The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1905-07-20
300 FEET
WITH AEROPLANE
MONTGOMERY FLYING MACHINE
TURNS OVER THREE TIMES
AND THEN DAsHEs TO
THE EARTH.

SANTA CLARA. Cal, July 90
More than two thousand persons saw
Professor John ]. Montgomery's aero
plane, the Santa Clara, collapse Tues.
day morning when 1t was at an ele-
walton OF three thousand feet. In
another instant its aeronaut, Daniel
Maloney. was hurled to the ground
with the collapsed wings of the fly.
ing machine falling on him. Some
OF the spectators picked up his dead
body.
Women tainted and men sobbed rs
they saw the great machine OF can.
vas wings and stout oak frame fold
itself up and pitch its operator from
the dizzy height.
Professor Montgomery had an.
nounced an ascension from the
grounds of the Santa Clara College
in honor of the League of the Cross
Cadets, who are holding their annual
encampment in this city. The an.
nouncement attracted probably two
thousand persons, who, shortly after
ten o'clock watched with absorbing
interest the machine as It shot up
from the college garden attached to
a huge balloon, and with Maloney
firmly seated In the saddle, his usual
position.
At a height Of four thousand feet
Maloney cut loose and began ma.
%noeuvering the aeroplane. He cir.
cled gracefully about for some min
utes. having the machine apparently
under perfect control.
Then he essayed a deep dip. Sud-
denly the machine swerved, hesitated.
and then turned completely over. 1t
righted itself, dropped a considerable
distance and turned over again. Ma.
loney was clinging desperately to his
seat, and evidently endeayoring to
regain his control, but all his efforts
were in vain.
Again the aeroplane turned in the
air. and this time the wing came to.
gether and the man and machine
plunged traight downward, while the
Mortified spectators gazed h~elplessly
upward for a distance of probably a
thousand feet. The aeronaut fell still
clinging to the machine. Both fell in
the rear Of a tannery.
When the spectators first reached
Maloney he was still breathing. His
skull was fractured and he expired
within a short time. The aeroplane.
which was constructed Of the tough.
est oak procurable, was ground into
small fragments.
Daniel Maloney was known as Pro.
lessor Lascelle in his chosen profes.
sion OF aeronaut. He was a fearless
young man who Travelled and made
numerous parachute ascents with sue.
cess. His daring was demonstrated
when he made the first ascent In the
Montgomery aeroplane at Leonards.
in the Santa Cruz Mountains. pIac-
ing his confidence on the results of
experiments with models which he
had watched with great care during
a series of demonstrations by the in.
ventor.
In appearance the aeroplane was a
light framework Of hickory, braced in
its different sections by light piano
wire supporting two wings twenty
four feet in length from tip to tip and
covered with thin muslin. Together
the wings had a surface OF 1876 square
feet.
The wings were fixed on the exte.
rior circumference, but hinged 10 the
light frame on the inner side. Their
shape fas parabolic. A movable rud.
der, consisting Of two half spherical
surfaces, was placed at the rear, its
purpose being to raise or lower the
entire machine during flight. The
weight Of the machine was forty-two
pounds, while the aeronaut weighed
1856 pounds.