in water, and that it has a greater hauling capacity.

LARGE ENGINES FOR CANADA

New Government Locomotives Haul Double Loads Formerly Pulled by Older Types. Prior to the Introduction of new engines the heaviest locomotives in use on the Canadian government railways weighed 232,000 pounds. The “Mikado” engines weigh 283,000 pounds and the “Santa Fe" 514,000 pounds. The maximum speed for the freight trains on the system is 25 miles per hour. The new engines have been designed to conform to this schedule, but to pull double the load hauled by the older types. It is said that the “Santa Fe” engines Can handle 48 loaded cars and carry them over a 1 per cent gradient at the standard rate of speed. The “Mikado” has been, constructed especially for the long grades ?f the national transcontinental division of the Canadian government railway system.

USE SUPERHEATERS IN JAPAN

Adoption on Japanese Railways Dates From 1911, When German Engines Were Put In Use. Japan has adopted superheated locomotives extensively. Occidental practice has been applied here, although it Is interesting to note that about 1902-03, when the Schmidt superheater was coming Into general use, a smokebox superheater was manufactured for trial purposes in Japan, but the test did not develop the desired results. The adoption of the Schmidt superheater on Japanese railways dates from 1911, when some engines ordered from Germany were put in service on the state railways. These were followed by other locomotives ordered fropi America. Because of English Influence the continuous vacuum brakes were adopted, and are nowJn general use. —Railway Age Gazette.

MORE BUSINESS BY EXPRESS

Increase of 25 Per Cent Is Noted, Yet Earnings Are Expected to Show a Decrease. The express companies are handling' 25 per cent more business this year than last, yet their earnings are expected to drop. This Is said to be due to increased cost of materials and supplies and higher wages. The commandeering of baggage cars by the government is also given as a reason for the slump in profits.

Car Efficiency.

Railroad car efilclency In the United States increased 8 per cent In 1919 over 1913, the previous beat year. This 1W equivalent to an increase of 192,000 cars over the total 2,400,000 now la use on our railroads, according to tha Railway Age Gazette, which also estU mates the mileage for each car a day in the fiscal year, 1916, as 27 mile*. At the same time the average car os parity has risen from 38 to 41 ton*.