Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1894-05-26
IN THE SOUTHWEST.
PROF. cANoER OF CHICAGO AND HIS
FLYING MACHINE.
How no Hoaxed an Entire Town In Ar.
kansas with q Free Performancs-A
Remarkable Occurrence.

II was in the town of GAINESVILLE,
Ark, a place of 1900 or 1880 persons,
that one Of the most remarkable oc.
c%urrences Of the century in it's way took
place. The story recalls the exploit OF
the famous Darius Green and his flying
machine, only 1t is a tale vastly more
amusing.
1t all happened some five or six years
ago, when GAINESVILLE was considerably
smaller than IL now is. One day the
town awoke to find the fact placarded
that Prof. Gander of Chicago, who had
invented a wonderful fying-machine,
would positively make a flight from
the court house top on a certain day
and Date. The posters, which were
immens e affairs, went on I o tell in
glowing language how the professor
had exhibited his machine with won.
derful success at 81. Louis, Kansas City
and other points, and wound up with
a Embarrassing description of what the
good people of GAINESVILLE and vicinity
might expect on the fateful day.
The event was thoroughly advertised.
Not only were the posters hung up ia
Clarksville and in every town and
hamlet in Johnson county, but, as well,
In all the surrounding counties. In
every p~ostofiice for a radius of I0C
miles fiuttered one of these allurjno
advertisements. Even the trees served
as bill = boards to herald the great
event. Never was an occurrence so
thoroughly advertised as this. The
natural consequence was that weeks
before the flight was to occur thou.
sands of persons we're on the tiptoe of
expectation. Nothing else was talked
of, morning, noon and night, in hum
dreds of homes, except the anticipated
fight of Prof. Gander Of Chicago.
Several days before the great act of
the professor was 10 occur the people
began TO arrive from the boring
towns. The advertising had been done
So secretly, albeit SC thoroughly, that
no one seemed to know who was be-.
hind the whole affair. BIT for all that
II did not enter into the head of AMI
one To doubt that ~the,event would come
of exactly as advertised. so In the
people poured. whole families abandon.
ing for the time their homes 70 get to
GAINESVILLE. They came In wagons, on
foot and by train-enyway, SO as to b.
in the town on the appointed day. Ne
circus in that neighborhood had ever
drawn out'half such a crowd. For II
vas to be a free show, and why should
not western Arkansas, or the whole
world for the matter of that, make the
occasion n grand holiday?
The day arrived. The iadux of out,
siders had been SO. great that on the
morning OF the day when Prot. Gandei
was TO perform his unparalleled feat
there were from $4,000 TO $4,000 Der,
sons in GAINESVILLE or encamped in tho
outskirts. The hotels and boarding
houses were. of course, filled TO over
flowing, and those who had been
thoughtful enough to bring tents con.
sidered themselves lucky, indeed. Pea
nut vendors and makers of the seduc.
tive circus lemonade did a rushing bust.
ness, and the man who hawked ginger,
bread among the hungry thousands, il
he did not make fortune, at least &C.
cumulated a good-sized sum An old.
timer, speaking of the occasion the
other day expressed the situation thus,
"For the distance OF q mile, north and
south, east and west, you could have
walked on the heads of the people"
There was one feature of the affair
that excited some comment and thai
was that no n a seen the man who
was to make the flight; no one had seer
him come to town OF knew where he
was stopping. Moreover, it was still
matter of mystery Al to who hsd
planned this great and glorious feaGi
of public enjoyment and had conceived