From “Victorian Inventions” by Leonard De Vries published by American Heritage Press in 1972
On 2nd July 1869 a demonstration was given in a hall in Shell Mound Lake, California, with a small model airship which its inventor Mr Frederick Mariott names the ‘Avitor.’ Shaped like a cigar, it is 37 feet long and the diameter in the middle is 11 feet. The ‘Avitor’ has two wings under each of which there is a propeller driven by a steam-engine. The airship appeared to operate perfectly in the hall but in the open air, even in a gentle breeze, it was entirely unsatisfactory and we therefore do not expect that Mr Mariott’s invention will be a practical success.
This is one of the few places in the whole book where the publication that first published the article show even the slightest doubt about the project at hand and it was refreshing to see – Ted
The State of New York may justly congratulate itself on the fact that the barbaric punishment of death by hanging is to be abolished in favour of a more humane and scientific method of execution: as from 1st January 1889, criminals will be put to death by electrocution. The engraving gives an impression of what the ‘electric chair’ will probably look like. The poles of a dynamo are connected by a switching device to a metal electrode clamped round the condemned man’s head, and to the metal seat of the chair, sponges or wet cloths being applied at the points of contact to ensure a perfect electrical connection. Extensive experiments carried out with dogs have shewn that electrocution causes almost instantaneous death, eliminating the gruesome writhing movements of the hanged in the moments before death ensues. There is no doubt that for a civilised country which wishes to put an end to the barbaric horrors of the past the electric chair represents the best method of inflicting the death penalty. 
Retrorambling 