the air is able to signal the results of each salvo fired from
the British battleships as they manoeuvre at full speed up and
down the coastline, while he keeps the fire of the monitors
concentrated upon the German positions until the latter have been
rendered untenable or demolished. The accuracy of the British
gun-fire has astonished even the Germans, but it has been
directly attributable to the rangefinder perched in the car of
the captive balloon and his rapid transmission of information to
the vessels below.

The enthusiastic supporters of aerial navigation maintained that
the dirigible and the aeroplane would supersede the captive
balloon completely. But as a matter of fact the present conflict
has established the value of this factor more firmly than ever.
There is not the slightest possibility that the captive balloon
sections of the belligerents will be disbanded, especially those
which have the fruits of experience to guide them. The airship
and the aeroplane have accomplished wonders, but despite their
achievements the captive balloon has fully substantiated its
value as a military unit in its particular field of operations.



CHAPTER III
GERMANY'S RISE TO MILITARY AIRSHIP SUPREMACY

Two incidents in the history of aviation stand out with
exceptional prominence. The one is the evolution of the Zeppelin
airship--a story teeming with romance and affording striking and
illuminating glimpses of dogged perseverance, grim determination