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Show VA Is -.v-v?1 (a&WjM Ly$L 'ffiwrL 'h 7" H mo'JsJj Uw ?J Sidelights and searchlight ml m AM V I ON PUBLIC MEN ANO EVENTS -J ' Ni5 ' Plans for nn American "Zeppelin." Washington, Jan. 24. Tho first American "Zeppelin," which tho Navy Department is now planning, Is a subject of hen Interest in tho Army and Navy national capital circles cir-cles generally. Uinnor has It that tho ovact measurements meas-urements and a detailed description of tho Gorman super-cppelln, ro-cently ro-cently Brought down In Essex, England, Eng-land, nro In tho hands of American authorities nnd that tho first American Ameri-can military dirigible may show sov-oi sov-oi al features of Germany' latest model, with at least one great Amorlcan Improvement. Tills particular German super-Zeppelin super-Zeppelin was C80 feet long and 72 foot across the beam. With Its six ' 240 horsepower engines. Its 'crow of v A, about twenty-two men, guns and all, i!r It weighed only fifty tons loss than a single twelve-Inch gun on an American warship. Tho secrot of Count Zeppelin's success In building this warship of tho air so light, English engineers say, Ilea In tne wonderful construction construc-tion of its skeleton framework thru Its myriad of aluminum girders and hoops. Wonderful as this Is, American Ameri-can engineers say thoy can go tho Germans ono bettor. That Is In the secrot process known only to certain American manufacturers for producing pro-ducing finer aluminum alloys. Theso proposed Improvements, which aro characterized as nothing less than startling, will, It Is said, enable America to surpass tho German Zeppolln both In speed and carrying carry-ing power. Tour nations nro responsible for tho aluminum airship. Moro than a century ago, Sir Humphroy Davy, of England, first advanced tho theory that thero must bo a motnlllc baso In clay. Woollier, a German, later was tho first to. succeed in extracting extract-ing tho motnl. A French metallurgist, metallur-gist, Dovillo, by namo, so modified and improved Woehler's process ns to mako aluminum a purchasable commodity, tho prlco being thon ?90 a pound. Rut It remained for nn American, Charles M. Hall, a student stud-ent nt Oberlln College, to discover in 188C, tho process of producing aluminum by means of olcctriclty, which mado possible tho production of aluminum on a commercial scnlo. Tho lead America thus gained In tho production of aluminum has been maintained and tho group of aluminum alum-inum alloys known ns Lynlto Is today to-day tho finest aluminum produced anywhere While popularly known nB "tho stuff thoy mako cooking utensils out of," aluminum has many and varied commercial uses. Tho flno aluminum alumi-num alloy, known as Lynlto, Is used extensively In autoYnobllo motors and for many other parts, where, through throu-gh reduction In weight,' It Weds an Immense saving In gasoline, tiros and tho general pounding to pieces of the car previously resulting from heavy castlron construction. Tho use of this construction In automobile, one automobile engineer engin-eer has said, makes it possible to take 1000 pounds weight off a car and still glo tho carv an equal amount of strength and even moro power. Thus a 4,000-pound car Is reduced to 3,000 pounds. Experiments Experi-ments aro now bolng conducted to ascertain tho exact saving of tires and gasoline. Tho substitution of lynlto pistons nlono promises to revolutionize re-volutionize nn Important featuro of tho automobiles Industry. Small as tho piston In tho motor may bo, It makes 3,000 crank shaft revolutions a minute 3,000 starts nnd 3,000 stops, and tho substitution or this l light, strong metal lias Increased the speed greatly and lessened tho shock and wear on motors. It Is said that, owing to tho advance ad-vance mado by American manufacturers manufac-turers In aluminum construction, Secretary Daniels has decided not to undertake the construction of the Zeppolln in tho Washington navy yard, as first contemplated, but will let the contract to private organizations. |