Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1897-04-12
SNAP SHOT At THE SHIP,
a Resident Of Rogers Park Claims to Have
Caught It.

a Resident Of Roesfs Park Claims to Have
Caught 1t.
A farmer named karr, living on
Rock river, claims to have seen the
air ship following the Hsnnepin
canal south of South Moline at $50
this morning. 1t was moving west
he says ut the time. Now the entire
Moline police force swear TO have
seen it last night.
Walter Mccain CT Rogers Park,
near Chicago, claims to have caught
q snap shot at the mysterious aerial
traveller at 500 yesterday morning,
and this mornings Chicago Times
Herald makes q reproduction of it..
MCCAIN has witnesses of his having
used the camera aud taken the object,
while the Timee-Herald artist who
made the pen aud ink sketch of the
photo and the etcher both pronounced
the photograph genuine, There are
scores OF people in Rogers Park who
claim to have scent he air navigator.
Mccain has this to say of the
strange object he photographed:
al had read for several DAYS about
the sir ship. laughed over
it and was skeptical on the SUBJ
Jact. This morning at $50, when l
arose to attend to my usual work of
receiving the newspapers from Chi
cago and making my deliveries for
the day, l saw strange looking OBJ
ject in the sky coming from the
south. 1t looked like a big cigar.
1t came nearer. and l saw at glance
that it was not balloon. Quick as
q flash l realized it was the much
talked of air ship. Ally boy won
camera not long ago in contest for
getting subscribers to paper. 1t
was in the store, SO feet from where
stood gazing at the object. 1 rem
and got it as the thing approached
The sky was clear. Conditions fav-
ored good photograph. A plate
was ready. ran to Greenleaf avenue
aud Market street aud got a good
shot at it. With &. 4. Overocker,
whose attention was attracted to it,
| ian down the Northwestern tracks
and we got second picture a few
minutes later. Z. l.. Osborne and
William Hoodless also saw the air
ship. l am no longer skeptic.
distinctly saw the outlines OF man
in the rear of the machine. He
pulled revolving rudder or some
sort Of contrivauce which steered the
course of the air ship. This strange
invention came within 600 feet of the
earth as near as could estimate it.
1.-The lower portion Of the air ship
vas thin aud made OF some light,
white metal like aluminium. The
upper portion was dark, sad long
like big cigar. pointed in front and
with some kind of arrangement in
the rear to which cables are attached.
The pilot pulled these and steered
the course from south to northwest.
We watched the fight of the air ship
until it went east and disa ppeared
from view. l returned to the store
with the plates. attended to my
morning papers. and. with Over
rocker, finished proofs as soon as
possible. refused an offer from q
Chicago paper for the negatives. l.
think time will prove that this is no
fake. I've lived here TOO long to try
and fool people. have no desire
for notoriety. It's an air ship. and
If you don't believe it. look at the
picture and be Convinced. I can
swear that saw the air ship. So
can three other men here, whose
word stands we'll in this commu-
nifty"
That's right" came q popular
chorus Of suburbanites near the
counter. MCCAIN is all right"
A dispatch from Marshtield, Wis,
states that it is believed that the
ship remained Saturday in an open
space in the woods south of that
place where it was quite safe from
human eyes.as at first seen it seemed
to be rising in that direction.
Through glasses it presented cone
shape, with q glaring headlight.
Man y there believe the air ship spent
the day in the woods south of town,
where it was quito safe from curious
eyes.
But here is dispatch from Omaha
that seems to throw more light on
the authenticity Of the air ships
existence than any that has been re-
ceived heretofore.
Omaha, Neb., April 1.-The mys-
terry surrounding the so-called air
ship, which has caused the veracity
of many reputable citizens to be
questioned. promises to be cleared
up within few days through the
medium Of the Trans Mississippi ex-
position. In the first mail y esterday
Secretary Wakefield received letter
dated at Omaha, and bearing the
postmark of this date. The letter
was signed "a. C. Clinton" and
read as follows:
ITO the Exposition Directors: My
identity up to date has been un-
known, but l will come to the front
now. that is, If you gusrsntee me
$4,000 square feet Of spacs. l am
the famous air ship constructor. and
will guarantee you positively OF this
fact in week. The air ship is my