science, the " sound film." In film work, however, the gramophone is not used as much as it used to be, owing to the difficulty of obtaining perfect synchronism between the film and the sound, but still there is no doubt that without the gramophone the accomplishments of great musicians and statesmen would be entirely unknown to rising generations.
FREDERIC W. WALKLING.
THE FUTURE OF AVIATION.
Aviation will be the means of travel and transport in the near future. Great steps are already being made. The mail is brought from Australia to England in about twelve days. The Imperial Airways are now proposing a passenger and mail route between London and the Cape, the journey to be completed in four and a half days, which will be of great use to men whose business takes them abroad.
In America there is an air service which goes from New York to Los Angeles, and is completed in five days.
The aeroplane itself is getting safer ; it is not very often now that we hear of an air liner crashing. " Hannibal " shows a great step towards the future. It is designed for long distances, the span of the top wing is 130 ft. and the lower wing 94 ft., from nose to tail measures 86 ft. ; its height from the ground is 25 ft., and it carries thirty-two passengers. Its top speed fully laden is 116 m.p.h. This plane is fitted with a kitchen, so that passengers can have their meals on board, as the distance between aerodromes is sometimes great.
Engineers are dreaming of the time when they will be able to construct a plane with cabins, dining-room, and control rooms in the wings, or planes that will be driven by rockets. This was tried with a motor-car, but was not a success.
The auto-gyro will be a very useful type of plane, because it can rise and land almost vertically, and therefore save a great amount of space in landing. The speed of the aeroplane increases rapidly, the record being held at 408 m.p.h.
The desire to go up in an aeroplane, or be able to fly one, is rapidly increasing in the rising generation. So in a few years to come air travel will be the universal means of conveyance.
W. APPS.
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