autics journeyed to Lake
Constance on the shores of which great plants had grown up on the land
which Zeppelin had purchased for his wonder city of the air.

[PLATE 13: Zeppelin "L-70" Naval Airship, 1918. The fastest of
the "big ones" with a speed of 82 miles per hour.

Zeppelin "L-71". The Last Naval Airship in Actual Service.
Leaving Friedrichshafen, 1918.]

In the fall of 1908 the members of the Reichstag and the Bundesrath came
to Friedrichshafen, a hundred or more trusting themselves to the
Zeppelin ship, the sole feature of the national celebration. Thousands
of watercraft dotted the clear waters of the lake as the Zeppelin went
up again and again filled to capacity with the leaders of German
political, financial, and industrial life (Plate 4). Zeppelin was hailed
as a national hero, and more, for it was generally recognized that his
great vehicles possessing such speed and durability were world travelers
and as such would do much toward bringing all parts of the world
together and thereby eliminating national borders--as far as trade,
travel, and commerce were concerned, at least.

The New Construction Plant

It was during the same year that Zeppelin abandoned the floating shed at
Manzell, where all his ships had been built. New work shops were located
on shore near Friedrichshafen (Plate 4). Half of the original
contribution went into the new construction plant which was incorporated
as Luftschiffbau-Zeppelin, G.M.B.H. (the Zeppelin Airship Building
Co., Ltd.). Here the construction of the new Zeppelins was begun with
augmented forces of engineers and workmen.

[PLATE 14: Zeppelin "L-70" Naval Airship Entering Largest Shed
at Friedrichshafen. Winter of 1918.]

Naturally the first airship was ordered by the Deutsche Luftschiffahrt
A. G. ("DELAG")--the German Airship Transportation Company--which had a
paid in capital of 3,000,000 marks ($714,000.00) subscribed by a number
of public spirited men solely to start a Zeppelin passenger and mail
service. It was planned to employ larger ships than those with which
Zeppelin had convinced the public, to secure greater lifting and
carrying capacity. These ships developed rapidly.

Military Value Proved by Commercial Operation

They attracted attention among the military authorities who had decided
that the Zeppelins offered advantages over the existing types of
observation aircraft, that they were in no way difficult to handle in
the