The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1909-08-27
Aviator Is ReVeDged Upon
Competitors By Bril-
liant Flight
DISTANCE TRAVELLED
IS OVER NINETY MILES
Curtiss and BIerot Do Not Accomp-
lsh Much on the Field AS They
Make Only Short
Flights.

Betheny Aviation Field, Rheims France.
August 26-Hubert Latham, the French
aviator, today took glorious revenge for
the hard luck which he experienced In
his recent attempts to cross the Eng
lish channel and his indefatigable efforts
to accomplish some notable achievement
were realized today by establishing a
new worlds record in a fight of 95 .ss
miles. Latham covered 15 laps or 15O
kilometres in 2 hours, 1s minutes and
seconds, and the full distance in hours.
IS minutes and s-5 seconds, which are
also worlds records. the fight being at
the rate of about 6s1s kilometres an hour,
as compared with 5S1a made by Wright
at Lemans and fraction under 50 made
by Paulham yesterday.
Except for the one-lap speed records
made by Bleriot and Curtiss this week
and Paulhams record in the air. Latham
| now holds every record for distance and
speed. Like Paulham, he descended to-
day when the gasoline tank was empty
| Nothing could have exceeded the beauty
and impressiveness OF the prolonged
flight. In grace of lines no other aero
plane here compares with Latham's mono
! plane. The slightly tilted planes from
| the long skif-like body give il a. re-
semblance when close to winged canoe
and while sailing high up in the air IL
looks from distance like mammoth
dragon fly. For an hour, with fiuttering
wings like living thing, 1t fought IT'S
way against the storm of rain and wind
at an average height of $50 feet mount
| ing higher as the wind rose until dur
ing the worst of the storm II was up
| fully 300 feet. The contention of the adj
vocates of the biplane that the mono
plane would be unable TO live In a stronr
breeze has been amply refuted.
Three Flights Made.
Latham. early in the day with mo.
10. another aeroplane of the same type
made fight of more than 70 Kilometres
and after he had finished in the afternoon
| Count De Lambert covered 11s kilometres
| c72S miles) in commanding fashion Three
flights, therefore. in a single day totalled
more than 21O miles.
Glenn II. Curtiss. the American, had
two practice spins. but although his ma
chine behaved splendidiy, its speed was
! disappointing. An accident which Bleriot
suffered about dusk may improve Curtiss'
chances for the international. While trv-
ing to alight in front of the tribune
with passenger aboard his big sO-horse-
power machine, Bleriot crashed into a
/ renee, the wings and propeller being
broken. He narrowly missed killing sew
eral OF the spectators. Whether or NOT
the motor was injured has not been def
nitely determined. If so, Curtiss' most
dangerous rival has been put at a dis
advantage, as Bleriot intended to use the
! wrecked machine in the international
event. although he qualified with an
other.
Rougier also, while giving an exhibit
| ton performance, landed in a crowd
lunching on the grass and slightly in
Jured Two women and man. Bleriot in
sists that his accident was not due to
recklessness, with which he was charged
by the crowd. He asserts that a squadron
or dragons was moving across the field
and crowded him toward the fence, COM
pelling him to choose between landing
among the horses or against the barrier
Standing in Race.
Today's contest altered the classified
ton for the Prix de la Champagne, the
figures now standing:
Latham, 164A Kilometres Paulham. 1S1:
| De Lambert, 116; Latham, 70; Curtiss, 30;
Lefebvre, q. Lathans two records were
made with different machines.
For the Prix de la Vitesse, for three
rounds of the course at greatest speed,
| the record to date is follows:
! Tissandier, Is minutes; De Lambert,
20 minutes; Paulham, 80 minutes, Lefeb-
vre. 29 minutes: Latham, 81 minutes. Som
! mer also qualified.
The lap speed contest record is: Tis-
4
II minutes, "a seconds; De Lambert
minutes. 33 seconds; Curtiss, s minutes
| II seconds; Latham No. 13, minutes;
De La Grange. II minutes, SO seconds;
Forber, minutes. IL seconds; Paulham,
10 minutes, so seconds; Bleriot, minutes;
Lefebvre minutes; Bunau-Varilla IL
minutes; Latham, No. 20, minutes: Far
man, 8 minutes, 81 seconds; Cockburn.
IL minutes.
Latham, who made 30 kilometres twlce
today in less than 26 minutes, probably
will use No. 20 in the final of the speed
contest on Sunday. He could afford to
take one-tenth handicap as a repetition
of his performance would beat the best
the Wright models have done.
Latham Starts First.
Latham in a beautiful monoplane
was the first aviator to get away. He
announced his intention to make an
effort to beat Paulhan's great record
for the endurance pirze made yesterday.
two hours, SO minutes and "a seconds.
Latham started flying at a great
height Sommer, Cock burn, Bunau-
Varilla De La Grange and finally
Glenn H Curtiss the American con-
testant followed Latham into the air.
Curtiss' purpose was to improve his
record in the speed lap contest and to
qualify for one of the six prizes In the
endurance contest. He accomplish ed
three rounds in impressive manner
but his speed was disappointing. His
total time was 2S minutes So 3-5 sec
onds. BY rounds his showing was as
follows: eight minutes, S2 2-5 seconds
nine minutes, 80 2-5 seconds and 10
minutes az Az seconds.