from his
crew and had made no preparations the inventor was successful in
landing; and he moored her there in an open field for the night while
repairing the motors. Before they could be started again a winter storm
swept against the craft and it was so badly damaged that Count Zeppelin
with a heavy heart was forced to give orders to dismantle it.

Handicapped by Motor Trouble

There was world-wide comment over the accident which was not due to
structural defect or design. Zeppelin explained that he could have
survived the storm had he been able to keep his motors running. But
everybody thought his dream was shattered, one more glorious failure.
But Zeppelin did not agree with public sentiment. The following April he
commenced his third ship, throwing into the venture his last resources
along with all the enthusiasm and confidence of youth. It was this that
enabled him to announce its completion in October 1906. It was exactly
like the one destroyed at Allgau except for the stabilizers at the stern
which had been added to permit of smooth flying (Plate 2).

Successful Trials with the Third Zeppelin

Experiments with this craft were immediately successful. Zeppelin guided
it over the lake between three and four hours in a single flight, making
wide circles and maneuvering under absolute control, remarkable in view
of its size. The ship also showed superior speed, making 28.8 miles per
hour (13 meters per second).

[PLATE 8: Zeppelin "L-3" Naval Airship, 1914.

Zeppelin "L-11" Naval Airship, 1915.]

This ship brought Zeppelin and his assistants their first public
recognition. The German Government offered the inventor a new floating
shed (Plate 3), larger than the old one, which would enable him to
improve his craft and enlarge them. To him this was the most essential.
He more than any other apparently realized that he must increase their
size to develop practical weight lifting capacity.

The Government Becomes Interested

Meanwhile he continued his demonstration flights with his third ship,
culminating on October 1st, 1907, in a brilliant 8 hour flight of more
than 218.5 miles (350 kilometers). Thereupon the Government officials
declared their willingness to take over Count Zeppelin's ships if they
fulfilled certain requirements, among them a twenty-four hour flight.
Early the next summer Zeppelin took out another new ship, LZ-4 (Plate
3), somewhat larger than its predecessors, holding 529,650 cu