While it is undoubtedly true that the discovery of the balloon has
very greatly retarded the science of aerostation, yet, in my opinion,
its field of usefulness as a vehicle for pleasure excursions, for
explorations, and for scientific investigations, has not been fully
developed for the want of certain improvements, the nature of which it
is the object of this paper to point out. The improvement of which I
am about to speak relates to the regulation of the buoyancy of the
balloon. This is now done by throwing out ballast or by allowing some
of the gas to escape--a method which necessitates the carrying of an
unwieldy amount of sand and the expenditure of an unnecessary amount
of gas.
From the fire balloon invented by the Montgolfier Brothers, in 1782,
to the superior hydrogen balloon of M.M. Charles and Robert, no
material advancement has been made, except the employment of coal gas,
first suggested by Mr. Green. The vast surface presented to the wind
makes the balloon unmanageable in every breeze, and the aeronaut can
do nothing but allow it to float along with the current. This is a
difficulty which has been partly overcome, as was seen at the recent
Paris Electrical Exhibition; but no one will ever be able to guide it
in a direction opposite to a current of air. The aeronaut must ever
content himself in being able to float in the direction of the current
or at certain angles to its course; but to do this even is a matter
which has not been successfully accomplished. An inflated balloon
would ascend too high unless several hundred pounds of ballast were
used to weight it down. This ballast serves another purpose, it is
desirable to maintain the balloon at a uniform distance above the
earth's surface, and as the two per cent. daily waste of gas
diminishes the buoyancy of the balloon, it must be kept from
descending by throwing off a certain amount of sand. Again, the heat
of the sun and the action of warm air currents cause at times the
volume of gas to undergo a sudden expansion, and then to prevent the
balloon from running too high, the gas must be allowed to escape from
the valve. The gas, under these circumstances, must also be allowed to
escape in order to prevent the balloon from bursting. Presently the
balloon will pass through a colder current of air and sudden
condensation takes place, and the balloon would sink unless more
ballast were thrown off. This process continues until the aeronaut has
neither ballast nor gas left.
Now, I suggest that a large balloon be made with the mouth closed, so
that no gas can escape; and that it carry enough ballast to keep it,
under an ordinary temperature, at a certain distance from the ground.
A pipe must enter the mouth of the balloon, one end of which opens in
its interior and the other end in a gas reservoir which lies in the
"basket" or "car." As soon as the gas undergoes an expansion, and a
certain amount of pressure is made in this reservoir, a valve opens
and a whistle signals the moment when the force pumps must be set to
work to pump the air out of the balloon into the large _number two_
reservoir, the frame work of which forms the body of the car. Taking a
certain amount of gas out of the balloon is equivalent to taking on
more ballast, while by condensing this gas into a large reservoir, it
is not allowed to escape, and when necessary can be sent back into the
balloon and thus prevent the throwing off of ballast. Coal gas, under
a certain pressure, becomes heavier than air (or at least equally
heavy), and thus the gas pumped out of the balloon will of itself
serve as ballast. This invention will enable the balloonist to keep
himself at a uniform distance above the earth, will prevent the
carrying of so much ballast and the expensive waste of gas, and will
enable him to keep afloat at least ten times as long as by the old
method. I have made a model and tested the above theory.
ELI C. OHMART.
North Manchester, Ind.
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ARTISTS' HOMES. NO. 12--MR. WILLIAM EMERSON'S HOUSE AT LITTLE
SUTTON, CHISWICK.
[Illustration]
Little Sutton was an old house, parts of which were in existence
before the time of Cromwell. It is situated in a picturesque old
garden, surrounded by ivy-clad walls and fine trees, one of the cedars
being extraordinarily large and perfect, its huge branches covering a
space of over 90 ft. in diameter. The greater part of the old house,
being uninhabitable through decay, was pulled down; the old parts are
shown in black on the plan, and the new hatched. It is faced with red
bricks, and red Corsehill stone dressings, and covered with tiles The
plan was arranged so as to preserve the old kitchen, billiard-room,
morning room, and conservatory. The hall, entered from a veranda in
connection with the entrance-porch, is surrounded by a dado, the
height of doors; the lower panels are filled with tiles made to design
by the School of Art at Bombay. The woodwork is painted a mottled blue
color, harmonizing with the general tone of the tiles, the whole being
something the color of _lapis lazuli_. The staircase is divided from
the hall by three arches, through which is seen the staircase-window,
representing, in stained glass, the Earth, Air, and Water. Under the
central arch is the fireplace, on the hood of which will eventually be
a bronze figure of Orpheus, on a ground of mosaic. The floor is of
marble mosaic, and round the border are the various beasts listening
to the music, the trees and river, etc. Above the dado, and on the
wooden panels of ceiling, will be the birds, etc. The woodwork of
dining-room is plain American walnut, the panels of dado being filled
with dark Japanese leather-paper. The panels and beams of ceiling are
of stained and dull varnished fir. The drawing room woodwork, and
furniture throughout, is painted a mottled greenish blue, after the
same manner as the hall. The decorations of this room, when complete,
are intended to illustrate Chaucer's "House of Fame." The
chimney-piece, of alabaster, is surmounted by a Caen-stone design, on
a rock of glass, showing the entrance to the castle, with the various
figures mentioned in the poem, carved in half-round relief, and the
gateway itself also richly and quaintly carved; the rock of glass
representing the ice on which the castle was supposed to be built,
and on it are cut the various famous names of the world's history. In
the frieze all round the room will be the figure of Fame and the
various groups of suppliants, and the pillars with the groups
upholding the renown of ancient cities and nations, etc., executed in
very low relief, and painted on a ground of blue and gold. The panels
of ceilings will have conventional designs and the heavenly bodies on
ground of gold and blue. The morning and other rooms have no
particular scheme of decoration prepared, and are simply painted and
papered in quiet tones.
[Illustration: ARTISTS' HOMES No. 12--LITTLE SUTTON, CHISWICK.]
We publish a longitudinal section, taken through the hall and
drawing-room, with part of the dining-room on the left and part of the
library on the right-hand side. The beautifully-modeled plaster
frieze, with the central figure of Fame, is shown in the drawing-room,
and illustrates Chaucer's "House of Fame," the whole being elaborately
colored in harmony with the purposes and general tone of the room,
which is in blue and gold. The hooded mantelpiece in the library is
entirely in concrete, to be richly painted and gilded. The drawing,
with the assistance of the description, will explain
itself.--_Building News._
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