This is true as far as it goes, but unfortunately the use of high
explosives will not stop there. I lately had explained to me the
details of a system which is certainly not impossible for damaging New
York from the sea by means of dynamite balloons. The inventor simply
proposed to take advantage of the sea breeze which blows toward New
York every summer's afternoon and evening. Without ever coming in
sight of land, he could locate his vessel in such a position that his
balloons would float directly over the city and let fall a ton or two
of dynamite by means of a clock work attachment. The inventor had all
the minor details very plausibly worked out, such as locating by means
of pilot balloons the air currents at the proper height for the large
balloons, automatic arrangements for keeping the balloon at the proper
height after it was let go from the vessel, and so on. His scheme is
nothing but the idea of the drifting or current torpedo, which was so
popular during our war, transferred to the upper air. An automatic
flying machine would be one step farther than this inventor's idea,
and would be an exact parallel in the air to the much dreaded
locomotive water torpedo of to-day.
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