New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1903-10-08
LANGLEY AIRSHIP FAILS.
Makes a Straight Shoot for the Bot
tom of the POtodmc.
IBr TELEGRAPH TO THE TH1BUSE.I

Whitewater. Va Oct DISMAL IL not alto
gether unexpected failure is the outcome Of
Professor Langley's elaborate and expensive ex-
pertinent in aerial navigation The famous
aerodrome lies a total wreck. after having DEM
onstrated not only its complete inability to fly.
but the impossibility of alighting without self
destruction. could it be so perfected to
make short flights Carried swiftly forward by
the impetus of the powerful launching cata-
putt, the machine sped from the seventy foot
ways at altitude Of sixty feet, and gracefully
sank into the Potomac three hundred feet from
the launching track. 1t soon rose to the sur
face. where 1t was supported by the alright
cylinders provided for that purpose When it
to the surface It a total wreck. all
the delicate machinery with which Professor
Langley had attempted to initiate the soaring
Of a bird irreparably tangled and destroyed.
Mr.. Manley's application Of Professor Lang
ley's theory after months Of preparation. had
proved a total failure in ten seconds. and
$4,000 of the Congress appropriation for army
ordnance and fertilization improvements had
been wasted, well a sum. the magnitude
of which man knows except Professor Lang
ley. from the funds of the Smithsonian Insti-
tuition.
No more perfect conditions could have been
desired than those under which the experiment
took place. A breeze Of scarcely five miles an
hour was blowing and the sun shone brightly as
Professor Manley at noon tested and examined
every function and detail Of the aerodrome. The
motor tried and found TO work perfectly;
the new propellers. braced with steel withstood
the strain of the preliminary tests. and every
thing pointed to success Professor Manley
clad in white duck trousers and cork lined
Jacket. appeared smiling and happy as he
scanned the lower river with shaded eyes ap-
parently trying to determine on the best place
to alight. One tug sent far down the river
that it might be hand to go to his assistance
when he wearied of aerial navigation
With pTopellers working at the rate Of 1. 200
revolutions a minute, the spring catapult was
released. and all witnesses held their breath as
Manley and his aerodrome quickly disappeared
beneath the surface of the Potomac A more
deplorable wreck than that which the several
tugs hauled on board piecemeaI and tenderIy
conveyed to the houseboat could not be mag
ined The huge wings limp and crumpled
rags. and propellers and frame were torn and
spIintered scraps.
That's the most expensive diving apparatus
I ever saw" remarked one Of the witnesses. and
there was none 20 deny his statement.
Manley appeared for the time. chiefly
cerned with getting into dry clothing. and said
much, but later he made the following state
ment:
It must be understood that the test to-day
entirely experiment, and the first of its
kind ever made. The experiment was unsuc-
cessful. The balancing upon which depended
the success of the fight was based upon the
tests of the models and proved to be incorrect
but only an actual trial Of the full sized ma
chine itself could determine this. My conf
dence in the future success Of the work is
changed. I can give you no further informa
ton. shall make a formal report TO Professor
Langley.