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ROM THE INCEPTION of Paradise in the human brain, the ambition of mankind has been to develop aeronautics; foreshadowed by Elijah in the flaming chariot, developed by Icarus in Roman mythology and lampooned by Darius Green and his flying "masheen."

What was the dream of our ancestors and the legitimate object of their ridicule it has remained for the twentieth century to prove feasible and practicable, and the aviators on Selfridge Field further to demonstrate to the complete satisfaction of the world. By the failures of yesterday do we achieve the successes of to-day, and the malpractice of aviation heretofore has made bases for practical aeronautic exploits in this day and generation.

There is one fault, however, that human nature is prone to indulge in, and that must be guarded against when achievement is made of some feat theretofore considered as either impossible or purely problematic: that is, ecstatic enthusiasm. This has its redundant efflorescence in the verbiage of reporters as depicted in one rhapsodic exultation, where the writer marked: "Captain Pond was simply reflecting an enthusiasm that was universal. The wonder over the landing of Ely rocked the Golden Gate!" Hitherto that feat has been left to temblors.

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Exultation and algebra have never been allied; scientific facts and a fine frenzy have always been incompatible. Therefore

in the analysis of the present truly marvelous feats of aviators, we must allow figures to dominate in lieu of fancy, and logic to usurp the fairyland of laudation.

This has not been done, for the projective poesy of fertile imagination, in considering the utility of aeroplanes in warfare has already equipped battleships with monoplanes or biplanes (without, however, designating where these novel additions to a vessel's equipment are to be stowed amid the already replete quarters) and divined a radical readjustment of military tactics and warfare. Already have flights of airships been conjectured as hovering over cities, in countries hostile to that whence this flighty fleet emanated, and dropping deadly and havoc-creating bombs amid the buildings and population, to the utter devastation and demolition of both. ready airships have been depicted gulling it above battleships and annihilating the unfortunate ship and crew by a vertical projectile carelessly dropped from the soaring monarch of the air and almost everything else. One delirious declaration was "that the landing of Ely's airship on the cruiser Pennsylvania was the most important event since Noah's dove returned to the ark with the olive branch." But just what relation the two events had in common the rhapsodist forgot to nar

rate.

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Even in a science so demonstrably prosaic and exact as ballistics, it has occasionally transpired that one was less liable

to injury in front of a gun at the time of its being fired than at the breech; of course there may arise patriots of the kidney of Quintus Curtius, who rode his horse into the chasm ostensibly to save Rome from destruction, or of Guy Fawkes, who was willing to be blown to smithereens provided Parliament were atomized also; but as a race, or genus, they are not prolific; wherefore the matter of aviators offering themselves as willing martyrs to achieve destruction to the enemy synchronously with an act of suicide to themselves, must be eliminated from any calm discussion of

It may be supposed that an aviator with an iron nerve, exalted patriotism, aeronautic capability and perfect command of his machine, is detailed to drop a few bombs upon a hostile vessel or navy. The bombs must necessarily be percussive, that is, must explode on striking a hard substance, for a bomb with a time-fuse could not be properly regulated in an aeroplane where the height, and consequently the time necessary to elapse between its detachment and explosion, could not be ascertained. Therefore the necessity for detonatory bombs or percussive shells. How

Ely in a Curtiss biplane.

the utility of aeroplanes in warfare either by land or sea.

It is only in recent years that rangefinders have been so scientifically accurate that so microscopic an object as a moving battleship becomes an easy target to the gunner on shore (who does not see the vessel at all); yet this deadly accuracy must be reckoned with by the anticipatory bomb-dropper; possibly to the deterring of his vaulting ambition. This is merely an annotation of the human, or timorous, view of the question.

the bombs are to be hurled against the enemy the conjectural strategists have not explained; possibly they are to hang like cherries from a limb, or the sword of Damocles by a hair, the hair or stem to be severed by the aviator at the psychologic moment; that is, if he has time to spare from the control of his airship.

The target may be assumed to be actually, or comparatively, stationary, but the projectiles are bobbing about like a parched pea in a frying pan, not perhaps individually, but as adjuncts to the motion of the