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THE ALLOY STELLITE, To the Editor of the Scientific American: In your issue of the Scientific American for November 19th, 1910, in which you publish an abstract of the account of the alloy Stellite, I note that a false impression would be created by paragraph three, a part of which reads as follows: After some experimenting, I was able to produce metal that would forge out perfectly into thin strips, which showed no tendency to check. The above statement refers to the cobalt-chromium alloy, while the paragraphs preceding it relate entirely to the nickel-chromium alloy. I would therefore refer your readers to the full text of the article, published in the Scientific American Supplement of the same date. Kokomo, Ind. Elwood Haynes. DISTINCTION TO BE MADE BETWEEN INHERENT AND AUTOMATIC STABILITY OF AEROPLANES. To the Editor of the Scientific American: The Literary Digest of November ' 5th, 1910, contains an article printed from Engineering (London, October 7th), Stable Aeroplanes Not Desired.." In this article it reads: The term automatic stability may be used in two senses. In the first place, it may simply mean such a disposition of the planes that the machine has a tendency to fly in a horizontal position in still air; in the second, it may mean some device which will keep the machine horizontal in a wind and correct any deviat'",T' ->jsed by puffs and eauitls: - This definition of automatic stability needs a correction. There is only one true sense to the term automatic stability; the term cannot be used in two senses. What is. generally called automatic stability is only a certain inherent stability, which is brought about by the outer shape of the aeroplane, while the real automatic stability is brought about by a device which exerts power. A gyroscope in connection with a device for warping the main planes or working balancing planes (wing-tips or ailerons, or the like) will be found to be impracticable. It will be done by means of explosions coming out of the supporting surfaces of the aeroplane, when the aeroplane dips. Automatic valves, weighted valves working by gravity, will answer the purpose of reducing or entirely cutting off these explosions, as explained in the patents referred to in Scientific American Supplement No. 1682, March 28th, 1908, page 207, in article, A New Aeroplane. I also refer to Scientific American Supplement No. 1820, November 19th, 1910, page 332, the article, Practice and Theory of Avia-tion--V." What is termed automatic stability in that article is nothing but inherent stability. Neither the Voisin machine nor any of the other now existing aeroplanes has the automatic stability in the true sense of the term. It may be added that none of the present aeroplanes is of the type which will be the type of the future. In that manner the aeroplane itself exerts a power at each and every critical moment. With the inherent stability alone the aeroplane will be caught napping when unfavorable circumstances happen to come together. This inherent stability does not deserve the name automatic stability; the expression is wrong. Besides spending so much money for prize flights (killing the aviators ), a fund ought to be created to help inventors to develop aeroplanes which have the prospect of success. S. Theod. Gibon. Clarksville, Tenn. "AN OLD BALLOON FOUND IN CANADA." To the Editor of the Scientific American: Your article of November 26th, under the above heading, signed O. H. Ingram, Eau Claire, Wis., interested me. In resume, he was a lumbering superintendent, operating far north of Ottawa in 1854 or 1855, and described how some of the loggers had found two used-up balloonists, the chief of whom was Le Fontaine. After their recuperation the balloonists and some of the men hunted up the balloon and divided it among all - hands. Mr. Ingram afterward being presented some of Us pieces and ropes. He asks you for information regarding the records of this flight, which he thinks started from St. Louis. The undersigned believing that he can direct Mr. Ingram to an authentic history of this flight--indeed, an account written by one of its participants. On October 26th, just the day before the safety of A. R. Hawley and Augustus Port was announced, after their most sensational flight from St. Louis, ending 180 miles north of Quebec, I had a half column in the Indianapolis Star descriptive of the flight from Buffalo of Prof. La Mountain and my cousin, Mr. Haddock, not long before the civil war, reciting their dreadful , Revocation of the Attorney's Appearance Rule. It will be remembered that on September 15th last, the Secretary of the Interior made a rule that firms of attorneys or agents would not be permitted to practice before the department or its bureaus in any proceeding involving the services of an attorney or agent, unless they were represented by one or more duly qualified members of the firm in person. This new rule, we understand, was the result of some irregular practices in the Land Office. Since the Patent Office constitutes one of the Departments of the Interior, it naturally came within the provisions of the rule. As a result, patent attorneys were constrained to spend much valuable time in signing notices of appearance, instead of really attending to the interests of their clients. The Secretary of the Interior has now revoked the r'ule so far as the Patent Office is concerned, and attorneys are henceforth permitted to appear in the old way.
