Morris tribune. [volume] (Morris, Minn.) 1880-2000, 1909-01-02
Aerial. RIGHT Of WAY
cortlandt T. Bishop Says 1t Will
Soon Be Court Problem.
FLYING CRAFT THE CAUSE.

Aeronaut Predicts Matter Must Be De-
cided by Supreme Tribunais-AeriaI
Police Needed to Guard Against
Smuggling and Trespassins Above
/ Property.
I'm short time the United States
supreme court will have to take up
this new question of right of way
through the sky. No; that is not an
aerial joke. It is already being seri-
ously considered by the governments
OF Europe and will be one of the i'm
portant questions taken up by the
International Aeronautic federation,
which meets in London, Jan. 10.'
This is a statement recently made by
Cortlandt f. Bishop, president Of the
Aero Club Of America, who is an i'm
portant factor in European aeronautics
as well as in the United States.
Mr.. Bishop was asked IL he expected
to see Thomas f. Ryan or some other
American capitalist going out after all
the valuable aerial franchises, but he
was not inclined to treat the matter
iippantly.
! II know it sounds fantastic" he said
to reporter of the New York Herald,
''but really there is no joke about it.
The house of lords and the United
States supreme court will be found
struggling with this new legal problem
before we know 1t, because it is a
thing that must be settled just as
much as the right Of way for railroads
had to be settled years ago.
''As a matter Of fundamental law
every man in dirigible balloon or an
aeroplane Is guilty of trespass when
be- passes over another mans land.
He has no more right to sail mile
above your farm than he has to build
a tunnel under it. OF course the thing
looks absurd now, but within the next
decade, probably much sooner than
that, these cases will be in the courts
and will have to be decided one way
or another.
1.-THE English common law, which.
was supposed to be built upon common
sasAse and to apply to all matters of
isanaan difference for all time holds
that a mans title to land extends to
the core of the earth and to the infin-
tiles of the heavens. Every boy in law
school learns that very early in the
course. The old civil law, which was
modelled after the Roman law and
which is the basis Of all European con-
tinental laws, has the same provision
concerning trespass.
"There is no question whatever that
a man may control the space above his
land, and therefore, unless these basic
laws are modified, it is not difficult to
see that there is very interesting
time ahead for aeronauts and aviators
when aerial craft shall come into com
mon use. And there is no question at
all that they will come into general
use much sooner. than we expect"
'It will be a somewhat difficult task
to apprehend sky trespassers, will it
notg' Mr.. Bishop was asked.
'Oh, well," he said, II suppose that
matter will take care of itself No
NVAOL we SA0l AaSC dCA4d pOllSC, OuL
1 am simply talking about the legal as
pect Of the thing. Who owns the soil
owns to the sky That was the law of
the. early Normans in England, and
that is our law today. !. So you can see,
to use bit of slang, what aviatOrs are
up against"
Mr. Bishop told what steps had been
taken in France toward meeting these
aerial legal difficulties. I
ALREADY" he said, "the Aero Club j,
of France has established a standard /
price for an acre to be paid by aero |
nauts and aviators for damage done to |
field crops. This provision is chiefly |
for ordinary balloons, but in the cities
Of France laws are being enacted to |
provide for aeroplanes, which, it is
realized over there. will soon be com
mon mode Of travel.
In Paris the police have been in.
structed to go Immediately to any aero
plane or dirigible landing within the !
city limits and search it for taxable
food, liquors or gasoline. There are /
now something like fifteen or eighteen
places in Paris set apart for the land
ing of aeroplanes, and the police un-
1erstand that little later it will be a
part of their duty to watch these
spots just as much as the gates Of the
.ity are watched now to levy tax on
III gasoline in automobiles purchased
outside of the city.
The French people recognize that
aeroplanes and dirigibles are soon to
.hange conditions there radically, and
hey are preparing for the new order
II things. The hardest thing to con-
rol win be local smuggling. One-half
" two-thirds of the revenue of French
.ities comes from the 'octroi, the tax
evied upon all food and liquors
,rought into the cities from the out
ide. This law is especially annoying
o motorists. These automobiles in the E
lir will be able to slip into the city at
my convenient point at any hour of
he day or night. In fact, the people
+ the European countries all along the
rontiers are giving very serious