Hutchinson gazette. [volume] (Hutchinson, Kan.) 1895-1902, 1896-11-26
A SHIP THAT FLIES.
AERIAL NAVIGATION PROB
LEM SOLVED, PERHAPS.
A California Man the InventOr-Flles
Over Two Townsville Inventors Law"
yer Tells About It-Has Flown 1870
Miles-DeclarOd to Be Perfect.

SAN FRANc1sco, Nov. o3.-The
Chronicle prints story which indicates
that the air-ship in practicable form is
an established fact.
About l o'clock last Monday morn
ing the inhabitants of Sacramento,
who were astir at that hour, claim to
have seen an nirship passing rapidly
over the city, Some merely said they
saw bright light, while others went
so far as to say they sawa cigar-shaped
flying machine, and heard human
voices from it, The residents of Oak
land also say they saw the same sight
few nights ago.
George D. Collins, a reputable lawyer
of this city, says the airship is
reality. Mr.. Collins says: 1T is per-
fectly true that there is at last sue
cessful airship in existence, and that
California will have the honor of bring
ing it before the world have known
of the affair for some time, and am
acting as attorney for the inventor
He is very wealthy man, who has
been studying the subject of flying
machines for fifteen years. and came
here seven years ago from the state of
Maine in order to be able to perfect his
ideas away from the eyes of other in
Ventors.
81 saw the machine one night last
week at the inventors invitation. 1t
is made of metal, is about $50 feet
long and is built to carry fifteen per-
sons. There was no motive power as
far as could see-certainly no steam.
1t is built on the aeroplane system and
has two canvas wings eighteen feet
wide and rudder shaped like birds
tail. The inventor climbed into the
machine, and after he had been NOV
ing some of the mechanism for mo-
nent, | saw the thing begin to ascend
from the earth, very gently. The
wings tapped slowly as it rose, and
then little faster as it began to move
against the wind. The machine was
under perfect control all the time.
when 1T got to height of about
ninety feet, the inventor shouted to
me that he was going to make series
of circles and then descend lie inn
circle about 100 yards in diameter,
and then gradually narrowing it until
the machine got within thirty feet of
the ground. 1t then fell straight down,
very gracefully, and touched the earth
as lightly as falling leaf.
THE reports from Sacramento the
other night were true 1t was my
clients air-ship the people saw. 1t
started from 0roville, in Butte county,
and flew sixty miles in a straight line
directly over Sacramento. After run
ming up and down once or twice over
the capital, my friend came right on n
distance of another seventy miles and
landed at spot on the Oakland side
of the bay, where the machine now
lies, guarded by three men. The in
ventor found during his trial trip that
his ship had wave-lilIe motion that
made him seasich. 1t is this defect
that he is now remcdying.
SIN another six days the trouble
will be done away with, and it is then
his intention to Immediately give the
people of San Francisco chance to
see his machine. lie will fly right
over the city, and across Market street
dozen times. He can fly with it to
New York tomorrow il he wants to.
'He has forshben the ideas of Maxim
and Langtry entirely in building the
machine, and has constructed it on an
absolutely new theory"
In spite of Mr.. Collins statement
there are many slSeptics who say Ilatly
they do not believe his story. II is al
most incredible that an airShip $50
feet long could be secretcd in any
building near San francisco without
the fact being made public.