A report has been going the rounds of the press abroad to the effect that a party of German aeronauts contemplate making an experimental long–distance balloon trip, starting from Germany and travelling in an easterly direction, the object of the voyage being to discover experimentally how long a balloon may (remain in the air before coming to the ground.

Whether there is any foundation for this report or not, there can be no doubt that experiments of this kind are necessary for the advancement of the science of aeronautics. Long–distance ballooning has been hitherto neglected, as far as practical trials are concerned.