The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

THE COLBORNE EXPRESS, COLBORNE, ONT, THURSDAY, SEPT. 29, 1927 Europe's Race to Rule the Sky The Old World's Attitude Toward Aviation Keeps the Experts Guessing--Russia and Italy Are Getting 'Air Minded," But Great Britain and France Show an Apathy Toward Flying Which May Prove Disastrous--to Britain, at Least--If Not Overcome By LORD THOMSON OF CARDINGTON Former British Secretary of State for Air It is a curious and significant fact that the Russian government, in addition to creating a formidable air force has perceived, perhaps more clearly than any other government, what are essentials of "air power" and using the n .chin and Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester, the majority of English seaports and cities are huge targets, as vulnerable as they are essential to the nation's life. They fended in one way only--the establish- into"~the For example: The study of aviation has been made complsory in Russian schools; even in the smallest institutions model airplanes arc provided, and the children are being taught the rudiments of aero-dynamics. The interest of adults is maintained by, among other organizations, the All-Russian Volunteer aircraft Association, whose purpose is to provide facilities for flying as a pastime. Like all associations in Soviet Russia, thi: of state to instil i ment of British air power on broad i of the lot exist without government tion. and deep foundations. Broad, because from the very nature they must be for-flung; deep, for unless they rest upon national industry and peacetime habits, an air force, however efficient, well equiped and self-sacrificing its personnel may be, will be a superstructure without foundations, since it will lack the requisite reserves. Nation Apathetic. In view of these considerations, is both disappointing and surprising that the British people as a whole should be apathetic in regard to Twelve Killed in London Train Wreck Traveling fifty miles an hour, loaded with holiday passengers left rails owing to washout during heavy storm. taken in aviation. It will, therefore, routes as it would be to leave coast l-f-w k r£yt-are den?<m-,b« m^e profitable to look forward and lines unligl.ted, harbors undredged ' now'inter.;,! ihr nronaeanda is «Wn t tff f^f™' The member- con8ider future developments, rather and bridges broken; yet the charges llo * intensive the propaganda is ship of the Air League of the British than conternplate the somewhat for all these maintenance services are may be gathered from the following. Empire did not exceed in 1926 the meagre showing of he t. The met {m the most * e » ^ figures: In the Ukraine alone there, paltry total of 6,000 and are 4,662 local aeronautical societies-ing- very slowly. In Germany with a total membership of 36O.0O0. ciation with similar aims has Each member pays a fee of eighteen bership of several hundred thousand, rubles, but whether thi: franco fee or annual subscription is not quite clear. Two societies, the Eociey of the Friends of Aviation and the Society of Chemical Defence, have tlc.v been amalgamated into knewu as the Aviokhim, whoso bership exceads 2,000,000. This suggestive combination has already formed nineteen 1.2C0 libraries containing book: aeronautical subjects throughout the and Czechoslovakia, whose population is 15,000,000, has an Air League with 80,000 members. A Few Enthusiasts. Admittedly, the foregoing figures word "showing" has been used intentionally, because, behind the scenes, much useful experimental and research work has been done by the Air Ministry experts and aircraft manufacturers. Like Italy, Great Britain will have to rely to a great extent on seaplanes ' present the dark side of the situation, jfor a,r communication. It may I There is a brighter side, where the in-j that when airship designers have wim-' din"€r€nce of the many is redeemed by clubs and established ,the enthusiasm of a few. All over x' the country there are groups of pa-, triotic men and women ready to sacri-j lice their money, if not their necks, I in the cause of aviation. The support Military Aviation. | given by the Air Ministry to Light 0 ether hand, military aviation ' Airplane Clubs has been appreciated has net been neglected. If numbers' and has met with a satisfactory res-crc a measure of strength, Russia is | por.se. At least six such clubs are new a first c!as= air ewer. The Rus- now in existence with growing mem-l^ded that their "useful load" and Bian Air Force is said to ossess from bership and the latest returns of pu-'range of flight can be increased. Con-1,2") to 1,503 military aircraft. Orig-jpils in training and of flying licenses,sWerable progress in this direction has inally Russia imported airplanes from: granted are most promising. Several I been made already, and in the near Germany, and her squadrons were' successful air race meetings have been i future commercial seaplanes should equipped from the Junkers, Fokker, held in 1927 and the prospects for be available with a range of 1,500 and Dernier factories, but recently a ' the remainder of the season are good.' national aircraft industry has been , Aviation as a sport seems to be tak-founded with a research department, | ing root in England, and this is no and the latest machines have been : small mater, from every point of view, i Russia from Russian designs. | On the commercial side Imperial and taxes. Italy's Expei Italy's aviation probh The Motor Toll Carelessness,--of the car itself. Its brakes, its stearing gear; carelessness of operation,--too much speed, cutting-in, loafing; carelessness to traffic rules, and signals; all these add to our mounting tole of motor accidents. The motor car has added greatly to t!ie harsard of our Ontario roads. It is time that all good citizens united to report the careless driver. One year ict enforcer ud think. t of c Help make Ontaric Autumn Tresis Rub about a five-pound piece of lean beef with salt and pepper and half a-teaspoon of ground doves and th<> same quantity cf allnpice, then put Into a vessel in which is enough vinegar to cover it, together with a sliced, lemon, a sliced onion and half a bay leaf. Turn several times; leave in tbo vinegar three or four days, remove, wipe well and pot roast as usual. Cut a Veget arid safer before the French take t four-pound chicken into cubes; put It into boiling water with half a pound of lean ham, diced, and ono large onion, sliced. Cover and let It simmer for an hour and a half; p.dd one quart cf peeled end sliced tomatoes, one pint cf string beo be done. In aviation, the incredible of to-day is the possible of to-morrow. Although, in the strict sense of the term, France has no air force--that is, no independent service on footing as the two older | the air arm of the French similar ■ numerically, the most powerful in the in many ways to that of Britain--her ■ world, long coast line and interests overseas French air arm is administered by necessitate the use of her seaplanes or j the War Office, and the chief sufferer, .mphibians. On the development of though by no means the only sufferer, spite of the fact that it costs chopped green pepper, four medium little if any mere and is much less sized potatoes,-diced, uid salt to taste; dangerous than travel in a French cover and simmer another hour. Add train. one pint of cookeu grated corn, a A Flying Fish. i fourth of a pound of butter, cut Into . Nevertheless, much useful experi- smal> scares and rolled in flour, a mental work is being carried on in [ <Juarter of » ^xma of grated cheese France. One interesting innovation i and the beaten >ok of a" e*«- Stlr is the so-called "submarine seaplane," j fivt> minutes and serve, a machine which, according to its de-| Cabbage Dumplings signers, can fly above or ewim below] Cut eight slices of salt pork into the surface of the sea. While this • pieces, ccok out the fat and ifemov*. device may have no practical appli- j the meat. Add three quarts of chop-cation for years to come, it is all to ped cabbage, sprinkle with cne tea-the gdod that work of this kind should spoo; than from this arrangement is the French he r naval air service. The complaints of igin- the latter have been loud and long, hold their latest occasion having been some and unsatisfactory experiments with sea- these types of aircraft, far on land machines and bomloi air future will depend. Italian solved the problems of "control""of jeers- Pilots and mechanics ca: lighter-than-air vessels--and there is Itheir own with those of any ra< every reason to believe that they will! ^eat things may be expected from planes. succeed_the latter will play an im-|them if they find an outlet for their j Russia, Italy and France portant part as passenger and freight I energies in the organization and dbubtedly great air powers of the carriers. But that art will be more ■ equipment of air transport systems,' future. Two of them, France and in competition with ocean steamers i Providing safe and regular communi-; Italy, are developing aviation than with airplanes. For seaplanes i cation across the Mediterranean and on military lines, in striking contrast there will always be a place on theAdriatic. In this way Italy will lay to the procedure imposed on Germany ' routes of the British Empire, pro-! the foundation of her air power far by the Treaty of Versailles. Russia, RuE-sia is specializing in ail-metal -j>r",p1"'""" made of «. new alloy--Kolt-chougaliminium. This metal combines lightness with a tensile strength of 85,CC3 pounds to the square inch and has given satisfactory results in the various tests applied. An airplane constructed throughout of this alloy and fitted with a 450 horsepower Liberty engine has made a non-stop flight, from Moscow to Nijni Novgorod Advanced Methods. airplar In South Russia fleets < are employed to destroy locusts by spraying them with poison. Nothing could bring home better the population the i tages of aviation than this practice. Th; most dazzling stunts and feats of airmanship would not impress the Russian peasants half as extermination from the sky of these voracious insects, caught replete and asleep upon the fields they devastate. Whether Russia will become in the true sense a great air power time alone can show. Her wide and distant spaces offer an ideal field for aviation; the Slavs have produced many brilliant engineers and should produce good pilots and mechanics. What this race lacks is concentration imd the faculty for detailed organization. But if the propaganda' now at ■work bears fruit and Russia builds «p a national air transport system with an adequate aircraft industry for her internal needs, so vast her resources and-so great are natural advantages that in a few years' time she may quite possibly be in a position to control the air routs ever Asia to the East. Britain's Opportunity. i Contrasted in many ways with the growing opularity of aviation and the increasing "air mindedness" of Russia is the status of flying in Great Britain. Aviation offers a splendid opportunity to Great Britain. No European state has more to gain by its rational development. If the prob- ;Jems presented by this new form of Jpcomoticn are tackled boldly and tional energies are not paralyzed by the inferiority complex which makes unenterprising people dread ail change and discourage the activities of others, the rewards, though not immediate, will amply compensate the efforts and sacrifices made. They will be, on the J^terlal Bide, pew markets, more em- i ployemnt, readier access to undeveloped, regions closer an<^ wjder inter- "cour.*? Vnthin the British common wealth ana throughout the worTd". On the moral side their worth will be incalculable--a broader outlook, better understanding, a quickening of the progressive spirit, without which the Er-catest and most powerful states Stagnate and eventually decay. On the other hand, no people have more to lose by the neglect of aviation than the Britten. These islands have lost their old security; sea power is helpless against air attack; London Airways Limited are providing regular servicss,-with the Continent. Their air liners enjoy a deservedly high reputation for safety and British pilots inspire confidence in the most timid. During the period 1919 to 1926 the rate of fatal accidents was only per 1,141,000 miles flown with passengers and freight. Highly Efficient. Although the British air force is, numerically, not so strong as certain continental^r forces, it may be claimed that it makes up in efficiency for lack of numbers. Visitors to the annual air force display cannot fail to be 'impressed by the skill and daring and" ad van-1of the Brltish airmen, and in every branch of aeronautics the same high standard is maintained. Unfortunately, in aerial warfare the casualties will be appalling, and while there is the faintest possibility of war recurring one fact of aramount import-is that the British air force has now taken the place of the British navy as the first line of home defence. As such it must be prepared for a long war of attrition to survive which it will need he backing of a national aircraft industry and an imperial air transport system just as the navy. The Briish are proverbially slow starters, but they seem at last to be recovering from post-war reaction, an signs are not lacking that more seri- It will then be possible for traveler to fly from England to the Antiodes in ten non-stop flights with a total of at most 150 flying The stages might be Malta, Egypt, Bushire, Tr-pore, Port Australia and one in New Zeal these conditions, the gain in time would be a decisive factor, and no one with business of importance would hesitate to take the air route. With machines possessing this range of flight, empire air transport will be-rome a commercial proposition. Does Not Pay. In all countries the same complaint is made--that aviation does not pay -- It certainly does not. ~ solidly than by the maintenance of an air force of such size "that the drone of motors will drown all other sounds in Italy 'and the wings of airplanes above the peninsular will eclipse the sun," to paraphrase a passage from a public speech attributed by the newspapers to Premier Mus- Unfortunately, the air force estimates in Italy, like those of other nntries, are going up, and the Ital-credited with the Tonstructing 2,800 military aircraft by 1930. The Marquess de Pinedo has per- the other hand, is pursuing exceptional propagandist methods simultaneously with the provision of a powerful air force. If the government in Moscow can achieve the miracle of making Russian peasants "air-minded," then Italy, France and Gar-many together will not be Russia's equal in air power. For the British, delay or hesitation in building up an ai rforce will be disastrous. Great Britain's position in th» world has been built up on the basis cf sea power; now it needs air power to maintain it. Its mariners, backed by governments with vision and the instincts of a trading people, made possible the British Commonwealth across the "illimitable pathways of the sea." two quarts of ter; cook thirty minutes; add entire wheat dumplings and cook fifteen minutes longer. Pare and core two tart appl«3, cut them into rings half »n Inch thick and fry until tender. Put the cabbage into a deep plate; garnish with tho apple rings the pork and the dumplings, Shoo-Fly Pie Mix one cup of pastry flesr with one-fourth of a teaspoon of salt, one-third of a teaspoon of soda, one-third of a cup of brown sugar, and ono tablespoon of lard. When well blended add one-third of a eup of molasses and one-third of a tup of boiling water. Mix well and place on a small pie pan lined with pastrgr. Bake in a hot oven until brown. Serve with coffee for breakfast. Molasse3 Dumplings Mix one cup of warm milk, one-fourth of a cup of butter, a little salt and a half a cup of yeast; mix with flour to make a stiff dough; form into balls about the size of walnuts and place in a well greased deep pJfji to rise. Cook together about five minutes one cup of molasses, one cui? g*j water and one tablespoon of lutter and pour the mixture over the dumplings when they are light and b:fc>*fei) Fruit Potple ft two teaspoons of baking pow-jnto one quart of flour, add half a teaspoon of salt; rub two tablespoons of butter into it with tho finger tips and add water to make.a soft dough. Roll and pat out two-thirds of the haps a clearer notion of the require- posSbte thT BTi«X^m^on-j dou«h an^ covcr the b°ttom ot « ments of aerial supremacy He has weftlth aciWg ^ .<i!limitab,e th_ | deep buttered pan or a kettle with been urging, among other things, the g of th<j ^ „ Itg airmen* can I legs. Add a quart of quartered ap-construction of seaplanes navigable consolkiate that 'commonwealth and | Pies or peacbes; add sugar bountifully, . the surface of the water. This idea is far from being fantastic; the (seaworthiness of seaplanes is surprising, though explainable on aerostatic principles; they skim i;;v<- lease of prosperity and life only by equal enterprise and dax-| Roll the r times the present traffic is required1 roughest sea and neither crash into to make British air transport pay. £° ™7&\T Jal^.\™ th^ troug^. But those who complai.i mos; loudlv! Plnedo 8 Atl*ntic flights aroused the either forget or do not know of the! wil<test enthusiasm throughout Italy, bubsidies paid to shipping companie' laining dough for the top ... pathways more illimitable'cru81 and »,!nch ,the edges well to-and trackless, whose courses are in aether and put in a quick three dimensions and above both land flrst- then Iower tho Leat be brown all over. id the plight of the railways in their earlier days. Subsidies are as necessary to aviation as milk is to a chi'd. Governments which starve this form of transportation, and its related industry, will be guilty of a penny-wise-pound-foolish policy, and rightly incur the obloquy of succeeding generations. The future is with airfaring nations, and subsidies to commercial aviation are a good investment of public money, the best form such sub; where his name is a household word. If his popularity and influence are sufficiently maintained to enable him to put his ideas into practice it will be fortunate for Italy and not less so for Europe. France Behind Too. Although France contributed so much to the early development of aviation, it is probably true to say that, with the exception of the British, no race displays greater apathy in Perhaps regard to aviation than the French, take In spite of all attempts by the govern- j It should • uppc Explained Her Make-Up. 3--"All the world's a stage." --"That explains your make- THREE KILLED IN BLAST IN BRITISH NAVY PLANT ous and widespread interest is being! will be, The real-estate fl is the indirect one of providing and ment to excite its interests by means hire flappers and equipping air routes. These routes of aeronautical exhibitions and de-; elderly women de are as essential to a modern state as mon'stration flights the French public ' gratulated upon ii routes or public roads. It is, or has not yet acquired "air sense." Air tlnguish bet mble to neglect a ivel will 1 s to be both cheaper (Evening Post. Best of Ontario's Cattle Herds Parade in Coliseum London.--A terrific explosion in the navy's cordite storeroom at Wareliam recently caused the death of three workmen. Three other men, one of whom was carrying a trayful of high explosives, was blown out of the building amid a torrent of bricks and debris, but they were not Injured. Several women employees were slightly hurt. ^ - - j As the only three men working at the place where tho exploaion occur-m that refuses to'red were killed, the cause cf it reemploys none but mains unexplained. The explosion erves to be con- was the flrst in tho plant since tho a ability to dis- war, them.--New York immediately after the blast tho 'storeroom became a mas3 of flames, ---,;which mounted 100 feet high. Twenty employees, including several girls, had to dash for safety. The building was consumed in a few minutes, although the firemen prevented tho spread of the flames. All other buildings in the plant .vere shattered. The factory is the research laboratory of the Admiralty and contains The prize v.in udging of all the THE GRAND FINAL MAR , parade cn the last Friday of E ;J i keen this year and the final P s loud and it I "Yes, I'm I "it is difficult to make ; out of the law nowadays," a eolieifer-ccmplains. But practice *U_ do X.