LIBRARY 
 
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 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. 
 
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 Received , igo 
 
 Accession No. 8315 / Clots No. 
 
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THE 
 
 COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 THE 
 
 CHASE-KlRCHNER AERODROMIC 
 
 S Y ST E M 
 
 OF TRANSPORTATION. 
 
 G. N. CHASE, H. W. KIRCHNER, 
 
 LIEUT. U. S. ARMY. F. A. I. A. 
 
 ST. LOUIS, MO. 
 
 FEBRUARY, 1894. 
 

 
 ft 
 
' 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER. PAGK 
 
 I. INTRODUCTORY 5 
 
 II. THE PRESENT SYSTEM 8 
 
 III. AN IDEAL SYSTEM 14 
 
 IV. THE AERODROMIC SYSTEM 16 
 
 Y. DESCRIPTION OF THE AERODROMIC SYSTEM . 24 
 
 VI. GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS 29 
 
 VII. ADVANTAGES OF THE AERODROMIC SYSTEM . 39 
 
 APPENDIX 43 
 
 The Press of Nixon- Jones Pig. Co. 
 215 Pine St., St. Louis. 
 
 83157 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 INTRODUCTORY. 
 
 Transportation is the greatest single interest in this coun- 
 try, except perhaps agriculture, and that is reciprocal. No 
 one condition would so completely relegate the world to the 
 dark ages as the entire obliteration of the present system of 
 railroads. So none can be conceived which would more 
 materially advance the interests of civilization than would an 
 increase of their present state of efficiency. 
 
 Speed is the present and future problem of railroads. The 
 pressure for a more rapid movement of passengers and freight 
 has become intense. It is a necessity of the fast age in which 
 we live, and it is felt by the management of every railroad. 
 The motive power is taxed to its utmost. Expensive and 
 important changes in the present equipment are suggested 
 to this end, but experience has shown that the wear and tear 
 is so great for higher rates of speed, that a faster service than 
 now, can be maintained only by a proportionate increase in the 
 
 (5) 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 tariff. And again, the risk of accident increases so rapidly 
 with the increase in velocity, especially on curves, that there 
 is also a limit of safety, as well as economy, to the speed rail- 
 roads may attain, in their desperate efforts to meet the 
 demands of shippers and the traveling public. 
 
 The successful railroad system of the future, is the one 
 which will fulfill these requirements, and do it at even cheaper 
 rates. It must have many advantages, for the railroads are 
 already built and they will continue to be used until their suc- 
 cessful rival shall leave only heaps of decaying rolling stock, 
 and "parallel streaks of rust" as evidences of their former 
 prosperity. 
 
 It is generally admitted that the limitations of steam are 
 practically reached, and with them those of speed and safety. 
 But whether the possibilities of speed with steam, upon a sur- 
 face track have been reached or not, every engineer upon a 
 fast train will testify that the strain of such service has about 
 reached the limit of human endurance. 
 
 The present railroad system is but the outgrowth of the old, 
 wagon idea, clumsy and cumbersome, with the center of 
 gravity far above the fulcrum. It is simple, but for high 
 speed it is inherently weak. The improvements made upon 
 the original conception consist, chiefly, in a better and more 
 economical application of the power, and consequent greater 
 speed and comfort. 
 
 The successive steps in the evolution of land transporta- 
 tion have been, from the rude cart, whose wheels were 
 fashioned from the trunks of trees, to the iron axle and wheels 
 with spokes and iron tires ; from the primitive path in the 
 forest, to the well built roads of the Romans, and so on to 
 the well-nigh perfect road system of Europe. From the first 
 attempts at steam locomotion, at eight miles an hour, with 
 strap-iron track laid upon wooden stringers, to a possible 
 sixty miles an hour with magnificent steel tracks and the lux- 
 urious Pullman service. From the dirt road to the polished 
 steel rail was one step ; from the steel rail to the French 
 chemin de fer glissant, where a liquid took the place of steel 
 with superior results, was another step ; and now from the 
 liquid to the air, from gliding upon water or oil, to gliding 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 upon the atmosphere, is offering only a suggestion in the line 
 of previous successful results, 
 
 In the following pages it is proposed to show that this idea 
 is a practicable one, the successful development of which will 
 have as great an influence upon the world, socially, politically 
 and financially, as have the telegraph and railway in the past. 
 
 The Concord coach is now abandoned for the locomotive, 
 and in the days to come it is just possible that we may see the 
 locomotive in its turn relegated to the rubbish pile, or pre- 
 served in our museums as a monument to mark the path of 
 mechanical progress. 
 
 It is generally conceded that electricity is the coming mo- 
 tive power, or, at all events, that the days of steam's monopoly 
 are numbered. The science of electricity, so far as its appli- 
 cation as a motive power is concerned, is of very recent de- 
 velopment ; yet its strides in this direction have been unequaled, 
 and its possibilities are only hinted at. The predictions made 
 for this young giant are not ridiculed as were those of steam 
 sixty years ago. The world has grown wiser. 
 
 The successful use of the alternating current for transmit- 
 ting force through long distances, opens up avast, and as yet 
 untrodden field. It signalizes a new epoch in civilization. 
 The development in the art of transmitting power by means 
 of the continuous current, though restricted in its range, 
 leaves little to be desired. Many and fruitless have been the 
 efforts to apply electricity economically to the unwieldy 
 system of existing railroads. Success can only come with a 
 complete change in the method of construction. The inven- 
 tive genius of the world, spurred on by the splendid oppor- 
 tunities of the future, stands ready to do its part. 
 
 We take this opportunity of acknowledging the assistance 
 and personal courtesy of Dr. John E. Davies, Professor of 
 Mathematical Physics in the University of Wisconsin, and 
 Professor S. P. Langley, Secretary of the Smithsonian Insti- 
 tution. Professor Langley's work, entitled " Experiments in 
 Aerodynamics," has been of great assistance. It forms one 
 of the "Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge," published 
 by the U. S. Government. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 THE PRESENT SYSTEM. 
 
 The present system of land transportation did not spring 
 into being in its existing state of efficiency. It is the result 
 of the inventive genius of two generations of the entire civil- 
 ized world. Every department of mechanics has contributed 
 its best results. Compare the first successful locomotive, the 
 first coach, the first rude track, with the luxurious service of 
 the present day. Sixty years ago, three hundred thousand 
 spectators with the Duke of Wellington as master of cere- 
 monies, witnessed the modest performance of the little 
 "Rocket." It has taken all this time and unlimited pluck 
 and money to bring about the perfection of to-day. Progress 
 has kept pace with the requirements of the times, until now a 
 network of steel rails connects the remotest parts of civiliza- 
 tion with its great commercial centers. 
 
 The effect of a good system of transportation is seen in 
 (8) 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 the phenomenal development of our country. It has every- 
 where stimulated its products to a wonderful degree, and has 
 made possible the very general distribution of our population. 
 The equilibrium between supply and demand is more evenly 
 maintained, and the distribution of population about commer- 
 cial centers is made nearly as the square of the speed 
 attained. Thus, if a person must walk, and have but one 
 hour to reach his business and another to return, he is re- 
 stricted to about 28 square miles, in which he can reside, his 
 place of business being its center. If he use a horse, this area 
 is increased to 200 square miles. If he travel 25 miles per 
 hour, this circle is increased to nearly 2,000 square miles. 
 If by any chance he could travel 125 miles per hour, it is 
 48,087 square miles. Traveling at this rate, professional men 
 could conveniently have office days in cities a thousand miles 
 apart, and the value of suburban property wou]d marvelously 
 increase. 
 
 The greater value of all products of the soil and mines at 
 a distance from the place of production or manufacture, is 
 another benefit, familiar to all, due to a good means of trans- 
 portation. One example is sufficient: the radius of a circle 
 in which corn can be sold profitably, if dependent upon 
 wagon transportation, is 125 miles, while with railroads it is 
 about 1,200 miles. 
 
 By the census of 1890, the railroad mileage of the world 
 was 370,281 miles. In the United States alone, 163,197 
 miles, over 44% of the whole, or one mile for every 357 
 inhabitants. At the close of 1892 this had increased to 
 175,223 miles. Its growth in this country has been marvel- 
 ously rapid. In 1830 only 40 miles were in operation. In 
 1840, 2,755 miles; in 1850, 8,571 miles; in 1860, 28,916 
 miles; in 1870, 49,168 miles; in 1880, 87,724 miles. In the 
 next decade the mileage added, nearly equaled that built in the 
 previous fifty years ! 
 
 The importance of this vast system of transportation can 
 scarcely be realized, and only a rough estimate of the work 
 done can be made. The whole number of passengers 
 carried in 1892 was over 560,000,000 ; the number of 
 tons of freight, about 1,000,000,000, transported in one 
 
10 THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 million freight cars ; the total number of miles run by trains 
 300,000,000. The total gross revenue for 1892 was $1,200,- 
 000,000, and the net earnings, $125,000,000. The railroads 
 give employment to over 800,000 men. Vast as this seems, 
 eminent authorities calculate that in the near future develop- 
 ment of this country it will support one mile of road for every 
 ten square miles of territory, or more than double its present 
 mileage. Those who think that we have about reached the 
 limit of development in this direction, will find food for thought 
 in the fact that were the whole country as well provided with 
 railroads as New Jersey, the United States would have nearly 
 a million miles of road ! 
 
 The average cost of railroads, including equipment, in the 
 United States, is not easy of determination, but the best 
 authorities agree in placing it at $50,000 per mile in the West, 
 and $75,000 in the eastern States. This would represent 
 nearly $10,000,000,000 invested in this class of securities in the 
 U. S. alone. In England and some of the continental coun- 
 tries of Europe, this cost has reached $180,000 per mile. In 
 the United States, they were built quickly and at the least 
 possible cost, adapting themselves to the needs of a rapidly 
 growing country, so their standard of excellence was at first 
 low. Improvements are however rapidly made, when the 
 increased traffic warrants the extra expenditure, so that 
 in the older States the existing competition has resulted 
 in an efficiency in the trunk lines, which, as before re- 
 marked, has practically reached its limit in speed and safety, 
 comfort and economy. Yet their managers feel the ever- 
 increasing pressure for a still faster service. Steel cars, 
 more powerful and steel-encased locomotives, making to- 
 gether a light, vestibule train, offering a minimum atmos- 
 pheric resistance; steel ties, cut stone road-beds and the 
 abolition of grade-crossings, are some of the more important 
 and expensive changes which have been suggested. With 
 these is predicted an average speed of sixty miles per hour 
 between large cities. 
 
 There are, however, two other conditions necessary in order 
 to make the present system perfect, and these it can never 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 11 
 
 hope to attain ; from the very nature of the construction they 
 become impossible. These are the abolition of grades and 
 curves. With a radically different construction, while it may 
 not be possible to dispense with grades, it is possible to ren- 
 der them inoperative as obstacles to high speed, and the 
 straightening of the track follows as a necessary sequence. 
 
 The great weight of modern railroad trains must be lifted 
 through the vertical distance of the grade, by a greatly 
 increased adhesion of the driving wheels to the rails, due to 
 the weight of the engine. Experience shows that this limits 
 them to a 4% grade, and introduces corresponding degrees of 
 curvature. These are the greatest obstacles which they have 
 to combat, and the advantages of a level track, and tangents 
 between points, are fully appreciated by their projectors and 
 managers. 
 
 To emphasize this truth a few figures upon this subject are 
 given. 
 
 Mr. Steele's report of the Reading road gives the following 
 results, based upon five years' observation. The resistance 
 of a curve of 400 ft. radius, is double that upon a straight 
 line. Grades of 25 ft. per mile reduce the capacity, (a level 
 road being taken at 4,000,000 tons per annum), to 1,900,000 
 tons; grades of 50 ft. reduce this capacity to 1,200,000 tons. 
 The cost per ton per mile ranges from sixty-five hundredths 
 of a mill on a level, to one cent and seventy-three hun- 
 dredths of a mill for grades of 55 ft. per mile, while the net 
 load per engine falls from 437.2tons on a level to 119.1 tons 
 on such grade. Thus we see that the capacity of a road 
 varies under these conditions from 4,000,000 to 500,000 tons. 
 
 If we compare two roads, each one hundred miles long, one 
 level and the other with grades of only 25 ft. per mile, and 
 the requirements of each road amounted to 2,000,000 tons 
 per annum, the difference in favor of the level road is 
 $600,000, or the interest on $10,000,000. But as the level 
 road can perform twice the service of the other, this is 
 doubled, and at the same prices the level road can realize 
 $1,200,000 net profit on its 4,000,000 tons, interest on 
 $20,000,000, while the graded road is carrying its 2,000,000 
 tons at net cost. 
 
12 THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 This computation of Mr. Steele's is based upon the carry- 
 ing of coal at a low tariff, but it is equally applicable to all 
 classes of freight, and, to a certain extent, to passengers. 
 
 When the Pennsylvania road was first built it was reckoned 
 that every mile of distance saved was worth $53,000, or $10 
 per foot. Upon the same road, a degree of curvature was 
 valued at $50, or $18,000 for each circle of 360 degrees. This 
 is corroborated by Trautwine, who computes that one degree 
 of curvature costs as much to operate as 8.7 ft. on a straight 
 line, or that $55 can be spent to save one degree, and that if 
 the operating expenses of a road are annually $3,000 per 
 mile, $2,000 of it, or 38 cents per foot, is for motive power. 
 
 If it cost $40,000 per mile to build a road, and the cost of 
 maintenance and operation be $10,000 per mile per annum, 
 $206,666 can be spent to shorten it one mile. If, however, 
 these computations were based upon the present traffic of the 
 Pennsylvania road the above $53,000 would become $433,000, 
 and the value of grades and curves saved would increase in like 
 proportion. 
 
 In striving for greater comfort and luxury in passenger 
 traffic, the non-paying tonnage has been greatly increased. 
 The average number of passengers carried per train in the 
 United States during 1890, was but 41, less than the capacity 
 of a single coach, and the average freight haul, per train, 
 was less than 180 tons, or 10 tons per loaded car. 
 
 An empty Pullman car weighs 40 to 50 tons. By the 
 official report of the Lake Shore R. E. it is shown that for 
 every passenger carried in these cars, five tons of non-paying 
 weight is transported. In England, where the original cost 
 of the roads and equipment is three times greater than in 
 the United States, less than 5% of the total weight of pas- 
 senger trains, and only about 30% of the freight trains, or less 
 than 17% of the total tonnage is remunerative ! 
 
 These are facts few outside of railway managers ever think 
 of. They realize that if the freight carried could be augmented 
 by even a small fraction of this seemingly necessary non-paying 
 tonnage, their receipts would be very materially increased. 
 Besides, this great weight, in every way, increases the wear and 
 tear of the rolling stock, the bridges and the road-bed. This 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 13 
 
 deterioration rapidly increases with the speed. Fast trains 
 are also a source of great expense both directly and indirectly, 
 and this expense increases very nearly with the square of 
 the velocity. All trains on the road near fast trains must be 
 kept waiting on sidings with steam up, and their crews are 
 often idle from this cause one-fourth of the time. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 AST IDEAL SYSTEM. 
 
 ERIAL NAVIGATION represents an 
 air ship capable of being floated at 
 any convenient height, rising, falling, 
 turning, starting and stopping at will 
 and landing with safety ; capable of 
 being propelled at great speed, suc- 
 cessfully resisting air currents, in 
 short, breasting all the sudden meteor- 
 ological changes of the atmosphere ; 
 crossing continents and seas, carrying 
 passengers and freight, with economy and speed, in comfort 
 and safety. This would seem to be the very acme of rapid 
 transit ; this has been the dream that for a century has en- 
 gaged the attention of man, who has gained almost god-like 
 control over the forces of nature, and yet we are little nearer 
 the realization of his hopes in this direction than a hundred 
 years ago. 
 
 Experiment has long since demonstrated the fact that it is 
 possible to construct a vehicle possessing the ability to rise 
 in the air, carrying a considerable load and capable of being 
 propelled. The obstacles which have so far baffled man's in- 
 genuity, are his in ability to control the machine under even the 
 most favorable circumstances, and his failure to provide en- 
 ergy enough to propel it to any considerable distance. This 
 latter difficulty cannot be overcome by any known method of 
 storing up potential energy in a structure which is designed to 
 sever all connection with terra firma, and in which levity be- 
 comes of primal importance. While it would perhaps be rash 
 (14) 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 15 
 
 to predict the failure of all future efforts to overcome this 
 obstacle, it is fairly safe to affirm that the securing of a rea- 
 sonable safety will delay indefinitely the full realization of 
 Aerial Navigation. 
 
 Among the more scientific of the experimenters in this direc- 
 tion, the attempt to navigate the air by means of a machine 
 specifically lighter than air has been abandoned. 
 
 Flight is not a function of levity, but of weight and power. 
 Man, if he ever fly, must closely imitate the flight of birds. 
 The fledgeling after one or two abortive attempts, adjusts its 
 motions successfully and naturally to the accomplishment of 
 perfect flight. The rate of vibration of its wings, and the in- 
 clination of their surfaces to the ever-varing direction of the 
 wind to its line of flight, are instinctively changed with the 
 rapidity of lightning. Given a machine which is capable of 
 performing all of the essential functions of a bird in flight, it 
 is extremely doubtful if the coolest human intellect could 
 ever be trained to control it safely under all the conditions 
 and circumstances which it must inevitably encounter. The 
 apprenticeship of a pilot or locomotive engineer would be 
 trifling in comparison. 
 
 The conditions seem too many, or rather the known quan- 
 tities are at present too few, for a satisfactory solution of this 
 problem, pure and simple. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE AERODROMIC SYSTEM, 
 
 AIKROAD securities are 
 already being declined as 
 investments, by shrewd, 
 level-headed men, for the 
 avowed reason that they 
 foresee the coming of- a 
 new system of transportation which will compete directly 
 and successfully with the present railways for the carrying- 
 trade. The system which will arouse all of its rivals' 
 powerful antagonism, must be capable of competing with 
 them in all departments, for the railroads are already in the 
 field ; but so were the stage-coaches sixty years ago, and 
 the railroads can scarcely hope to escape the effects of that 
 inexorable law by which they profited in the past, the 
 survival of the fittest. 
 
 In engineering everything is practically possible, and the 
 inventors, while disclaiming any disbelief in the ultimate 
 scientific solution of the problem of Aerial Navigation, have 
 contented themselves with the solution of a much simpler 
 one. It has occurred to them that by omitting several of the 
 conditions of such a perfect system, another might be evolved 
 which will be commercially valuable, and at the same time, 
 vastly superior to the present system. 
 (16) 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 17 
 
 The problem which the inventors have undertaken to solve 
 is the construction of a machine, which will be able to run 
 upon the air at great speed, guided by a track in absolute 
 safety, and supplied with power by a means now available. 
 
 The application of a hitherto little understood principle 
 of flight to transportation, is novel,* but from the scientific 
 data upon which it is based, it can scarcely be considered 
 experimental. 
 
 The Aerodromic System of Transportation is, in brief, a 
 compromise between the present railways and aerial naviga- 
 gation. It eliminates from the former problem, the obstacles 
 to great speed, namely, grades, grade -crossings, and lateral 
 curves, and from the latter those of starting, stopping and 
 guiding. Like Antaeus, by its contact with earth, it draws 
 from it an inexhaustible and economic supply of power; 
 difficulties in the way of flying, which, for the present at least,, 
 seem insuperable. 
 
 The work performed by a bird in flight is small, espec- 
 ially in the act of soaring. That both the angle and the 
 friction in this species of flight are very small, may be in- 
 ferred by the great distance covered by the buzzard without 
 exertion. If the bird, with an initial velocity of 22 ft. per 
 second, soar for one minute, and, as is not unusual, cover in 
 this time 1,200 ft., with an average velocity of 20 ft., and a 
 final velocity of 18 ft. per second, then the energy lost is 
 equal to one-half the bird's weight multiplied by the difference 
 of the squares of the velocities, or ^^ in which M is the mass 
 of the bird. This lost energy is equal to the work necessary 
 to raise the bird's weight through ^~ ft. equal to 2.484 feet, 
 g being the acceleration due to the force of gravity. 
 
 It is evident from this, that the bird can sail down an incline 
 of 11 ft. per mile indefinitely, and that, too, with a speed 
 vastly in excess of that possible by the expenditure of the 
 same amount of work in any other means of transport. The 
 bird in this case is simply an animated aerodrome. Aided 
 by gravity alone, the bird, in this case of nearly hori- 
 zontal flight, can never exceed its initial velocity ; whereas, 
 
 * This application is fully protected by United States patents, recently issued. 
 Patents in Canada and the principal foreign countries have been applied for. 
 
18 THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 the machine has a method of traction, with the solid earth as 
 a fulcrum, whereby its speed may be increased up to some 
 limit indicated by considerations of economy. If the bird 
 increase its initial velocity, it must do so by work expended 
 against the movable fulcrum of thin air. The machine has an 
 evident advantage. The problem would seem to be simply 
 one of proportion. 
 
 During the years 1887 to 1890 inclusive, investigations were 
 made at the Western University of Pennsylvania under the di- 
 rection of the Smithsonian Institution, by Prof. S. P. Langley, 
 its secretary, to determine, among other things, the accuracy 
 of hitherto accepted formulas relating to the science of Aero- 
 dynamics. Perhaps no one better fitted by reason of scien- 
 tific training than he could have been selected. The results 
 of these experiments, published two years ago, startled the 
 scientific world, which until then had unquestioningly accepted 
 the empirical deductions made upon the subject by Newton, 
 Gay Lussac, Navier and others. 
 
 As an example of the erroneous deductions of such eminent 
 authorities, says Prof. Langley in substance, the report 
 to the Institute of France drawn up by Navier, may be 
 cited as an instance. " He formulates the differential equa- 
 tion of motion for the two cases of hovering and horizontal 
 flight in the case of the swallow, integrates them in the cus- 
 tomary way, assumes approximate values for the constants of 
 the equations, and computes the work expended by this bird, 
 with the following results : for hovering the work done per 
 second is approximately equal to the work required to raise 
 its own weight 8 meters ; while in horizontal flight the work 
 done varied as the cube of the velocity and for 15 meters per 
 second is equal to 5. 95 kilogrameters per second, or enough to 
 raise its weight 390 meters. This is fifty times as much 
 work as that expended in hovering, or in the English measure, 
 over 2,500 ft. pounds per minute, which is a rate of working- 
 greater than a man has when lifting earth with a spade ! ' 
 
 These results are of course absurd, but it was upon such 
 premises that all scientific computations upon this subject 
 have hitherto been based ; formulas in which ' * the error as to 
 fact begins with the great name of Newton himself. ' 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 19 
 
 The introductory remarks to the memoir which forms the 
 report of these experiments are interesting, and the following 
 extracts are made from them : 
 
 " Schemes for mechanical flight have been so generally as- 
 sociated in the past with other methods than those of science, 
 that it is commonly supposed the long record of failures has 
 left such practical demonstration of the futility of all such 
 hopes for the future that no one of scientific training will be 
 found to give them countenance. While recognizing that 
 this view is a natural one, I have, however, during some years, 
 devoted nearly all the time at my command for research, if 
 not directly to this purpose, yet to one cognate to it, with a re- 
 sult which I feel ought now to be made public. 
 
 " To prevent misapprehension, let me state at the outset 
 that I do not undertake to explain any art of mechanical flight 
 but to demonstrate experimentally certain propositions in 
 Aerodynamics which prove that such flight under proper 
 direction is practicable. This being understood, I may state 
 that these researches have led to the result that mechanical 
 sustentation of heavy bodies in the air, combined with very 
 great speed, is not only possible, but within the reach of 
 mechanical means we actually possess, and that while these 
 researches are, as I have said, not meant to demonstrate the 
 art of guiding such heavy bodies in flight, they do show that 
 we now have the power to sustain and propel them. Further 
 than this, these new experiments, (and the theories also when 
 reviewed in their light), show that if in such aerial motion, 
 there be given a plane of fixed size and weight, inclined at 
 such an angle, and moved forward at such a speed, that it 
 shall be sustained in horizontal flight, then the more rapid the 
 motion is, the less will be the power required to support and 
 advance it. 
 
 " This statement may, I am aware, present an appearance 
 so paradoxical that the reader may ask himself if he has 
 rightly understood it. To make the meaning quite indubit- 
 able, let me repeat it in another form, and say that these 
 experiments show that a definite amount of power so expended 
 at any constant rate, will attain more economical results at 
 high speeds than at low ones e. g., one horse power thus 
 
20 THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 employed, will transport a larger weight at twenty miles an 
 hour than at ten, a still larger at forty miles than at twenty, 
 and so on, with an increasing economy of power with each 
 higher speed, up to some remote limit not yet attained in ex- 
 periment, but probably represented by higher speeds than have 
 as yet been reached in any other mode of transport, a state- 
 ment which demands and will receive the amplest confirmation 
 later in these pages. 
 
 " I have now been engaged since the beginning of the year 
 1887 in experiments on an extended scale for determining the 
 possibility of, and the conditions for, transporting in the air a 
 body whose specific gravity is greater than that of the air, 
 and I desire to repeat my conviction that the obstacles in its 
 way are not such as have been thought ; that they lie more in 
 such apparently secondary difficulties as those of guiding the 
 body so that it may move in the direction desired, and ascend 
 or descend with safety, than in what may appear to be the 
 primary difficulties due to the nature of the air itself, and that 
 in my opinion the evidence for this is now sufficiently com- 
 plete to engage the serious attention of engineers to the 
 practical solution of these secondary difficulties, and to the 
 development of an art of mechanical flight which will bring 
 with it a change in many of the conditions of individual and 
 national existence whose importance can hardly be estimated. 
 *********** 
 
 " I do not, then, offer here a treatise on Aerodynamics, 
 but an experimental demonstration that we already possess in 
 the steam engine as now constructed, or in other heat engines, 
 more than the requisite power to urge a system of rigid planes 
 through the air at a great velocity, making them not only 
 self-sustaining, but capable of carrying other than their own 
 weight. This is not asserting that they can be steadily and 
 securely guided through the air or safely brought to the 
 ground without shock, or even that the plane itself is the best 
 form of surface for support ; all these are practical considera- 
 tions of quite another order, belonging to the yet inchoate art 
 of constructing suitable mechanisms for guiding heavy bodies 
 through the air on the principles indicated. I desire 
 
 to be understood as not here offering any direct evidence, or 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 21 
 
 expressing any opinion other than may be implied in the very 
 description of these experiments themselves." 
 
 It will be observed that he is careful not to affirm his belief 
 in the future solution of the problem of aerial navigation. In 
 fact, he is very particular to be non-committal upon that sub- 
 ject. His memoir carries the additional weight of such emi- 
 nent authorities as Prof. Simon Newcomb, of theU. S. Naval 
 Observatory, Prof. Cleveland Abbe, of the U. S. Signal 
 Service, and Prof. Henry A. Rowland, of Johns Hopkins, to 
 whom it was submitted before publication. In giving the re- 
 sults of these experiments, it is perhaps best to again quote the 
 exact language of Prof. Langley himself: " The most impor- 
 tant general inference from these experiments, as a whole, is 
 that, so far as the mere power to sustain heavy bodies in the 
 air by mechanical flight goes, such mechanical flight is possi- 
 ble with engines we now possess, * * and the experiments 
 show that if we multiply the small planes which have been 
 actually used, or assume a larger plane to have approximately 
 the properties of similar small ones, one horse power rightly 
 applied, can sustain over 200 pounds in the air at a horizontal 
 velocity of over 20 meters per second (about 45 miles per 
 hour), and still more at still higher velocities. * * * 
 
 " In this mode of supporting a body in the air, its specific 
 gravity, instead of being as heretofore a matter of primary 
 importance, is a matter of indifference, the support being 
 derived essentially from the inertia and elasticity of the air on 
 which the body is made rapidly to run. The most important 
 and, it is believed, novel truth, already announced, imme- 
 diately follows from what has been shown, that whereas in 
 land or marine transport, increased speed is maintained only by 
 a disproportionate expenditure of power, within the limits of 
 experiment in such aerial horizontal transport, the higher 
 speeds are more economical of power than the lower ones. 
 
 " While calling attention to these important and as yet little 
 known truths, I desire to add as a final caution, that I have 
 not asserted that planes such as are here employed in experi- 
 ment, or even that planes of any kind, are the best forms to 
 use in mechanical flight, and that I have also not asserted, 
 without qualification, that mechanical flight is practically 
 
22 THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 possible, since this involves questions as to the method of 
 constructing the mechanism, of securing its ascent and de- 
 scent, and also of securing the indispensable condition for the 
 economic use of the power I have shown to be at our dis- 
 posal, the condition, I mean, of curability to guide it in 
 the desired horizontal direction during transport, questions 
 which, in my opinion, are only to be answered by further 
 experiment, and which belong to the inchoate art or science 
 of aerodromics, on which I do not enter. 
 
 " I wish, however, to put on record my belief that the time 
 has come for these questions to engage the serious attention, 
 not only of engineers, but of all interested in the possibly 
 near practical solution of a problem, one of the most impor- 
 tant in its consequences, of any which has ever presented 
 itself in mechanics; for this solution, it is here shown, cannot 
 longer be considered beyond our capacity to reach." 
 
 For a more extended consideration of these experiments 
 reference is made to the memoir itself. 
 
 A careful study of the facts has convinced us that a useful 
 application of the principles discussed in it, can be made. 
 We have been largely governed by them in determining the 
 form and dimensions given to the construction. The best 
 adjustment of the various parts is merely a matter of mechan- 
 ical detail. 
 
 Experiments can cheaply and readily be made upon a sur- 
 face track, by attaching a series of aeroplanes to the top of 
 an ordinary coach, and, by means of dynamometers, determine 
 just what the lifting power and resistance of large planes 
 will be for all speeds attainable by a locomotive. This is 
 really the only experimental feature of the design ; but, as 
 before remarked, it can scarcely be considered such. Refer- 
 ring to this matter, Prof. Langley says: " I am not prepared 
 to say that the relations of power, area, weight, and speed, 
 here experimentally established for planes of small area, will 
 hold for indefinitely large ones ; but from all the circum- 
 stances of experiment, I can entertain no doubt that they do 
 so hold far enough to afford assurance that we can transport 
 (with fuel for a considerable journey and at speeds high 
 enough to make us independent of ordinary winds) , weights 
 many times greater than that of a man." 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 23 
 
 As a matter of fact, there is good authority for asserting 
 that large planes will sustain proportionately greater weights 
 than small ones, and that they will require proportionately 
 less power to drive them. 
 
CHAPTER Y. 
 
 GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE AERODROMIC SYSTEM. 
 
 The principles upon which the new railway system has been 
 designed have been sufficiently indicated in the foregoing, 
 so that a general description of it will be readily understood. 
 Reference is made to the cuts in the Appendix. 
 
 The track is elevated and of steel. It consists of two 
 parallel trusses, 6 ft. in depth, and about 11 ft. apart. The 
 upper and lower chords of these trusses form the rails or guides. 
 This trussed roadway is supported upon steel columns, a varia- 
 tion in the height of which, helps to modify the grade where 
 necessary. These columns are firmly fastened to stone or 
 concrete foundations, and are thoroughly braced. The spans 
 average about 37 ft. in length, but may be varied to suit the 
 requirements of the terrain. They are tied from the under- 
 side to prevent spreading, and are made absolutely rigid. The 
 rails are of especial designs. The lower ones are reversed, 
 and so constructed as to give a bearing for wheels on their 
 lower sides. The trusses are fastened to the columns, as 
 shown. 
 
 The track will be practically a right line between stations, 
 in the immediate vicinity of which, curves may be introduced 
 if necessary. In crossing deep ravines and rivers, where long 
 spans are more economical, steel cables may be used, sup- 
 ported in such a manner that the line of the car's progress 
 will be practically rectilinear, or a continuous tangent to the 
 resulting catenary. 
 
 Switching can be accomplished in various ways : an auto- 
 matic turn-table may deliver the cars at any desired angle, or 
 the upper rails may be discontinued, and the lower rails 
 (24) 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 25 
 
 reversed and dropped a distance equal to the diameter of the 
 lower wheels, so that the cars can be run upon them, and 
 switches made in the ordinary way. 
 
 The cars will be of different lengths from 40 to 100 feet, 
 and of sufficient cross-section to give all of the usual interior 
 arrangements for comfort. They can also be adapted to all 
 classes of freight. All cars will necessarily be inclosed, and 
 of a stream-line form, since a body of such shape meets only 
 with a f rictional resistance in passing through the air. Cars 
 for grain and coal will contain hopper-shaped bins, and will 
 be unloaded from underneath. As the cars are usually to be 
 suspended from the top, the method of building must be 
 reversed. The sides and bottom will consist of light trussed 
 frame-work of steel, while the top will be a strong platform, 
 to the underside of which the motors are attached. The 
 whole outside shell will be a continuous surface, presenting 
 no abrupt features. The cars will be fire-proof, heated and 
 lighted by electricity. The windows will be immovable, and 
 ventilation will be through tubes, with automatic valves. 
 
 To the top of the car and at equal distances apart, are 
 attached sets or banks of aeroplanes, (technically so-called), 
 arranged in form, " aspect ' ' and position as suggested by the 
 experiments. The area of such surfaces will vary, according 
 to the load, from 2,000 to 4,000 sq. ft. 
 
 These planes are hinged at their rear edge to an immovable 
 standard perpendicular to the top of the car, and at their front 
 edge, to a movable standard, by linked levers as shown in the 
 drawings. These front standards can be elevated or depressed, 
 thus raising or lowering the front edge of the planes. The 
 planes in each bank, operated simultaneously by the engineer, 
 are capable of being set at any angle from zero to ten degrees 
 or more. Each plane is from 20 to 30 ft. in length, by 4 to 
 5 ft. in width, and thorougly braced. In the banks, the 
 aeroplanes will be superimposed one directly above the other, 
 at a distance slightly less than their width, measured from the 
 advancing edge to the rear, this being the smaller dimension. 
 The axles of the driving wheels, four or more in number, 
 pass through the top of the car, and are journaled in the sides 
 of it. These journal-boxes are capable of a considerable 
 
26 THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 horizontal as well as a slight vertical motion. The former 
 movement performs the office of the bogie in the ordinary car, 
 permitting the axles to accommodate themselves to curves. 
 The driving wheels are 4 to 6 ft. in diameter. Each axle 
 carries two motors, with the armatures directly upon it, one 
 motor upon either extremity, of from 25 to 50 effective 
 horse power, each, connected in series. They are easily 
 removed from the sides. 
 
 The double metallic system of electrical supply will be 
 used, as it is safer for employes, and less expensive of 
 insulation. The motors will be of a type yet to be chosen. 
 They will be upon a circuit of 5,000 to 10,000 volts, converted 
 to 500 volts for the motors, and delivering power depending 
 upon the service required. The supply and return conductors 
 will be supported from the top of the posts wherever they 
 occur, and at points along the spans, and will have no line 
 drop. They will be of such form that while giving greater 
 economy in material, they will offer the greatest resistance to 
 flexure. 
 
 The axle of the trolley-wheels passes through the sides of 
 the car near the top, with journals the same as the driving 
 axles, but in insulated bearings. The trolley-wheels have a 
 contact on the upper side of the conductor, and being free 
 to fall by their own weight, and that of their axle, a per- 
 fect contact will always be insured. The trolley-axle is pro- 
 vided with the usual brushes and distribution discs, fastened 
 to the top of the car by a spring-post device which keeps the 
 brushes in close contact with the copper sleeve of the axle. 
 These sleeves are removable, and after a certain wear, they, 
 with the wheels, can be taken off and recast. 
 
 In the engineer's room is located an air-pump which actu- 
 ates a system of rods and levers underneath the car. To 
 these are attached several sets of axles that pass across the 
 bottom of the car. Their wheels (about 2 ft. in diameter), 
 do not ordinarily engage the under side of the lower rails. 
 The object of these wheels is to keep the car upon the track, 
 prevent oscillation and possible swaying from side winds, and 
 to generate a friction for traction or retardation. These re- 
 sults are accomplished by the automatic air-pump and system 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 27 
 
 of levers beneath the car, which, besides operating the air 
 brakes attached to these lower wheels, give the journals a 
 vertical motion, thus bringing the wheels upward against the 
 lower rails, forming a clutch or grip between the upper and 
 lower wheels upon the rails. The track descending in either 
 direction from stations, starting and stopping are facilitated. 
 
 Whatever the weight upon the track, the center of gravity 
 is several feet below the line joining the points of suspension, 
 instead of several feet above it, as in the case of the present 
 railroads. 
 
 Presupposing the fact that the aeroplanes can lift the greater 
 part of the load, upon a level or even on a grade, there is no 
 reason why just enough weight should not be carried upon the 
 driving wheels, to give the necessary adhesion to the rails for 
 traction. Upon an ascending grade it is evident that if all 
 but this weight can be lifted from the track, and this equilib- 
 rium be maintained, but little more work will be needed to propel 
 the car up the grade than on a level. But more work is nec- 
 essary to maintain this condition of things. It is, however, 
 not to be compared in amount to that necessary to force the 
 load up the hill by the ordinary rolling method, and yet main- 
 tain a high velocity. 
 
 In ascending grades, then, the engineer by manipulating 
 the planes, preserves the lift of the machine, only this weight 
 remaining upon the track. He calls into use for this purpose, 
 a reserve of power, and so reaches the summit with the speed 
 slightly reduced. Descending grades or in stopping, he has 
 two methods of retardation ; first by means of the air- 
 brakes, and second, by increasing enormously the atmospheric 
 resistance of the attached aeroplanes, by setting them at such 
 an angle that their vertical projection offers, approximately, 
 the same resistance that a normal plane of like extent would 
 offer. The problem of retardation thus becomes a simple 
 one. 
 
 The maximum distance of electrical transmission of power 
 by means of the continuous current is about 14 miles, with an 
 average efficiency of 85%. This gives a diameter of electrical 
 transmission of 28 miles as the greatest distance between 
 power stations for this method. Recent actual use of the 
 
28 THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 alternating current for power transmittal, gives an efficiency 
 of 76% through a distance of 108 miles, or a maximum distance 
 between power stations of 216 miles. The future will un- 
 doubtedly see this efficiency and diameter much extended. 
 
 There are many other details of construction which might 
 be described, but they woiild only encumber the present pub- 
 lication. In the discussion which follows it must be remem- 
 bered that the science of Aerodynamics is in its infancy, 
 little or 110 authentic data on many points being in existence. 
 Few applications of its little understood principles have ever 
 been made in the useful arts. Realizing this, while exhaust- 
 ing every available source of information, care has been 
 taken to make as liberal an allowance as the facts seem to 
 warrant. It is believed that actual tests will reduce these 
 figures materially. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS. 
 
 The essential requirements of any new system of transport- 
 ation are : 
 
 1st. As reasonable a safety as in the old system, to say the 
 least. 
 
 2 ad. A greater speed, and equal or greater comfort and 
 luxury. 
 
 3rd. An adaptability to all kinds of traffic. 
 
 4th. It must offer a secure, profitable and stable invest- 
 ment. 
 
 The first requirement must be met or its stock will go 
 begging. Its fulfillment lies in the peculiar track and car con- 
 struction. Derailment is impossible, and by means of a double 
 track, and a block system of electrical supply, no collisions can 
 ever occur. In short, nearly absolute safety is assured. 
 
 In considering the second requirement of greater speed, 
 it must be admitted that the most favorable conditions for 
 high speed are an independence of grades and grade cross- 
 ings, right lines between points, a minimum atmospheric 
 resistance, and an adequate and more economical supply of 
 motive power. If it can be shown affirmatively that these con- 
 ditions hold, then the claim as to speed will be conceded ; the 
 claim as to comfort and luxury follows from the cross-section 
 and freedom from oscillation, cinders, smoke, dust, etc. 
 
 In the Smithsonian experiments, which are independently 
 corroborated by Mr. Hiram S. Maxim, Mr. Horatio Phillips of 
 England, and others, it is abundantly proven that at less 
 speed than has been attained by the locomotive, each horse 
 power can be made to lift over 200 pounds when applied 
 to aeroplanes of a certain size and shape, set at a given 
 angle. At 20 meters per second about 45 miles per hour 
 Prof. Langley lifted exactly at the rate of 209 pounds per 
 
 (29) 
 
30 THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 horse power, but as this lift was made with planes correspond- 
 ing in extent to 189 sq. ft. per horse power, the area of aero- 
 plane surface requisite to lift any considerable load, becomes, 
 under these conditions, too large to be manageable. And 
 since, in order to have the lifting capacity per horse power 
 increase, the area must remain unchanged, while the angle 
 decreases and the speed increases, it is evident that for very 
 high speeds, and such a heavy machine, we will have to be 
 satisfied with a less lift per horse power. 
 
 To determine the power necessary to propel such a car at 
 any velocity, its weight, form and dimensions being known, the 
 forces acting to retard the motion along its path must be 
 ascertained. These are, evidently, first, the resistance of the 
 atmosphere to the body of the car, and its internal resistances. 
 
 Second, the resistance of the atmosphere to the passage of 
 the planes, i, e., the horizontal component of the resultant 
 normal pressure upon an inclined plane, called the " drift." 
 
 Third, to these must be added, for grades, the force of 
 gravity resolved along the path. 
 
 The work performed in overcoming these is the sum of all 
 the resistances multiplied by the path. The power necessary 
 to do this work is represented by foot pounds, and is equal to 
 the total resistance in pounds multiplied by the velocity in 
 feet per minute ; this divided by 33,000, the number of foot 
 pounds in one horse power, an arbitrary measure, will give 
 the horse power necessary to do the work. 
 
 The experiments conducted by the Smithsonian Institution, 
 afford quantitative data from which, with Maxwell's formula, 
 the tables of the Appendix have been computed. 
 
 Table I gives the atmospheric resistance for the body 
 of a car of certain size and stream-line form, having a 
 rubbing surface of 2,400 sq. ft., and moving endwise with 
 velocities ranging from 25 to 150 miles per hour, with incre- 
 ments of 5 miles. It is a conceded fact that a body of such 
 form meets with only such frictional resistance as is given by 
 Clerke Maxwell's formula* quoted in the table, and which 
 
 * Attention is called to the remarkably close agreement in the results derived from 
 Langlej's data, and from this formula; assuming, with the former, that the total 
 resistance due to the atmosphere is that which would be caused by one-fifth of the 
 area of the greatest normal cross-section, (95 sq. ft.), and with the latter, an exterior 
 rubbing surface of 2,400 square feet. 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 31 
 
 varies directly with the surface rubbed, and with the square 
 of the velocity. The internal resistances of the car, the roll- 
 ing and oscillating frictions, which are comparatively small, 
 are given for the higher speeds, upon the supposition that they 
 are then reduced to a minimum, by the removal of all the 
 weight from the track, by the action of the planes, except 
 that necessary to give the friction for traction. 
 
 The ' ' drift ' of the planes is evidently a function of the 
 angle at which the planes are set and the velocity at which 
 they are driven. The experiments of Mr. Phillips show that 
 the " drift " depends greatly, also, upon the form of the 
 planes; certain forms, w T hile giving the same " lift," give a 
 " drift " less than that for strictly flat surfaces, in the ratio of 
 1. to 2.74.'* 
 
 Table II gives the drift per square foot of aeroplanes of cer- 
 tain " aspect, " with shape modified to give, approximately, the 
 efficiency of Mr. Phillip's surfaces, and set at various angles, 
 and driven at speeds varying in each case between practical 
 limits, with increments of five miles per hour. These figures 
 for the "drift" include the skin or surface friction on the 
 planes themselves, and are also fora "fair" form given to 
 their leading edges and cross-sections. 
 
 Table III gives the ' l lift ' ' per square foot of such planes 
 under similiar conditions. They all for convenience, contain 
 the values of P, the pressure in pounds, upon one square foot 
 of normal plane moving at these velocities. 
 
 The superior limits beyond which the planes may not be used, 
 relate to both speeds and angles. An inspection of the tables 
 shows that for some of the larger angles, the speed at which 
 the planes may be driven becomes limited by the excessive 
 amount of power required to do the work. For example : 
 with an equipment of 4,000 sq. ft. of aeroplanes, which 
 area is perhaps the greatest which can be used, and is also 
 that which gives, for our purpose, the most economic re- 
 sults, set at an angle of 20 degrees, and driven at 65 miles 
 per hour, lifts about 8 pounds per square foot and meets with 
 a resistance that consumes 742 horse power. The car itself 
 under these conditions demands the expenditure of 71 horse 
 power, or a total of 813 horse power, which might exceed that 
 
 C ' 
 
 
 
32 THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 with which the car was equipped. While, at 50 miles per 
 hour, a total of only 385 horse power would be required, but 20 
 tons of the weight would have to be carried upon the track, 
 somewhat more than in the former case. 
 
 A like inspection will show when this limit would be passed 
 for any speed and any angle. It is evident that for very high 
 speeds, only small angles of the planes to their path can be 
 used. 
 
 The considerations which determine the most economic area 
 of aeroplane surface to be used for a car of a given weight, 
 depend upon its possible arrangement, and the maximum 
 speed. Its arrangement depends upon the laws of interfer- 
 ence of the separate planes with each other, which interfer- 
 ence results in a reduced efficiency, and somewhat upon the 
 manner of their manipulation. It is readily seen that to be 
 efficient, they must be capable of being driven at such a speed 
 that they shall lift the required amount. The practicable speed 
 is, however, limited by the possible power equipment; the 
 power, again, is restricted by the weight of the motors,which 
 weight determines greatly the total weight of the car. So 
 that, the determination of each of these interdependent ele- 
 ments, renders the problem somewhat difficult. By the aid of 
 the tables, however, an approximate result is readily obtained 
 by inspection. 
 
 Let us start having in view a maximum speed of 150 miles 
 per hour, which has so often been predicted. The tables show 
 that at this speed and at an angle of 2 degrees, probably 
 the lowest practicable angle, the " lift " per square foot is 
 about 12 pounds, and the " drift" is .19 pounds. With an 
 equipment of 4,000 sq. ft. of aeroplanes, the total lift would 
 be 48,000 pounds, and it would require 304 horse power to 
 drive the planes. At this speed the atmospheric resistance to 
 the body of the car, as given by Maxwell's formula, and its 
 other resistances, would call for 641 horse power additional. 
 Hence a total of 995 horse power would be required. The 
 traction would be about 2,400 pounds, calling for, under 
 ordinary conditions, 6 tons upon the driving wheels to give 
 the necessary adhesion to the rails. This with the lift of 
 48,000 pounds, would allow the car and load to weigh 30 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 33 
 
 tons. Small electric motors have been made weighing less 
 than 10 pounds per horse power, but until now, there 
 has been no demand for a motor of especial lightness. 
 By the use of nickel and aluminum in their construction, 
 in place of iron and copper, their weights can be very 
 materially reduced, and efficient motors, for our purpose, 
 can be constructed which will weigh, with frames, less than 
 40 pounds per horse power. Therefore, the motors will, 
 perhaps, weigh 18 tons. As the car is not kept upon the 
 track by its great weight, it will be as light as is consistent 
 with the necessary strength, and, independent of the motors, 
 but including the weight of the planes, will weigh about 10 
 tons. The margin, then, of 2 tons, is scarcely enough to 
 warrant the hope that this high speed can be attained, even 
 for passenger traffic, with a car of these dimensions, unless 
 the whole passenger load, in addition, is practically carried 
 upon the track. It must be remembered that these figures 
 are for a level only. However, special cars, of much smaller 
 dimensions, proportionately equipped, and capable of carry- 
 ing ten to sixteen persons, each, at this speed in comfort, 
 can be constructed, with reserve power enough to propel 
 them at a high speed even up a 20 per cent grade. 
 
 As the speed decreases to 100 miles per hour, or less, 
 this margin for the net load increases until it approximates- 
 that of a standard freight car. At the lower speeds, how- 
 ever, the weight habitually carried upon the track, with this 
 equipment of planes, will necessarily be slightly greater. 
 For example : at 125 miles per hour, and an angle of 3 de- 
 grees, the lift is 11.1 pounds per square foot, and with 
 4,000 sq. ft. of planes, 44,400 pounds are lifted. The " drift " 
 is .27 pounds per square foot, requiring 360 horse power, and 
 the car alone 376, making a total of 736 horse power, for 
 which the motors will weigh say, 15 tons, a margin of 5 
 tons for the net load, with about 8 tons upon the drivers. 
 This is a capacity of fifty passengers, with a reasonable 
 amount of hand baggage. 
 
 It will be remarked, in passing, that the tables show the 
 truth of Prof. Langley's "paradoxical" statement that it 
 requires less power to support and transport a given load at a 
 
34 THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 high velocity than at a lower one ; 304 horse power being re- 
 quired at 150 miles an hour, for a greater weight than 360 
 horse power will support and transport at 125 miles an hour. 
 
 From 100 miles an hour, or less, up to this speed it is there- 
 fore practicable to handle perishable and other classes of 
 freight where time is of great importance. Especially so is it 
 when it is possible to transmit freight cars automatically with- 
 out attendants. 
 
 Upon grades, it is evident that if the maximum lift for a level 
 can be maintained by calling into action a reserve of power, 
 the weight so compensated for may be left out of further con- 
 sideration, and that only the actual weight resting upon the 
 track must be lifted through the vertical distance of the grade 
 by the rolling method. If the grade should be too steep for 
 this remnant of the weight to preserve the requisite traction , 
 sufficient artificial friction can be generated by the air-pump 
 and friction wheels beneath the car. 
 
 The component of the weight which acts as a resistance on 
 grades, is found by multiplying the total weight by the sine of 
 the angle of the grade. Let us consider the case of a car of 30 
 tons on a maximum grade of 20 per cent., moving the instant it 
 enters upon the grade, with a velocity of 125 miles an hour. 
 The angle of such a grade is, roughly, eleven and one-half 
 degrees. Multiplying the maximum lift to be preserved, 
 44,400 pounds, by the sine of this angle, we have 8,862 pounds 
 that would otherwise be thrown back upon the track by this 
 change of direction in a vertical plane, and which would act as 
 a retarding force, continually increasing. It has been seen 
 that for the angle of 3 degrees, and at this speed, the lift 
 is about 124 pounds per horse power of that necessary to 
 overcome the resistance of the planes. Hence, about 71 horse 
 power additional will be necessary to preserve the lift. It 
 will be noticed, that a small increase to this, must be allowed 
 to compensate for the slightly diminished lifting capacity of 
 the planes, due to that component of their velocity which is 
 in a vertical direction, and to compensate for the increased 
 4 'drift" of the greater angle at which they must be set. 
 This increase will be, in a measure, offset by the diminished 
 atmospheric resistance due to the decreasing velocity. The 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 35 
 
 greatest grade a car of 30 tons, carrying its own power, can 
 attain, at the minimum speed, by the usual method, with all 
 its weight upon the driving wheels, is less than 900 ft. per 
 mile. * Here then is a method of surmounting grades, at high 
 velocities, which calls for the expenditure of less additional 
 power than any other known method. 
 
 We have, then, simply to provide for a sufficient reserve of 
 power to compensate for that component of the lifting power 
 lost by this change in the direction of propulsion, and for the 
 component which now acts as a resistance to forward motion. 
 This can be shown graphically : 
 
 If we represent in the figure that portion of the weight of 
 the car to be lifted, acting through its center of gravity O, 
 by the vertical line OG, proportional to that weight, then, on 
 a level, when the lifting force of the planes for any angle and 
 speed is equal to this weight, this lifting force may be repre- 
 sented in intensity and direction by the line OP=OG, acting 
 perpendicularly to the top of the car, and directly opposed to 
 and neutralizing the force of gravity OG. But when the car as- 
 cends a grade whose angle is (c) , the lifting force of the planes 
 is no longer wholly opposed to the action of gravity, acting 
 as it always does in a vertical line drawn through its center. 
 The speed remaining constant, the vertical component of the 
 resultant normal pressure on the planes, due to the inertia and 
 elasticity of the air, remains virtually the same (subject to a 
 slight correction heretofore indicated) , but it acts perpendicu- 
 
36 THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 larly to the line of motion, or the horizontal axis of the car, 
 in the direction OP. This force can be resolved into two 
 components, one acting in the prolongation of the direction of 
 gravity, OP", and the other perpendicular to it. 
 
 It is evident from the figure that if the force OP' be made 
 equal to OG by the addition of P"p', the resultant OP' must 
 be increased by the distance P'p. The other component OS, 
 evidently acts to retard the speed. Power enough, therefore, 
 will have to be held in reserve to compensate for these, and 
 the car must proceed up the grade with a reduced velocity, 
 due to the greater resistance of the planes, which, under 
 these circumstances, must be set at a greater angle. If the 
 grade were steep and long enough, it might, without a reserve 
 of power, come to a stop after the Vis Viva stored up had been 
 expended. Therefore, the maximum grade will depend upon 
 its length, and the reserve of power. 
 
 A body passing through a fluid, near a surface limiting it, 
 has a tendency, like a ship under similiar conditions, to u go 
 ashore," and the actual lifting capacity of planes, must there- 
 fore be the difference between this tendency and their theoret- 
 ical lift. But at the average elevation of the planes from the 
 earth, some 25 ft., this factor, it is thought, will not be 
 appreciable. 
 
 It may be asked why use aeroplanes at all, when high 
 speeds upon such a track are certainly possible with much 
 less power. The answer is, that such high speeds are only 
 possible in the absence of lateral curves. The centrifugal force 
 developed upon curves, made necessary in avoiding grades 
 even as low as 4 per cent, at such high velocities, would rack 
 and eventually destroy any structure which did not cost too 
 much to render it practicable. The distance saved by direct 
 lines between points, the high speeds in safety, and the more 
 economic supply of motive power made possible by this system, 
 will compensate for the additional power made necessary in 
 thus overcoming grades, to say nothing of the saving in the 
 wear and tear upon the structures. 
 
 Where the road is over a terrain which will permit it to be 
 made practically level and direct, as for example, in a line 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. 37 
 
 between New York, Philadelphia and Washington, aeroplanes 
 need not necessarily be used. 
 
 A minimum atmospheric resistance is attained by giving a 
 fair or stream-line form to the car, which in itself presents 
 
 y^ 
 
 a cross-section of about 81 sq. ft., sufficient to give all 
 the comforts of the Pullman car. The peculiar track con- 
 struction, and the absence of lateral curves, will prevent 
 oscillation and tilting. Self-adjusting seats will prevent 
 any disagreeable effects from the vertical curves, due to 
 grades. Perfect ventilation, heating and lighting by elec- 
 tricity, freedom from smoke, dust and cinders, establish the 
 claim of even greater comfort to the traveler. 
 
 To avoid repetition, the economic supply of motive power is 
 considered further on. 
 
 The third desideratum, adaptability to all kinds of traffic, 
 follows from what has been shown regarding the cubic 
 capacity of the car and the net load. 
 
 In considering the desirability of an investment in this new 
 enterprise, the capitalist, at the outset, may well ask: " How 
 long will a successful new system of transportation remain 
 undisturbed? What assurance have we that some new inven- 
 tion will not appear and impair the security of an investment 
 in this? What about aerial navigation? " 
 
 He will find these questions answered, as nearly as they can 
 be, in the foregoing pages. Any new system of transporta- 
 tion which shall successfully supplant the steam railroads, will 
 enjoy a longer monopoly than they have had. When, twenty 
 years hence, the Aerodromic Railway has advanced near to 
 perfection, and we are traveling 150 miles per hour, and all 
 freight is moved with equal celerity, there will be little incen- 
 tive to risk life and property, to perfect a system which can- 
 not hope to exceed that speed, and which, from the very 
 nature of things, can A ever hope to approximate to the safety 
 of our present railroads, for machinery will get out of order, 
 and engines will break down in spite of the most rigid in- 
 spections. In the Aerodromic track the factor of safety is 
 great enough to uphold the entire load at any point, and 
 at any attainable speed. 
 
 The foregoing discussion based upon the data of one of the 
 
 /X/ ^/^-/7 A,^)-- ^ *<^ *~~ fa-~ ^^L^^^^y L^y- %-t_.*^4^> 
 
 *j- JfCj~~ j/i^*^^ 
 
 f\L (f^f <&0-K^? *2s^/ 
 
38 THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 most able experts, eminent as a scientist and investigator, 
 shows that great power will be required to insure the commer- 
 cial success of any system of transportation which depends 
 upon these principles.* If the Aerodromic System cannot be 
 made such, there seems but little hope for aerial navigation 
 in its broadest sense. 
 
 The cost of construction may appear large, but it will be 
 less than the cost of first-class English roads. It must be 
 remembered that in the economy of Mature something is 
 never had for nothing, and any scheme which promises that, 
 is open to suspicion. 
 
 In the United States alone there are 208,749 railroad 
 bridges, representing 3,213 miles of continuous track, or 
 enough to form a line from New York to San Francisco over 
 the present route. These bridges represent an average cost 
 of $500,000 per mile. It must be remembered that in the 
 Aerodromic construction, the first cost represents nearly the 
 whole of the track expense. 
 
 In order to determine whether such an investment would be 
 profitable, it is necessary to know something of the cost of 
 construction, maintenance and operation, as well as the prob- 
 able amount of traffic. These can be estimated approximately. 
 It will, however, only be necessary, in this connection, to 
 assert that a line upon this system, built between New York 
 and Philadelphia, would pay annual dividends of ten per cent 
 upon an expenditure of $200,000 per mile, which would 
 be $75,000 in excess of that required, while the service 
 upon which this estimate is based, could be quadrupled if the 
 requirements of the traffic demanded it. 
 
 * An exhaustive paper by the late C. W. Hastings, C. E., upon this subject, was 
 read before the World's Fair International Conference on Aerial Navigation, in 
 Chicago, and published in "Aeronautics," by the American Engineer and Railroad 
 Journal, New York. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 ADVANTAGES OF THE AERODROMIC SYSTEM. 
 
 The advantages of the new system may not all be evident 
 at first glance, and it may be well to enumerate some of the 
 more important of them. 
 
 An absolutely straight track, besides giving the shortest 
 distance between points, gives the most favorable conditions 
 for great speed. Being practically independent of ordinary 
 grades, and totally so of grade-crossings, high speeds under all 
 conditions are made possible. It has been shown in the pre- 
 vious pages what large sums may be spent to shorten a road 
 one mile and reduce the curvature. It is estimated by a 
 prominent railroad manager, that in a road upon this system, 
 from New York to San Francisco, a distance of 500 miles 
 could be saved. This would mean a saving of over $50,000,- 
 000, if the traffic only equaled that of the Pennsylvania road 
 when it was first built. As there will be but little weight 
 ordinarily upon the track, there will be a great saving in wear 
 and tear and in bridge construction. There are no culverts, 
 or grade- crossings, no tunnels, nor in fact any continuous sur- 
 face grading. There are no ties to be replaced, no ballast to 
 be kept in condition, while the alignment of the track is never 
 disturbed. Upon a surface track recent experiment shows 
 that it is possible to have continuous rails by welding the 
 joints in sections. This would insure a smooth track. 
 
 There can be no snow blockades or washouts. The action 
 of the motors upon the axles is uniform, and the weight for 
 traction uniformly distributed. In the case of the present 
 railroad, the rails under the engine are loaded to nearly their 
 crushing limit, and the pounding of the counterpoised 
 
 (39) 
 
40 THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 driving wheel against them is one of their most destructive 
 features. 
 
 The more economic supply of motive power made possible, 
 is one of the greatest advantages. In the locomotive less 
 than 30% of the fuel used results in effective work, and only 
 \% of it moves passengers. The loss from imperfect combus- 
 tion, from radiation of heat, from idleness, waiting with steam 
 up, from the escape of steam while it yet retains much energy, 
 can nearly all be saved by the use of stationary low-pressure 
 engines generating electricity at convenient stations. Indeed, 
 for long distances it will not be necessary to burn a pound of 
 fuel, for, the water-power of every stream crossed can be 
 utilized by turbine wheels, nor is the location of the water- 
 power restricted to the point of crossing. The same water 
 can be used over and over again, thus obviating the great 
 objection to water-power for manufacturing purposes, its 
 failure often in a dry season to afford power enough at any 
 given point. 
 
 The track being composed entirely of merchantable steel 
 shapes, such as any large iron factor could furnish upon very 
 short notice, it can be built rapidly. Points inaccessible to 
 ordinary railroads, could be readily reached, for the reason 
 that greater grades can be attained. 
 
 The track being elevated, less difficulty and expense will be 
 encountered in obtaining the right of way. It need not be 
 fenced ; there will be no danger to stock, or from fire, and 
 crops may be sown and harvested beneath it, little or no 
 damage being done to the owner. 
 
 Entrance to and through cities and towns can be more 
 easily made, less actual damage being done to adjoining 
 property. 
 
 The risk from loss by accident is reduced to a minimum, 
 derailment and collisions being eliminated. An accident to 
 any part of the mechanism can result, ordinarily, only in a 
 delay. The cars will be fire-proof. The breaking of an 
 axle would not derail the car, and it is difficult to see hovr 
 anything short of the complete demolition of the track and 
 car could result disastrously. 
 
 The trusses and posts are available for carrying numberless 
 
THE COMING RAILROAD. '41 
 
 telegraph, telephone and phonophore lines. They may also 
 carry pneumatic tubes for the transmission of mail and light 
 express, if desirable, operated in connection with the other 
 method, by surplus power generated at the power stations. 
 This method of rapid transit, has been the most successful, 
 a ball 4 ft. in diameter having attained a velocity of over 100 
 miles an hour, even in a curved tube. 
 
 In the immediate vicinity of cities and towns, the power 
 stations may be enlarged sufficiently for the furnishing of 
 power and light to their inhabitants. 
 
 ]STew power, light, express, telegraph, and telephone com- 
 panies will be formed wherever this system is established. 
 The possibilties in each of these directions form one of the 
 most promising features. In addition, a reduction in the 
 non-paying tonnage seems possible. As the cost of the 
 motive power is reduced to a minimum, so will the cost of 
 operation and maintenance be decreased to the lowest figure. 
 
 It is possible and practicable to handle all freight-cars 
 automatically, with no attendants. The terms, freight, and 
 express, will become synonymous. 
 
 Mr. Edison, when asked what in his opinion was the practi- 
 cal limit on the horizon of electrical locomotion, replied, 
 "Perhaps 150 miles an hour." A speed of 125 miles an 
 hour, for both passengers and freight, is not an unreasonable 
 claim. Even 150 miles per hour is within the bounds of 
 possibility. It is merely a question of power, and mechanical 
 perfection in the track and car. 
 
 In view of these and still other advantages, the increased 
 cost of the Aerodromic System over that of the present 
 railway is of trifling importance. To urge it would be as 
 sensible, and as futile, as were the objections made by the 
 owners of stage-lines, to the increased cost of steam roads 
 over the time-honored Concord coach. The monopoly of 
 the stage-coach was doomed before the fires had died out in 
 the furnace of the "Rocket," and the prediction is made 
 that the monopoly of railroads will also come to an end before 
 the close of the present century. 
 
 In addition to all this, an adaptation without the aeropolane 
 attachment can be made for rapid transit in large cities. Built 
 
42 THE COMING RAILROAD. 
 
 over block-centers, if need be, connecting all of the impor- 
 tant buildings, a simple and comparatively cheap solution for 
 very rapid transit between points some distance apart, and 
 for suburban traffic, is suggested. 
 
 Journeying at 125 miles an hour, the traveler from !New 
 York would reach San Francisco inside of 24 hours. He 
 could proceed to Paris, via Behring's Strait, in actually less 
 time than it now takes to cross the Atlantic. At this 
 speed the fruits of California could be placed upon Eastern 
 tables with their bloom unsullied, and her flowers with the dew 
 still upon them. 
 
 The " visionary * Cosmopolitan Railway scheme," elimin- 
 inating the Atlantic Ocean from the highways of the world, 
 may yet be realized. 
 
 * " The Cosmopolitan Railway," by the late Gov. Wm. Gilpin of Colorado. 
 
APPENDIX, 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 45 
 
 TABLE I. 
 
 SHOWING ATMOSPHERIC AND INTERNAL RESISTANCES, POWER, 
 ETC., OF CAR WEIGHING 30 TONS. 
 
 
 
 
 -d 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 -- 1 a 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 | 
 
 a 
 8 
 
 a 
 -| 
 
 
 Is 1 . 
 
 3 
 S 
 
 2 
 
 0.0 
 
 1 
 
 o 
 
 S 
 
 S 
 
 li 
 
 
 
 
 I 
 
 Jj * 
 
 ffl^'g 
 
 0.5 
 
 
 Ifl 
 
 o co 
 
 
 
 ^ a 
 
 o 
 
 . u 
 
 . o 
 
 k3ft 
 
 o^ 
 
 o c -% S 
 
 .2 
 
 7j 
 
 q"o 
 
 t X 
 
 
 *jj 
 
 J3 
 
 a 
 
 a 
 
 s 
 
 ^SS^c 
 
 i-t3* 
 
 * 
 
 a 
 
 H 
 
 o 
 
 1 s 
 
 n 
 
 ^ 
 
 >. 
 
 
 
 * f" 
 
 ft^g 
 
 O a> a- C 
 
 S .- 
 
 
 2-2 . 
 
 1 
 
 o 
 
 I 
 
 o 
 
 _o 
 
 ~o 
 o 
 
 ~o 
 
 ssl 
 
 S ^* fr 
 
 5> to^ti 
 
 ||s 
 
 'S . 
 
 3":2 
 
 i 
 
 II 
 
 9 
 
 o 
 
 13 
 
 
 5 ^ 
 
 O s- *3 
 
 o ^ 
 
 o_o fi 
 
 O 
 
 
 9 
 
 * 
 
 S* 
 
 > 
 
 < 
 
 ce "- 
 
 w - 
 
 
 
 
 H 
 
 
 25 
 
 2200 
 
 36.66 
 
 11.1 
 
 2.2 
 
 42 
 
 120 
 
 50 
 
 212 
 
 14 
 
 30 
 
 30 
 
 2640 
 
 44.0 
 
 13.3 
 
 3.2 
 
 61 
 
 108 
 
 54 
 
 223 
 
 18 
 
 27 
 
 35 
 
 3080 
 
 51.33 
 
 15.5 
 
 4.3 
 
 83 
 
 100 
 
 58 
 
 241 
 
 23 
 
 25 
 
 40 
 
 3520 
 
 58.66 
 
 17.7 
 
 5.6 
 
 108 
 
 96 
 
 64 
 
 268 
 
 28 
 
 24 
 
 45 
 
 3960 
 
 66.0 
 
 20.0 
 
 7.2 
 
 137 
 
 88 
 
 66 
 
 291 
 
 31 
 
 22 
 
 50 
 
 4400 
 
 73.33 
 
 22.2 
 
 8.8 
 
 169 
 
 84 
 
 70 
 
 323 
 
 43 
 
 21 
 
 55 
 
 4840 
 
 80.66 
 
 24.4 
 
 10.7 
 
 204 
 
 80 
 
 73 
 
 357 
 
 52 
 
 20 
 
 60 
 
 5280 
 
 88.0 
 
 26.6 
 
 12.8 
 
 243 
 
 68 
 
 68 
 
 379 
 
 60 
 
 17 
 
 65 
 
 5720 
 
 95.33 
 
 28.8 
 
 14.9 
 
 285 
 
 60 
 
 65 
 
 410 
 
 71 
 
 15 
 
 70 
 
 6160 
 
 102.66 
 
 31.1 
 
 17.4 
 
 331 
 
 52 
 
 61 
 
 444 
 
 83 
 
 13 
 
 75 
 
 6600 
 
 110.0 
 
 33.3 
 
 20.0 
 
 380 
 
 48 
 
 60 
 
 488 
 
 98 
 
 12 
 
 80 
 
 7040 
 
 117.33 
 
 35.5 
 
 22.7 
 
 432 
 
 44 
 
 59 
 
 535 
 
 114 
 
 11 
 
 85 
 
 7480 
 
 124.66 
 
 37.7 
 
 25.7 
 
 491 
 
 40 
 
 57 
 
 588 
 
 134 
 
 10 
 
 90 
 
 7920 
 
 132.0 
 
 40.0 
 
 28.8 
 
 547 
 
 36 
 
 54 
 
 637 
 
 153 
 
 9 
 
 95 
 
 8360 
 
 139.33 
 
 42.2 
 
 32.0 
 
 609 
 
 32 
 
 51 
 
 692 
 
 175 
 
 8 
 
 100 
 
 8800 
 
 146.66 
 
 44.4 
 
 35.6 
 
 675 
 
 28 
 
 47 
 
 750 
 
 200 
 
 7 
 
 105 
 
 9240 
 
 154.0 
 
 46.6 
 
 39.2 
 
 747 
 
 24 
 
 42 
 
 811 
 
 227 
 
 6 
 
 110 
 
 9680 
 
 161.33 
 
 48.8 
 
 43.1 
 
 817 
 
 24 
 
 44 
 
 885 
 
 260 
 
 6 
 
 115 
 
 10120 
 
 168.66 
 
 51.1 
 
 47.1 
 
 893 
 
 24 
 
 46 
 
 963 
 
 295 
 
 6 
 
 120 
 
 10560 
 
 176.0 
 
 53.3 
 
 51.2 
 
 973 
 
 24 
 
 48 
 
 1045 
 
 334 
 
 6 
 
 125 
 
 11000 
 
 183.33 
 
 55.5 
 
 55.6 
 
 1055 
 
 24 
 
 50 
 
 1129 
 
 376 
 
 6 
 
 130 
 
 11440 
 
 190.66 
 
 57.7 
 
 59.3 
 
 1141 
 
 24 
 
 52 
 
 1221 
 
 424 
 
 6 
 
 135 
 
 11880 
 
 198.0 
 
 60.0 
 
 64.1 
 
 1231 
 
 24 
 
 54 
 
 1309 
 
 471 
 
 6 
 
 140 
 
 12320 
 
 205.33 
 
 62.2 
 
 68.9 
 
 1324 
 
 24 
 
 56 
 
 1404 
 
 524 
 
 6 
 
 145 
 
 12760 
 
 212.66 
 
 64.4 
 
 76.1 
 
 1420 
 
 24 
 
 58 
 
 1502 
 
 581 
 
 6 
 
 150 
 
 13200 
 
 220.0 
 
 66.6 
 
 79.0 
 
 1519 
 
 24 
 
 60 
 
 1603 
 
 641 
 
 6 
 
 See Remarks Table I. 
 
APPKNDIX. 
 
 REMARKS TO TABLE I. 
 
 Maxwell's Formula for Air Friction. 
 .0000000256(461Hr0)SX F 2 =R. 
 
 IN WHICH 
 
 6 = normal temperature, 50 F, S = sq. ft. of exterior 
 surface, V = velocity in ft. per second, and R = resistance 
 of atmosphere. 
 
 P = 929 
 
 V\ (see Langley). 
 
 P = atmospheric pressure in Ibs. per sq. ft. of cross sec- 
 tion normal to line of motion, under ordinary circumstances 
 of temperature and barometer, k m =.0087 (the constant co- 
 efficient of pressure for metric units), and V = velocity in 
 meters per second. 
 
 w 88 VR V K . 
 
 = " = 375 ' m whlch 
 
 V miles per hour. 
 
 R = resistance to cross section, (assumed at 95 sq. ft. and 
 taken at one-fifth for stream-line form) -f rolling friction 
 taken at 4 Ibs. per ton, + oscillating friction, (see Haswell.) 
 
 The close agreement between these computed pressures, 
 and those of Rouse, given by Morin, and modified for a mov- 
 ing plane,* are worthy of note. 
 
 Miles per hour. 
 
 30 
 
 35 
 
 40 
 
 45 
 
 50 
 
 60 
 
 80 
 
 100 
 
 Rouse, 
 Ibs. per sq. ft. 
 
 3.16 
 
 4.3 
 
 5.6 
 
 7.11 
 
 8.78 
 
 12.63 
 
 22.49 
 
 35.1 
 
 Langley, 
 Ibs. per sq. ft. 
 
 3.2 
 
 4.3 
 
 5.6 
 
 7.2 
 
 8.8 
 
 12.8 
 
 22.7 
 
 35.6 
 
 1 
 
 * Col. Dubaat's Investigations show that the pressure of the atmosphere on a body moving in 
 still air, is to the pressure caused by an air current of the same velocity, the body being at rest, 
 as 1. is to 1.4. (see Morin). 
 
 The pressures given by the IT. S. Signal Service, so modified, are, practically, the same. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 47 
 
 TABLE II. ' 
 
 SHOWING "DRIFT'' PER SQ. FT. ON AN INCLINED PLANE 
 OF ESPECIAL DESIGN. 
 
 Miles per hour. 
 
 p. 
 
 Pressure on a 
 normal plane, 
 Ibs. per sq. ft. 
 
 00 . 
 41 o 1 
 
 asS> 
 
 a; a 
 
 5* 
 
 l CD 
 
 00 
 JT 
 O 01 
 
 * &a 
 
 T3 0. 
 
 5C to 
 
 a 
 
 00 
 9 
 C} X 
 
 65 6l 
 
 s a 
 * j 
 
 **"* 
 <t & 
 
 * s 
 
 o c- 
 
 10 K 
 
 
 
 i. ~ 
 s * 
 * $ s 
 
 o s, 
 
 2 1 
 
 B. ! 
 
 / c 
 I* 
 
 a* bo t. 
 
 S o a, 
 
 P. 
 
 rt } 
 
 J 
 
 * 
 
 
 oj M fa 
 s a a 
 -r p. 
 
 S I 
 
 25 
 
 2.2 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 30 
 
 3.2 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 2317 
 
 35 
 
 4.3 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ;sll4 
 
 40 
 
 5.6 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 .4056 
 
 45 
 
 7.2 
 
 .0176 
 
 .0346 
 
 
 
 .2038 
 
 .3929 
 
 5214 
 
 50 
 
 8.8 
 
 .0215 
 
 .0423 
 
 
 
 .2491 
 
 .4802 
 
 .6373 
 
 55 
 
 10.7 
 
 .0262 
 
 .0514 
 
 
 
 .3030 
 
 5949 
 
 7735 
 
 60 
 
 12.8 
 
 .0313 
 
 .0615 
 
 
 .1236 
 
 3625 
 
 6985 
 
 9260 
 
 65 
 
 70 
 75 
 
 80 
 85 
 
 14.9 
 17.4 
 20.0 
 
 22.7 
 25.7 
 
 .0364 
 .0426 
 .0489 
 .0556 
 .0631 
 
 .0716 
 .0836 
 .0961 
 .1083 
 .1236 
 
 .1152 
 .1342 
 .1516 
 
 .1777 
 .1987 
 
 .1439 
 .1679 
 .1931 
 2171 
 .2481 
 
 .4220 
 .4928 
 .5664 
 .6429 
 
 .7284 
 
 .8131 
 .9494 
 1.0914 
 1.2387 
 1.4024 
 
 1.0790 
 1.2464 
 1.4484 
 1.6412 
 
 90 
 
 28,8 
 
 .0705 
 
 .1385 
 
 .2226 
 
 .2781 
 
 .8157 
 
 
 ' 
 
 95 
 
 32.0 
 
 .0783 
 
 .1539 
 
 .2473 
 
 .3175 
 
 .9025 
 
 
 
 100 
 
 35.6 
 
 .0872 
 
 .1712 
 
 .2752 
 
 .3457 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 105 
 
 39.2 
 
 .0960 
 
 .1847 
 
 .3030 
 
 .3785 
 
 
 
 
 110 
 
 43 1 
 
 .1055 
 
 .2072 
 
 .3332 
 
 .4166 
 
 
 
 
 115 
 
 47.1 
 
 .1153 
 
 .2265 
 
 .3641 
 
 .4558 
 
 
 
 
 120 
 
 51.2 
 
 .1254 
 
 .2462 
 
 .3958 
 
 .4943 
 
 
 
 
 125 
 
 55.6 
 
 .1361 
 
 .2674 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 130 
 
 59.3 
 
 .1452 
 
 .2852 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 135 
 
 64.1 
 
 .1570 
 
 .3082 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 140 
 
 68.9 
 
 .1687 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 145 
 
 76.1 
 
 .1864 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 150 
 
 79.0 
 
 .1935 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 
 
 See Remarks Tables II and III. 
 
48 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 TABLE III. 
 
 SHOWING " LIFT" PBB SQ. FT. OF AN INCLINED FLAT PLANK, 
 
 Miles per hour. 
 
 p 
 
 Pressure on a 
 normal plane. 
 
 L 
 
 Lift per eq. foot, 
 at 2. 
 Ibs. per sq. ft. 
 
 <w 
 
 . 0* 
 O QQ 
 SO ., 
 
 H S 
 
 < a. 
 
 .a 
 
 . a 1 
 %. 
 
 * 5 S 
 
 < A 
 
 05 
 
 , 
 
 * 
 
 ^ K 
 *t 
 
 A 
 
 o" 6" 
 
 O 0! 
 
 k) rt n 
 
 1 
 
 <! 
 
 no 
 
 2 
 
 o' 6" 
 
 m to 
 kj " I* 
 
 
 
 < a 
 
 9! 
 
 
 
 c 
 
 <O ^ I* 
 
 ' 41 
 
 <ja 
 x> 
 
 9,5 
 
 9, 9, 
 
 
 ! 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 30 
 
 3,9 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1 704 
 
 35 
 
 4 3 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 2.289 
 
 40 
 
 5 6 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 2 982 
 
 45 
 
 79, 
 
 1.102 
 
 1.442 
 
 
 
 2.894 
 
 3.558 
 
 3.834 
 
 50 
 
 8 8 
 
 1.347 
 
 1.763 
 
 
 
 3.540 
 
 4.349 
 
 4.686 
 
 55 
 
 10 7 
 
 1.638 
 
 2.144 
 
 
 
 4.304 
 
 5.389 
 
 5.687 
 
 60 
 
 19 8 
 
 1.959 
 
 2.565 
 
 
 3.432 
 
 5.149 
 
 6.327 
 
 6.816 
 
 65 
 
 70 
 
 75 
 80 
 85 
 
 14.9 
 17.4 
 20.0 
 
 22.7 
 95 7 
 
 2.281 
 2.663 
 3.062 
 3.475 
 3.944 
 
 2.985 
 3.486 
 4.008 
 4.549 
 5.150 
 
 3.787 
 4.413 
 5.084 
 5.870 
 6.532 
 
 3.996 
 4.666 
 5.364 
 
 6.088 
 6.892 
 
 5.994 
 7.000 
 8.046 
 9.132 
 10.349 
 
 7.365 
 8.600 
 9.886 
 11.220 
 12.703 
 
 7.934 
 9.165 
 10.650 
 12.067 
 
 90 
 
 98 8 
 
 4.409 
 
 5.773 
 
 7.320 
 
 7.724 
 
 11.586 
 
 
 
 95 
 
 39 
 
 4.899 
 
 6.412 
 
 8.134 
 
 8.582 
 
 12.933 
 
 
 
 
 100 
 
 35 fi 
 
 5.451 
 
 7.134 
 
 9.049 
 
 9.547 
 
 
 
 
 105 
 
 39 9 
 
 6.001 
 
 7.864 
 
 9.964 
 
 10.513 
 
 
 
 
 110 
 
 43 1 
 
 6.598 
 
 8.637 
 
 10.956 
 
 11.559 
 
 
 
 
 115 
 
 47 1 
 
 7.211 
 
 9.438 
 
 11.972 
 
 12 632 
 
 
 
 
 190 
 
 51 9 
 
 7.838 
 
 10.260 
 
 13.015 
 
 13.731 
 
 
 
 
 125 
 
 55 6 
 
 8.512 
 
 11.142 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 130 
 
 59 3 
 
 9.078 
 
 11.883 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 135 
 
 64 1 
 
 9.813 
 
 12.845 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 140 
 
 68 9 
 
 10.548 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 145 
 
 76 1 
 
 11.650 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 150 
 
 79 
 
 12.094 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 See Remarks Tables II and III. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 49 
 
 REMARKS TO TABLES II AXD III. 
 
 N 
 
 In the figure, AB is an inclined plane making an angle @ 
 with the line of motion, HO. C~N = N, the resultant 
 normal pressure on the plane AB. CR = R, the horizontal 
 component, and CL = L, the vertical component of this 
 pressure, the "drift" and "lift" respectively. R = ~N sin 
 
 R 
 
 ), L = N cos (a). R = L tan (a), andL =- 7^, (for planes 
 
 ' ^ ' * ^ S * *-*- >-* / y\ ' X -- 
 
 tan (_ 
 
 of no thickness) . R = " drift " for flat planes. R' = " drift " 
 for curved surfaces used by Mr. Horatio Phillips, of England, 
 
 R 
 
 and in the table, is taken as^^-p. R is computed from Prof. 
 
 a*O 
 
 Langley's data, pgs. 59, 64 and 66 of his "Experiments 
 in Aerodynamics." (Weight of planes, 500 grammes per sq. 
 ft. " Aspect," 30 in. x 4.8. in.) 
 
 By "aspect" is meant the position of the edges of the 
 plane with reference to the line of motion ; the first written 
 dimension being understood to be horizontal, and perpendicu- 
 lar to the line of advance. 
 
 The important and "predominating influence of aspect" 
 is shown by the fact that the ratio between the resultant 
 normal pressure on a one-foot square plane, inclined at an 
 
50 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 angle of 5 degrees, and the pressure upon the same normal 
 plane, is .15, practically coinciding with that given by 
 
 Duchemins' formula, 1 _i_ a - n z /^ ; whereas, between a plane 
 
 II 9 
 
 + sm- 
 
 V -f 
 
 whose inclination is the same, but whose "aspect'' is 30 
 inches X 4.8 inches, and a normal one-foot square plane, it 
 is, approximately, .30, or double this ratio for square planes. 
 
 CO 
 
 o> 
 o 
 
 Oi 
 
 P 
 
 
 oc 
 
 rx 
 
 g 
 
 as 
 h 
 
 b 
 
 Lbs. 
 
 Soaring 
 Speed 
 Meters 
 per sec. 
 
 Ratios of P. L. 
 and R. 
 
 2 
 
 L 
 
 500 
 
 1.1023 
 
 20 
 
 L P .1531 
 
 
 R 
 
 20 
 
 0.0441 
 
 
 R = L .0400 
 
 
 L 
 
 500 
 
 1.1023 
 
 17 K 
 
 L = P .2004 
 
 
 K 
 
 30 
 
 0.0661 
 
 1 < .O 
 
 R = L .0600 
 
 A 
 
 L 
 
 500 
 
 1.1023 
 
 1 c\ q 
 
 L = P .2542 
 
 * 
 
 R 
 
 38 
 
 0.0838 
 
 ID.O 
 
 R = L .0760 
 
 
 L 
 
 500 
 
 1.1023 
 
 1 p. 9 
 
 L = P .2682 
 
 
 K 
 
 45 
 
 0.0992 
 
 10. Z 
 
 R = L .0900 
 
 in 
 
 L 
 
 500 
 
 1.1023 
 
 19 zl 
 
 L = P .4023 
 
 1U 
 
 E 
 
 88 
 
 0.1940 
 
 \&& 
 
 R = L .1760 
 
 i 
 
 L 
 
 500 
 
 1.1023 
 
 no 
 
 L = P .4943 
 
 10 
 
 R 
 
 128 
 
 0.3043 
 
 . J 
 
 R = L .2760 
 
 9O 
 
 L 
 
 500 
 
 1.1023 
 
 in 
 
 L = P .5325 
 
 A\J 
 
 R 
 
 170 
 
 0.3748 
 
 1U.O 
 
 R = L .3400 
 
PLATE I. 
 
PLATE II 
 

- 
 
 I