*Weakness of Type.* The L-I (_Luftschiff_, or airship), the first of the German airships designed for purely military purposes, was a Zeppelin 525 feet long by 50 feet in diameter, of 777,000 cubic feet capacity, and 22 tons displacement. Its three sets of motors developed 500 horsepower and it had a speed of 52 miles per hour. It was launched at Friedrichshafen in 1912, and after a number of successful cross-country trips, it was tried in connection with naval maneuvers off Heligoland. Before the trial had proceeded very far, a sudden squall broke the backbone of the huge gas bag and hurled it into the sea, drowning fifteen out of the crew of twenty-two. It is a striking commentary on the frailness of these aerial monsters that every one of the big airships built up to that time had met disaster in an equally sudden manner but from a totally different cause in each instance. The L-II was slightly shorter but had 5 feet longer beam and displaced 27 tons. She was designed particularly for naval use, had four sets of motors developing 900 horsepower, and was fitted with a navigating bridge like that of a ship. It was confidently thought that all possible shortcomings had been remedied and success finally achieved in the L-II, but before there was any opportunity to demonstrate its efficiency, the airship exploded in mid-air, killing its entire crew. _Effectiveness Grossly Overrated._ Despite this unbroken chain of disasters, the German official press bureau spread broadcast the prowess of the Zeppelin, its magnificent ability, and its remarkable achievements as an engine of war—in theory, since this was a year or two prior to the outbreak of hostilities. Had it not been for the forced descent of the Zeppelin IV at Luneville, where it was taken possession of by the French, these tales might have been accepted at their face value. But the log of the commander of this airship showed that its maximum speed was but 45 miles per hour, the load 10,560 pounds, and the ascensional effort 45,100 pounds. The fuel consumption averaged 297 pounds per hour while the fuel capacity was only sufficient for a flight of seven hours. During its flight, it had reached an altitude of only 6,250 feet, to accomplish which over 3 tons of ballast had to be dropped. It was also shown that the critical flying height of these huge airships is between 3,500 and 4,000 feet, Zeppelin himself declaring that his machines were useless above 5,000 feet. This probably accounts for the fact that the early raids on English towns were carried out at a height but slightly in excess of 2,000 feet. Later types, however, are said to have reached high altitudes. [Illustration: Fig. 22. Zeppelin L-49 Brought Down Intact by a French Airman, Resting on Hillside near Bourbon-Les-Baines _Copyright by Underwood and Underwood, New York_]