TO FLY OVER NEW GUINEA.

Timaru Herald, Volume XCIV, Issue 14384, 4 March 1911, Page 6

TO FLY OVER NEW GUINEA.

GERMAN .SCIICNTIST'.S AIM. THE SCHEME IX DETAIL. iJr Wcg.-ner, Director of tln: M' tetjrtcached Syducy by tlio Atua i\ week flgo, has an interesting scheme for exploring iNcv.' tiiuncu by baihmn. lie us t,onig iirst to tho islands tu see lion - the loiid lies, then back to Germany, t.> ir.ako arrangements through the German Foreign Ofiic-e; and then out again, with his balloon, Ho hopes lo bo ablo to start on. his air voyage next year, or, at the latest, in 1913. Tho |>aJloon will Jiave no motor; it is hoped to drift across the island in tlio month •ox August, in front of tlio south-east, ir&do wind.

Dr. AVe- joner has not yet been in Now Guinea, bub he is an old hand at ballooning. He flew, some years ago, across JiaJf Europo and tho English -Channel, to London, and, Jater, from Loipsic right away to Leicester. ' 'Tho idea of crossing New Guinea by balloon is not a. new one," he said recently. "It should bo possible to Hy over the island in front of south-east trades in August" H:s balloon, he explained, will be balloon proper, and not an airship like the Zeppelins. It will l>a round, and there will l>e no motor. c, Tlie trado wind- will be motor enough." Tho equipment will be brought out from G«rmanv.

Dr Wegener's plan is not "bo make I sny attempt to cross the widest part of J tho island for a start; that would bo dangerous, he explained, the distance would be about 500 miles. Before that lie will, first, by shorter air journeys, learn exactly how th 6 wind blows. So there are to be three attempts altogether First right up in tin) northwest of the Dutch territory, across a narrow neck of land, 70 miles wide, between Kiruru Bay and Zeelvink Bay. Then, away to the east again, over a rather wider neck in British and German territory.. And, finally, -having in this jvay got some experience of ""the difficulties to be overcome, the doctor will set out on Ins air journey. This, he -explained, will run rather slantingly, from the Gulf of Papua north-westward, pnssimr, probably, over ooth British and German Territory. On

hi-: pas-,iin«. till' <U.f;l:!|- should travel or iii'iir the place where Mr Sinijiortli Smith'.- ■*!iiit»i» ikih

mh|i|ui>'( (I 10 |>>. Ho will 'make ilo sl*>\> on i In- way. hut drift right on: thcr" bn <hw»i:« , r I'pon the native* i»' be r:,u»r in earth. "Wo shrill come down upon iho .--on on the -ciliicr side," bo siii-i. "A shin muf-t wait there for üb. m "The first trip."' said the dootor, definitely, "will start at ? o'clock \i iha morning, and it. should bo finished by 3 o'clock in the afternoon. Hie f-'MTiiif) ino will last, I hnt>p, onlv nnfl woht and two davs. Tlio ilrrd trip uiH Lake, I think, three davs and ui-hts.

"F aui ;j<iin<r home now*, after J s'*vn a little of New Guinea, to finish the records of two years in the observatory at Ani v. T am go : ri<r to tho M>>-iern-olnuical Institute at Frankfort. Tho one nt Apia "is cvmipetrd with that. 'Then I nmst see tho Colonial Office nt Homo. f<"> that arrangements ho made w'th the Briti=b ai)'l Gorernments for eirmort. And th«n— T will rr<?t what holidavs T want —T onf-- to make the air-vovag-e in 1912 or 1913.