May 4, 191 1] 



NATURE 



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takes place instead of true rolling, as shown in the next 

 lantern slide. The next lantern working model I show 

 illustrates the ether effect, in which the wheel meets 

 obstacles and is deflected by them from its course, giving 

 exactly the same kind of loss which I showed you takes 

 place with a man in walking, and which is made apparent 

 by making the car write its own record on a piece of 

 smoked glass, exactly as my assistant wrote his record of 

 rise and fall on the blackboard. 



Thus there are two ways in which the wheel can be 

 improved : — 



(i) Is by perfecting the wheel and hardening the track — 

 and that is the secret of the development of the railway 

 system. 



(2) The other is by causing the obstacle to be absorbed 

 in the tyre of the wheel — that is the real secret of the 

 success of the pneumatic tyre. 



The working model now on the screen illustrates the 

 latter point, and shows at once how the three causes of 

 n distance to animal locomotion are overcome. 



To-day we can replace the muscular energy of man by 

 ' nost unlimited mechanical pov/er, and Fig. 3 is a com- 



YEAR 



Fig. 4.— Speed Records for Thornycroft Warships and Motor Boats. 



ative speed chart which I have prepared and 

 lich indicates the enormous advance in the speed 

 r<cord which has been made over the best unaided muscular 

 efforts of any animal. It is curious to see that the highest 

 speed ever attained on a railway is closely approached by 

 that obtained with motor vehicles. The records for the 

 latter are as follows : — 



A Darracq car of 200 horse-power has done 122^ miles 



nn hour for 2 miles. A Fiat car, driven by Nazarro at 



' loklands, 126 miles an hour. A Stanley steam car, 



7 miles an hour, and a Benz car has done 127J miles an 



Hour. 



The maximum recorded speeds of a railway were on the 



< vp..rimental line of Messrs. .Siemens, on the Berlin-Zossen 



:;h Speed Railway, where a speed of rather more than 



miles an hour was attained. The electric current 



ployed was 10,000 volts, 400 horse-power motors being 



'\. On the Marienfel-Zossen experimental line, the speed 



attained with 250 horse-power was apparently rather less, 



though in that locomotive four motors were employed, the 



"iircnt bcinj,', as in the other rase, 10,000 volts. The lantern 



NO. 2166, VOL. 86] 



diagrams are a picture of the vehicles actually employed, 

 and of the track on which the experiments were made. As 

 a set-off against the sober engineering pictures, I show a 

 picture taken from an American motor journal, illustrating 

 a motor vehicle and locomotive at top speed, the formei 

 passing on a level crossing in front of the latter. 



The foregoing are the record speeds so far obtained of 

 mechanical locomotion, and it will be interesting to see 

 what are the record speeds attained in the other elements. 

 Until the other day, as Mr. Parsons told us in his lecture, 

 the speed on water which has never been exceeded was 

 that of the ill-fated turbine boats, Viper and Cohra, of 

 about 43 miles an hour. The ship which at present holds 

 the record for speed is the torpedo destroyer Jartar, built 

 b'- Messrs. John Thornycroft, this, under Admiralty tests, 

 giving a speed of 41 miles an hour. 



The diagram, Fig. 4, shows in an interesting manner 

 what the progress in speed has been for this class of boats 

 during the last few years, and may be taken .t; typical, 

 and about which curves Sir John Thorn\ircifi writ's a^ 

 follows : — 



" I do not think the curve would be materially altered 

 if vessels of other builders were brought 

 in, although there would naturally be 

 more points on it." 



I am able, however, to give you the 

 results to-night of something which has 

 altogether put in the shade even the 

 speeds of the two first-mentioned boats. 

 This has been attained by a boat 

 which, though corresponding in some 

 respects with previous hydroplane 

 boats, has been designed by Sir John 

 Thorn3'croft to possess a certain amount 

 of seaworthiness. The rate of progress 

 in the increasing speeds in this class 

 of boat is shown on a separate curve, 

 Fig. 4, from which you will see that 

 the celebrated Miranda held as a hydro- 

 plane the record with the Tartar for 

 speed, the Ursula also holding the 

 record of about the same speed as a 

 motor-boat. Only a few days ago, 

 however, the new boat Maple Leaf III. 

 has attained the extraordinary speed 

 of nearly 50 knots, that is to say, a 

 speed approaching do miles an hour, 

 using 600 horse-power to effect this 

 speed. To use a vulgar expression, 

 this certainly smashes all previous 

 records for speed. I do not pretend to 

 give exact figures in this case, because 

 such have not been officially taken, but 

 the statement is probably on the low 

 side as the boat has not been yet 

 properly tuned up. You will see one 

 remarkable thing from the curve, 

 namely, that the rate of progress has 

 been so rapid in this class of boat, and 

 the curve rises so steeply, that in 

 about three months' time there is due 

 from Sir John Thornycroft a boat which will travel at 

 about 100 miles an hour. I am afraid, however, it would 

 not be fair to press this graphical argument quite so far. 



Through the kindness of Sir John Thornycroft, and Mr. 

 Edgar, the owner of the Maple Leaf, I am able to show 

 both the Miranda and the Maple Leaf IIL The latter, 

 }ou will see, is travelling at such an extraordinary rate 

 that the water which is lifted up does not fall to the 

 surface again until the boat itself has travelled several 

 . lengths away. You may be interested to see a model of 

 this last boat, which has been kindly prepared for me to 

 show to-night, as well as the Tartar and Miranda. You 

 will notice the form of the Maple Leaf II f. is that of a 

 steeped hydroplane, which in a mtxlified form was first 

 suggested by Mr. Ramus many years ago; it is the secret 

 of placing the weight, and also the development of light 

 engines giving large horse-power, which has <nab!ed the 

 dream of Mr. Ramus to be fulfilled. 



Turning to the last of the three elements, namely, air, 

 it was my intention to have dealt with it at greater length 

 than I now find it is pos>jihI(> to do, but, thanks to the 



