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Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 268, 4 April 1913, Page 4

THE SOUTHERN .JUNCTION*. In telling the Ministers at Stratford on Wednesday tlmt New Plymouth would be the port of the whole of Taranaki, Mr. J. B. Richards, president of the Chamber of Commerce, was only reechoing the statement made by the Opunake Railway Commission in its report qf last year. This being so, there is no need, as Mr. Richards pointed out, to drag the produce up the main line from Te Roli when it could be taken fiom the Plains 011 what is practically a level grade to Stratford..already a junction and destined to become a very busy railway centre. There is another, and very important, point. The construction of the line from Te Roti to, say, Kapuni, will not appreciably reduce the traffic on the roads in the locality, for the railway, as may be seen from a glance at a map of the province, is alreadv within easy distance; but the construction of the line from Stratford to Kapuni would serve a big area of unrailed country, and immediately afford relief to the main arterial roads, which settlers are finding so difficult to maintain. The gradient on this route is easy, whilst very few bridges or cuttings would be necessary. The Prime Minister, in the course of his reply, said the report of the Commission must have great weight. Tf this is so, we trust the Commission's strong recommendation that work should he commenced simultaneously at both the southern and Moturon ends will be given effect to. "The Government," said Mr. Massey. "had not to look nt the question from the point of view of Stratford. Ellhani. Hawera, or New Plymouth, but from the point of view of the country as a whole." Quite true. Tf a national view is taken of the construction of (lie southern end, a start will be made first, at Stratford, the natural centre and the handiest point to its outlet, Moturoa harbor, now almost ready for the accommodation of ocean liner*.

AERIAL WARFARE. The British as ;i race ani conservative in most things, and the spirit is manifested in a marked degree in the operalions of their Cabinets and great Departments of State. The present (!overnment, perhaps the most advanced and radical (iovcrnnieut that has ever occupied (he Treasury Benches, is no exception. Take its conduct in connection with aerial navigation. Whilst

other Governments have been taking a. very lively interest in the development of aerial craft, the liritish Government has practically been standing idly by watching the experiments and the building ii]) of immense aerial lleets by countries within striking distance of its towns and defences—like France and Germany. Xow, it would seem from recent cablegrams, that Britain is about to throw off its lethargy in this respect and interest itself in aerial matters. Ac-) cording to Mr. Churchill, by the end of the present year Great Britain will have 100 naval aeroplanes and 200 army aeroplanes. A vote of £7.50,000 is to be devoted to the purpose. Last year the Army bought but one. aeroplane out of the 100 built in England during the year. Contrast this with the interest taken by France and Germany in this new arm of offence and defence. The French aerial war budget for 101 > was £2-18,000; for 1012, £BOO.OOO. and for 1013, £1.700,000. At least 300 military aeroplanes were delivered to the French Government during 1012. Approximately 1500 aero-

planes were built in France in the same year. At the end of 1914 it is expected that there will be an actual fleet of 1000 French war aeroplanes. Besides this host of aeroplanes, France has numerous •• Parse val airships, capable of carrying several tons, and keeping in the air from 48 to 7(i hours. Germany has been quite r,» active. She lias concentrated chiefly on the Zeppelin airships, which have been brought to a surprising state of perfection. The latest type has ti carrying capacity of nearly 27 tons; it has a radius of action of 1550 miles, and- its own speed, without the help- of air currents, is 50 miles an hour. Germany has evolved, at immense trouble and expense, an aerial Dreadnought which will remain in the air for four days and nights, will carry several machine guns, and is capable of carrying and dropping 20001bs of incendiary bombs upon a land station. And from what one reads in the English papers, bomb-dropping from airships, thanks to a new sighting instrument, now approaches an exact science. For instance, from an airship about 3'/o miles away, and circling in the air at an altitude of about 31100 ft, a gunner got the exact range with his third shot. The target was quickly riddled, and the pei-

centage oi hits subsequently was ciose to 100: There is now being turned out a fire bomb that sheds a bright light not only during its (light, but after it strikes, the earth, so that the airship gunners are able, even on the darkest night, to see the objects upon which they wish to centre their shots. . Another bomb throws out tremendous quantities of dense, heavy smoke that slowly sinks to earth. This smoke spreads in a great cloud and giyes'to the airship cover through which to escape from a point ' of danger. Still another bomb that will add to the terrors of war contains about' 1501b of chemicals, which, on exploding, fill the air with poisonous gases, killing everything within 100 yards-and extending their influence for more than twice that distance. The airship of today is a fighting machine to be reckoned with. It can with the greatest of ease cross the North Sea and rain explosives on any place in Britain. The Germans are quite alive to the advantages of the airship, and have not hesitated to spend whatever money is required: Last year the German public subscribed no less a sum than £301.000 for the purpose of building aeroplanes. The French people subscribed even more liberally towards strengthening their own aerial fleet. I'p till now, as we have said, the British Government has done little or nothing in the way of building an aerial fleet, but it is satisfactory to know that at last it is making a move towards remedying a very serious defect in its defences.