The future development of aerostation is necessarily difficult to
forecast. Having reviewed its history from its inception we have to
allow that the balloon in itself, as an instrument of aerial locomotion,
remains practically only where it was 120 years ago. Nor, in the nature
of the case, is this to be wondered at. The wind, which alone guides the
balloon, is beyond man's control, while, as a source of lifting power, a
lighter and therefore more suitable gas than hydrogen is not to be found
in nature.
It is, however, conceivable that a superior mode of inflation may yet
be discovered. Now that the liquefaction of gases has become an
accomplished fact, it seems almost theoretically possible that a
balloonist may presently be able to provide himself with an unlimited
reserve of potential energy so as to be fitted for travel of indefinite
duration. Endowed with increased powers of this nature, the aeronaut
could utilise a balloon for voyages of discovery over regions of the
earth which bar man's progress by any other mode of travel. A future
Andree, provided with a means of maintaining his gas supply for six
weeks, need have no hesitation in laying his course towards the North
Pole, being confident that the winds must ultimately waft him to some
safe haven. He could, indeed, well afford, having reached the Pole, to
descend and build his cairn, or even to stop a week, if he so desired,
before continuing on his way.
But it may fairly be claimed for the balloon, even as it now is, that
a great and important future is open to it as a means for exploring
inaccessible country. It may, indeed, be urged that Andree's task
was, in the very nature of the case, well nigh impracticable, and his
unfortunate miscarriage will be used as argument against such a method
of exploration. But it must always be remembered that in Andree's case
the rigours of climate which he was compelled to face were the most
serious of all obstacles to balloon travel. The extreme cold would
not only cause constant shrinkage of the gas, but would entail the
deposition of a weight of moisture, if not of snow, upon the surface of
the balloon, which must greatly shorten its life.
It would be entirely otherwise if the country it were sought to explore
were in lower latitudes, in Australia, or within the vast unknown belt
of earth lying nearer the equator. The writer's scheme for exploring the
wholly unknown regions of Arabia is already before the public. The
fact, thought to be established by the most experienced aeronauts of
old times, and already referred to in these pages, that at some height
a strong west wind is to be found blowing with great constancy all
round the globe, is in accordance with the view entertained by modern
meteorologists. Such a wind, too, may be expected to be a fairly fast
wind, the calculation being that, as a general rule, the velocity of
currents increases from the ground at the rate of about three miles
per hour for each thousand feet of height; thus the chance of a balloon
drifting speedily across the breadth of Arabia is a strong one, and,
regarded in this light, the distance to be traversed is certainly
not excessive, being probably well within the lasting power of such a
balloon as that employed by Andree. If, for the sake of gas supply, Aden
were chosen for the starting ground, then 1,200 miles E.N.E. would carry
the voyager to Muscat; 1,100 miles N.E. by E. would land him at Sohar;
while some 800 miles would suffice to take him to the seaboard if his
course lay N.E. It must also be borne in mind that the Arabian sun by
day, and the heat radiated off the desert by night, would be all in
favour of the buoyancy of the balloon.
But there are other persistent winds that, for purposes of exploration,
would prove equally serviceable and sure. From time immemorial the
dweller on the Nile has been led to regard his river in the light of a
benignant deity. If he wished to travel down its course he had but to
entrust his vessel to the stream, and this would carry him. If, again,
he wished to retrace his course, he had but to raise a sail, and the
prevalent wind, conquering the flood, would bear him against the stream.
This constant north wind, following the Nile valley, and thence trending
still southward towards Uganda, has been regarded as a means to hand
well adapted for the exploration of important unsurveyed country by
balloon. This scheme has been conceived and elaborated by Major B.F.S.
Baden-Powell, and, so far, the only apparent obstacle in the way has
proved the lack of necessary funds.
It will be urged, however, that for purposes of exploration some form of
dirigible balloon is desirable, and we have already had proof that where
it is not sought to combat winds strongly opposed to their course such
air ships as Santos-Dumont or Messrs. Spencer have already constructed
acquit themselves well; and it requires no stretch of imagination to
conceive that before the present century is closed many great gaps in
the map of the world will have been filled in by aerial survey.
But, leaving the balloon to its proper function, we turn to the flying
machine properly so called with more sanguine hopes of seeing the real
conquest of the air achieved. It was as it were but yesterday when the
air ship, unhampered by huge globes of gas, and controlled by mechanical
means alone, was first fairly tried, yet it is already considered by
those best able to judge that its ultimate success is assured.
This success rests now solely in the hands of the mechanical engineer.
He must, and surely can, build the ship of such strength that some
essential part does not at the critical moment break down or carry away.
He may have to improve his motive power, and here, again, we do not
doubt his cunning. Motor engines, self-contained and burning liquid
fuel, are yet in their infancy, and the extraordinary emulation now
existing in their production puts it beyond doubt that every year will
see rapid improvement in their efficiency.
We do not expect, nor do we desire, that the world may see the
fulfilment of the poet's dream, "Argosies of magic sails" or "Airy
navies grappling in the central blue." We would not befog our vision of
the future with any wild imaginings, seeking, as some have done, to see
in the electricity or other hidden power of heaven the means for its
subjugation by man; but it is far from unreasonable to hope that but
a little while shall pass, and we shall have more perfect and reliable
knowledge of the tides and currents in the vast ocean of air, and when
that day may have come then it may be claimed that the grand problem of
aerial navigation will be already solved.