Cheap Travel

The American ZR-1--to be christened appropriately Shenandoah or "Daughter of the Stars" by Mrs. Denby, wife of the Secretary of the Navy--made a pleasure trip to St. Louis to see the races, and returned to Lakehurst after an uneventful journey of 2,200 miles, at an average speed of some 60 miles an hour despite strong head winds.

On the return trip from Chicago to Lakehurst, tests of gasoline consumption showed more than a mile to the gallon. The total fuel cost on this leg of the trip was $150, a fraction of the coal bill for a limited train. And she could have carried ten tons of cargo or passengers in addition to a crew of 42.

Small wonder attention is being given to the commercial possibilities of such craft. Commander Frank McCrary, skipper of the ZR1, sees " a revolution in transportation technique." Captain Anton Heinen, German test pilot and consultant in the construction of the ZR1, predicts the elimination of disasters due to poor piloting and improper construction--the Captain has carried 100,000 passengers in the air without a scratch--and the ousting of ocean liners by dirigibles. Certainly an air journey of five days from San Francisco to New Zealand instead of 22 by sea is tempting.

These men are biased enthusiasts, but they know and may be right.