The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1909-11-07

Every great advance toward the con-
quest of the air, whether it be made
by the Wright brothers, Curtiss. BlerIot.
Latham or any of the host of others
who are now directing their attention
toward solving the problem, reflects
some credit on Santos-Dumont.
He brought about the present extra
ordinary interest in aermautics His
experiments, beginning a decade ago
with a dirigible balloon and continuing
to his present aeroplane of today, were
the spur thas started hundreds of ex-
perimenters.
The little Brazilian, resident of Paris
for so long, and fitting so thoroughly
into the life of the metropolis has been
believed by many to he a Frenchman
but he is a South American by birth,
and his father is immensely wealthy.
IN fact. the elder Santos umont has
on his own lands some forty miles of
private railways, which gives an ex
cellent idea of what his wealth must
be.
Santos Dumont, early interested III
mechanics, found that The flight of the
air made an enormous appeal to his
imagination He studied the subject
in Brazil. until the lack of more adj
vanced teaching and of the material
to make the kind of balloon he had in
mind sent him 10 Paris.
The slender istle Brazilian. looking
hardly more than sixteen years old, was
built like Jockey when he first went
to the capital, and his odd appearance
and his exceptional skill in aeronautics
at once piqued public interest. From
that time, now about a decade ago,
tor the present he has not failed of at
tention. for every attempt he made to
solve one of the last great problems
remaining for man to deal with.
But the little man. though he might
appear immature, quickly proved him
self student of solid attainments. He
had there learned by actual experience
some basic principles of mechanics. He
had also had the responsibility of actu-
ally operating an engine. He asked no
better holiday
When he came to his experiments
with airships il seemed the most natural
thing in the world for him to run him
self the craft he had built.
1t must be remembered in estimating
what Santos Dumont did to stimulate
the study of aeronautics that when he
came there was no such thing as a
dirigible balloon, vet in the decade that
has elapsed the dirigible has become so
common that no one any longer thinks
anything of it.
To sail around under 4 gas bag ana
to be able to control its movements is
thought to be nothing worthy of com
ment. The aeroplane has carried the
science so far ahead that the dirigible
balloon is totally antedated.
But Santos-Dumont was the pioneer
in this field. There is only one rival
to dispute it with him, and that is
the veterna Count Won Zeppelin, the
German He was working on the sub
iect before Santos-Dumont, but his ex-
periments got no such attention, as
those of the Brazilian, and though time
has shown the solidity and value of
the German S invention. nevertheless it
was Santos Dumont who spurred the
public and made aerial navigation a
fad
The greatest feat that Santos-Dumont
performed was when eight years ago ne
sailed one of his airships around the
Eiffei Tower This was July Is. 1901.
In its stimulating effect on public m
terest this can only be compared to
what Blerot did when he took his lit
tie aeroplane across the English Chan
mel Greater things may have been ac-
ccmpplished in the line of aeronautlcs,
but these are the kind of feats that
stay in the popular mind, because they
convey a definite impression, something
that can be grasped.
Santos Dumont in his shirt sleeves
and very high collar, with his somewhat
effeminate appearance and soft manner
of speech. cut an absolutely unimpres-
sive figure that day at the Longchamps
race track. but his domination of the
subject could be seen in the way his
comrades of the Aero Club gave way |
20 him as he tried his motor, expert |
mented with straps and pulleys, and !
then set off to win the Deutsch prize |
This was the donation of Henry |
Deutsch. a wealthy member of the Aero |
Club. and the amount was 100000
But the conditions imposed made 1t |
difficult test. |
The conditions prescribed that the /
winning aeronaut should start his air
shin from the Aero Club Park. an in /
closed hillside on the Seine near Long,
cbamps sail to and around the Eitfel |
lower. return ana Iduh Il" f'
without having touched ground or any
thing else during the journey and to
be back at the starting point within
a half hour.
Taking his place in the basket, San
tos- Dumont made his start. 1t did not
at first look like race against time.
The balloon rose sluggishly, then slow,
w and gracefully veered and pointed
its nose toward the Eifel Tower
steadily il neared the shadowy obelIsk
line which was the tower. He rounded