Tiis San Francisco Sunday CalL
ALL ABOARD FOR THE MOON!
In a recent number of the Contem
porary Review there appeared an article
by Col. F. JV. Maude, of the British Army,
disclosing the fact that there has been
built in England a stupendous gun or
projectile machine, invented by a Mr.
Simpson, which by the utilization of
certain electrical forces can throw a pro
jectile an initial distance of 300 miles)
With this startling fact in mind, Mr.
Robert C. Auld, F. Z. S, revising editor
of the American Supplement of the En
cyclopedia Britannica, and contributor
to the Encyclopedia Americana, etc; has
prepared for the Herald the following
article to show that the time may be
comparatively near at hand when, with
such an apparatus, it will be possible to
throw a passenger carrying body similar
in form to a naval torpedo so far beyond
the influence of the earth's gravity that
it must inevitably reach the nearest body
in planetary space, viz., the moon.
Robert C. Auld. F. Z. S.
I>Ti6lnp editor of the American Supplement «f
rh* Enerclopa«Mli* Britannic*. Special con
tribator to Encyclopaedia Americana, etc.
IS another of Jules Verne's fantastic
dreams to come true? Is a messnge
to the moon, once the visionary fan
tasy of the author of "A Trip to the
Moon." to come within the realm of
science? For centuries the moon has
furnished an endless subject of astro
nomical conjecture. Only In recent
years has it become a certain field of
scientific exploration. Its volcanic
cones and craters. Its dead river beds
ar.d verd tireless mountains have all
come within accurate geodetic survey.
It Is only the intervening 239.000 miles
of ether that separates It from the
world that staggers the imagination of
the scientist and layman alike, but If
the claims of a London inventor, A. S.
Simpson, are true, even that vast space
may be traversed with assurance and
safety. Mr. Simpson has Invented an
electrical gun which he asserts will
carry a projectile of 2,000 pounds at
the rate of 20,000 feet a second for
SOO miles. The actual test has not
been made, but military authorities
have indorsed the plans, and scien
tists may rejoice.
A gun with the propulsive power ot
the Simpson Invention. having the
muzzle velocity claimed for it, over
rornes the chief hindrance to mortal In
vasion of the moon.
Hitherto the problem that has per
plexed scientists has been to penetrate
the zone of gravity that encompasses
the earth for' a distance of some 150
miles. Once outside this atmospheric
realm of gravity and air pressure the
problem of reaching the moon, accord-
Ing: to scientists, becomes less specu
lative than In Jules Verne's time. It In
well known that the celebrated ro
mancer of science founded his stories
on actual knowledge of the period in
•which he lived. Scientific progress In
the last 50 years has been great, but
It sustains the French author's idea
that the only feasible way of sending
a message to the moon Is by firing a
projectile from a huge gun.
Jules V«rne used 400.000 pounds of
nitroglycerin to explode his charge, the
concussion being so great that 5,000,000
people who saw it fired were hurled to
ths ground. Electricity has .altered the
face and the character of the earth
since then, co that the dangers of. con
cussion may be eliminated.
Jules Verne's grun was mythical;
there was no propulsive power known
at that time to science that would pro
ject a missile beyond the zone of the
earth's gravity. Only recently Pro
fessor Ernest Crane Dodge, A. M.. has
stated that "a body relieved of gravity
would reach the moon in 10 days."
HOW 'much faster would a projectile
from ar. «.«jlarged Simpson gun,. a
veritable lunar* cannon, accom
plish the trip from the earth In the
direction of the moon!
A lunar cannon based on the-Simp
*on plan could «axilx tourl Us projectile
beyond the zone of the earth's gravity.
Through the unknown vacuum, ether
and air currents the projectile, which
in its lunar course would be controlled
by progressive, power, would be anjalr
tlght chamber of the nature suggested
by Jules Verne. The novelist had no
actual parallel for his invention. To
day we have its counterpart In the sub
marine boat, and In such a car,
equipped with every modern device of
science for maintaining life, at least
five scientists could make the trip in
comfort and safety. The possibility
that the force of the moon's gravity
would be such that the scientists might
never return to earth would not daunt ,
Intrepid men, who have undertaken
most hazardous experiments in' polar
and volcanic regions in the interest of
the world's knowledge.
Calculating by known ordnance and
speculating by existent forces, the
manufacture and the discharge of a
lunar gun are not beyond the realm of
reason. We have for a basis the 12
4nch gun, the accepted limit of an ef
fective naval rifle. The 12-Inch gun will
carry a projectile weighing 870 pounds
a distance of six miles. The cost of
this gun Is $60,000. To fire It requires
250 pounds of smokeless powder at SO
cents a pound, or $200, the projectile
Itself costing $500.
A lunar gun of the Simpson type,
large enough to hurl a - projectile
through the zone of gravity, would
need to be thousands .of times more
powerful than the naval rifle. The
amount of steel required in its manu
facture would be greater than that used
In the largest battleship in the world,
and would be equal to that used in the
Metropolitan Life building in Madison
square. New York. In fact, the lunar
sun required 'would be about the size
of the Metropolitan building, which is
more than 200 feet square and 700 feet
high. The gun would cost $3,000,000, a
paltry sum In these days to devote to
such an experiment. The cost of firing
the lunar gun would not be .great, in
consideration of the results of such an
exploit. The expenditure, if smokeless
powder were used, would not exceed
the .cost of eight volley broadsides of
the entire ordnance of. 1,011 guns of
Admiral Evans' fleet, a single broad
side being estimated at $50,000, making
the expenditure for the singie charge of
the lunar gun $400,000 if smokeless
powder we^e used, which, however, la
not anticipated, as will be seen later.
The recoil of a 50 ton gun would lift
the Lusitania out of the water, which
would render the discharge ; by explo
sion of the lunar cannon of the size de
scribed almost impossible, but, assum
ing the correctness of the electrical ex
plosive'power suggested. by Jne.Slmp
son gun, . thst knotty feature of the
problem is eMminated. " The explosive
principle involved Is one that has been
figure*", out and the. recpll .is; so dis
tributed and confined that it imparts
the full force of its carrying power to
the. projectile, and therein- must lie the
secret of the possibility of .a lunar, g6n
that will hurl, a huge projectile car. of
wrought steel beyond the 250 mile limit
of the earth's gravity. •\u25a0 — ' '.' '
: The direction -of; tht projectile -once
successfully launched Is a vital ele
ment to control. In projecting a mis
sile to hit an objective point on earth
the parabolic curve must be calculated,
but in fixing the moon as a target the
missile would be fired altltudinously —
in direct diametrical line away from
the diametrical line of the earth.
The matter of direction will solve
itself mathematically, physically and
mechanically. The force of projection
being provided we have only to con
sider the difficulties in the path of the
projectile while traversing the un
known oceans of jellylike ether.
WHERE there Is no atmosphere
there is a vacuum — as far as air
is concerned, but'not iniso far as
ether is concerned. But where there is
a vacuum gravity at such a distance
from earth loses Its place.' But grav
ity is one thing and gravitation is an
other. Gravitation is universal. It is
a. mysterious, .unknown force that
steers the stars in space in their
courses, moving them through the am
bient ether at the slow rate of 20 knots
a second.
The projectile once beyond earth's
gravity, how it act? What
analogy in nature have we for suppos
ing that such a body so Intruded would
conduct itself In an orderly manner in
its course? Will the projectile sink or
move through this ethereal jelly ocean
without obstruction, while the earth,
moon and stars are rushing through
the ether at 100,04)0 feet per second?
Gravitation is a thing not of earth,
but really of ether itself. Gravitation
depends on mass and motion, which
would render the projectile actually
under control by the laws of nature.
The movement of the projectile is sim
ply analogous to one of these falling or
erratic stars, that result from "disrup
tive explosion and which become visible
only when being set ,on fire as they
strike the tncLon eleaiunt oi tu«j
atmosphere of tarth in falling.
Ether"s movement, is directed in
straight lines toward the spheres, so
anything projected into it would swing
into sucti Unts' of direction and would
scour out Its courses in such paths un
less controlled by -Inward energy.
With a propulsive regenerative en
ergy imparted to the projectile it can
wend Its way through the thinner ether
for an indefinite. 3pace, the resistances
being lightened. It will iiroee*-«l 'jnder
electrical control until it^apyroaches the
realm of the moon, where gravity is
much less than the earth, its gravity
weight. or mass being one-sixth less.
Reaching the moon, its energy exhaust
ed, it would fall gently on peak or vale
without creating much of a jar or Jolt.
It Is assumed in relation to the move
ment of the projectile that outside of
the sphere of earth's gravity* it would
be controlled or held in its course by a
rudder and screw, which would be pro
pelled by the electric energy of its dy
namos. This" involves a new problem
in electrical transmission; a -problem
already in tlveway.of solution. Experi
ments are in progress which* suggest
the. probability of ; creating enormous
electrical waves, generated by the force
of Niagara. It Is the dream of. the in
ventor to employ; these wireless waves
In supplying electric -current at;. vast
distances " by \u25a0 merely . tapping i the Lwave
currents, g By j means of : a' huge Marconi
transmitter ln«t a 1 lorl at Via era i-o .: alsn.
trlcal energy from which is already
carried 3,000 miles with success in
telegraphy, the projectile car's dynamos
could easily draw the necessary current
- or propulsive power to direct its course
through the ether, which of itself is a
nonresistant to electrical energy.
"When the truth, accidentally re
vealed and experimentally confirmed,''
says Nikola Teßla, in referring to the
wireless telenlione. which involves the
principle of electric waves, "is finally
realized that this planet, with all its
appalling Immensity as to electric cur
rents, is virtually no more than a small
metal ball, there will be no such thing
as distance- to disturb our peace of
mind."
The actual time required for passage
of the projectile from the earth to the
moon is conjectured, but it would surely
be less than 10 days, which Is the
time asserted by Professor Dodge in
which an uncontrolled body, releas-v.l
from the earth's gravity, would be able
to cover the distance.
TO reach the moon, then, on the ba
sis of lunar ballistics, is merely a
' question^ for the mathematician,
the electrician and the mechanical en
gineer. It is a matter, of figures that
will mark their v cabalistic calculations
on the tablets of time as the old fel
low proceeds to greater marvels / and
more wisdom, which entitles us to spec
ulate in detail according to the knowl
edge we already have, at last. The
powers of electricity mediumlzed by. ra- .
diumating force will make ;thc prjpul
siori of the huge '270 -ton projectile
I silent, vibrationless, straightway to the
moon.
What- would the exact size of »his
projectile be?
'To facilitate to the best advantage
all known experimental science In the
service of this trip to the moon , th«
/projectile would be equipped like the
submarine boat Octopus. Its; length
would .be 100 feet and Its beam/ 12
feet.,: \u25a0 .- . . . : •• .\u25a0. \u25a0 ""\u25a0 ,
The cost of the projeVtile would be
a trifle* less than $1,000,000. The weiEht
of the. projectile would be 270 tons,- and
it would' haver the complete median
ical equipment; of a submarine. : ,Tlie*
tanks ;whlch are used In a submarine
to govern its buoyancy would serve the
same purpose in the aerial . projectile,
being filled with air. which would be
released, according to the resistance en
countered in' the projectile's inttfal
flight- of 250 miles. Once hurled-.be
yond: the gravity, zone of the earth it
would encounter no gravitation to'ais'
.ilace'its weight. -A. mountain or> a
,gnat become of equal weight, moving,
In- ether at "the same speed -as .the'
; molecules that are; thrown off ; from the
earth's .atmosphere, a speed of seven.
miles an hour. The projectile. Its
hood once closed, would' imprison the
operating crew and the scientists in
an airtight compartment. They vjould
be thenceforth completely shut off
from the world. X
Would it be safe? '' l \u25a0
According to the cajjtain of a subma
rine there would "no call for nervous
ness." . There would be no* defects
to fear in the. machinery, no rigging to
strain, no sails to carry away, no boiler
to burst, no fire to break, out. no con
cern about the weather. Its electrical
appliances would supply heat, light
and propulsive power sufficient to keep
it moving through space. A 75 horse
power motor would be sufficient for
this purpose. Electric stoves would
cook a supply of food as well as any
restaurant could provide. A reserve
supply of compressed air would be car
ried in flasks. Every 36 hours the foul
air could be exhausted and renewed
from the fresh p.\r flasks. In this way
there would be room enough in the
projectile to store enough compressed
air to live 45 days. -
There would be no startling sensa
tions after the projectile had made Its
first dive into space from the muzzle
of the lunar cannon, excepting the new
sights and surprising observations
from" the portholes.
But the first leap from the lunar
cannon!; . . -. .- "\u25a0 - , , .
A projectile from a 12 Inch rifle
shoots. into the air at the rate of 30,
000' feet a second.. It would not be
essential to the success of the lunar
projectile's .flight to exceed the speed
of a navy gun. for at that rate the
lunar car would penetrat" . th«v.'v*-»Vs
zone: of gravity In*' less than' an hour.
A problem of prime importance -Is t.»c
safety of the- car's passengers at the
moment of the discharge of the lunar,
gun. In view of- the nature and size
of^the huge instrument the solution
is not so difficult as it would seem.
— r— HE construction , of the lunar gun
I Itself gives It a character unlike
any other piece of ordnance' in
existence. .Of such a_ tremendous size,
• the j gun would .necessarily be cast. in.
parts. and built In" a" manner not dis
similar to "the sections of. great'drain*
: age tubes or iubway, structures. Enor
mous electrical. cranes, such as are used
in Panama} could 'easily., shift these
sections upon\ steel scaffolding, .where
they would be. riveted' and 'joined, much
as fwere the segments of the 'Manhattan
bridge over : the -East ? river, 0r ... • the
"stories" of the. Singer. Dullding.; which
was. 'made a compact structure;* 400
.feet in theYair by tiie e;ectric\ welding"
,of - Its' 'component-, parts.' \. The shell or.
{ case ..' of i the ' lunar i gun : ;once completed -
it ' would be . reinforced '? by lenormous
sheets of steel electrically welded, mak
ing It at last one solid piece. of metal.
Around this great tube of 700 feet in
length would be wound endless miles
of wire, thus forming it Into a sec
tional dynamo of vast proportions and
of hitherto undreamed of power. The
gun itself would rest upon a gigantic
carriage of heavy structural steel, so
stayed and supported upon concrete
caissons that its steadiness and accur
acy of fire would be insured. As the
wire that surrounds the gun would be
perfectly insulated and store the el?c
trie force that would "fire" the pro
jectile, each magnetic section connected
with a magnetic section inside, its final
release into the first magnetic section
would mark the second when the shot
would occur. Thus the men In the pro
jectile "car would not be subject to de
struction by the force of concussion.
They would only be called upon to pro
vide shock absorbers for the initial mo
ment of the turning on of the current
Into the first section, the projectile
gathering impetus as it traveled with
Increased force along the bore of the
gun. passing from section to section
with increased rapidity. Heavy rubber
air inflated cushions of varying resist
ance would be employed to take up the
force of the shock, and as the speed of
the projectile for some distance would
increase rather than diminish there
would be no rebound. .
' .Scientists who have dwelt upon the
thought of erecting a lunar gun and
sending a projectile car to the moon
have suggested that Central park would
be an ld<-al spot for -the construction of
such a great enterprise. .
Let us then imagine the completion of
all. the riiechanlsm for the project. The
vast ol'ctrlcal energy of Niagara fells.
or the entire plant of the subway, ele
vated and surface roads, some . 200.00tX
horsepower, would be turned Into the
coil of the .lunar gun. The projectile
car would be hoisted Into the breech of
the gun. to Its 'place against the inner
magazine, and astronomers and scien
tists from all parts of the world would
form a consulting board to alrri the
gun so that Its car lir a 10 days' flight
would land in the vicinity of the moon.
Hundreds of thousands of people would
be assembled from various parts of the
\u25a0 world.
\u25a0 What a thrill would be experienced
and what a shout would go up when the
bells of the city clanged and the whis
tles of- the factories and steamers
shrieked at the rocket signal . that the
current .of 100,000.000 .voltage had been
turned into the magnets of the lunar
gun! '
-The -flight- of the projectile thioucrh
the air,, ..would be so swift; that at^nrst
the eyescould not follow.lt. then hs It
swam off gracefully through space the
eyes of ; every. 1 man. woman and chiM
of -the earth would: seek to folly w iiu
for: through spectatoriums it would bo
TipuEsr
OF THE AIR
1 ASSURED
j NOW FOR
INTER
PIANETARY
SPACE
\u25a0
possible to watch the progress of th«>
projectile, car. The great telescopes
erected upon the highest peaks of the
Andes and the Himalayas would f'>l:r.\v
the course of the projectile as It y:\3seil
In Its speedway through the attt>:'U
ated. jellylike sea of ether, and all the
time the wireless stations at ..v'ics
bay. on the Eiffel tower and at va.r!ou."J
points of the earth would be g:»-in>j
back the message to man of hl^
triumph over space and perhaps the
secret of the universe.
If Professor Dodge is to be believed
the darinjr scientists, upon reaching tl>.«
surface of the moon, would not <\u25a0.> to
their doom, but to a new existeno*,
where they could communicate with
the earth and perhaps arrange su?-.3t-
quent trips divested of even the i!anse»"3
they encountered.
"Men could abide 'ort thp moon for <>
time." says Professor Dodgp. ' in thlc'.c
walled, airtight houses, and rould wa'k
out of doors in airtight divers* Molts.
Scientists would find in thr wastes a
fresh field for exploration. Astronomers
could plant their telescopes there. fr««
from their most serious hindrance, the
earth's atmosphere. Tourists of »h«;
wealthy and adventurous class would
not fail to visit the satellite, and !i im
probable there are veins of precfotti
metals, beds of diamond? and an abun
dance of sulphur in a world of so high
ly volcanic a character."
"Let us suppose we arrive on these
savage volcanic steppes of the moon
about the middle of the day." says the
celebrated" French astronomer. Camllle
Flammarlon; "from the black horizon
shoot »apid arrows of solar light, which
strike the summits of the moon moun
tains, while the plains and valleys re
main In darkness. The light increase*
slowly- .While with us in the central
latitudes the sun takes but two minutes
and a quarter to rise, on th* moon It
takes nearly an hour, and consequent
ly the light which it sends is very fee
ble for several minutes and only In
creases with extreme slowness.
"The inhabitants of the lower hem!-.
sphere turned toward our earth admire'
In their sky a brilliant body, hawing a
diameter about four timps greater than
that of the moon se»n from our globe,
and with a surface tf times larger.
This body, which la the earth. Is the
moon of tbe moon.*
• "It soars motionless in th«
sky. The inhabitants of the center ot
the visible hemisphere see It almost
constantly In their zenith. Its light
diminishes with the distance of the
country from this central point, up to
the limit of this hemisphere, where
they see- our world placed like an enor
mous disk on the mountains. Beyond
that they see us no more.
"The scientists of the moo.n hay«
probably proved In the most categor!-'
cal manner to the Ignorant who sur-'
round them that the. earth, not being
habitable, should not be Inhabited, and
that It .is made, solely to serve as a
clock to the moon and to shine during
the night." ; . ' .1 ;';
Alluring speculations that must some*.
day. If man ever accomplishes the lon^"
dreamed -of . trip to the tugua.; oe
brought Into the realm of exact science
and not on the pages ot astronomical
!?«•, .. '^ • ; -\u25a0-\u25a0 -\u25a0 • -"' ;vi ,