Los Angeles herald., 1909-09-30

FLY OVER
NEW YORK
Wilbur Wright EncircleS
Liberty Statue
CURTISS ALSO MAKES VERY
BRIEF VOYAGE
TWO BIG DIRIGI5LE BALLOONS
FAIL VIGOROUSLY
Famous American Aeronauts Sail in
BlpIanes from Governors Island.
Four Sensational Flights
EnIiven Day
TWO BIG DIRIGl6LE BALLOONS
FAIL INeLoRIoUsLY

n EW 1O1th, sept ca w llDuE
Y Wright circled the great Statue
~ of Liberty at the entrance of
New York harbor in his aeroplane to-
day, while in the upper part of the city
two huge dirigible balloons failed in
gloriously in their task.
This, the first day of the flights of
the Hudson-Fult celebration, was a
victory for the heavier-than-air ma
chine.
Both Wright and Glen H. Curtiss
scared successfully from the aero
drome on Governors island in their
motor propelled bi-planes.
Two great dirigibles, manned re-
spectively by Captain Thomas Bald
win and George L. Toinlinson and en-
tered in the New York Worlds $1O,-
600 New York to- Albany race, were
forced to descend before they were
well under way because of mechanical
difficulties.
Wilbur Wright made three sensa-
tional flights and Curtiss made one
brief though successful test spin of
thirty seconds duration
| Baldwin. with his dirigible, landed
| in tie Hudson river less than an hour
after the start. while Tomlinson, after
/ remaining in the air from 1885 a. m.
until 1870 D. M, came down to earth
near White Plains, N. Y, twenty-five
miles from his starting point.
Neither Injured
Neither of the dirigible pilots were
injured nor was their craft seriously
damaged.
Curtiss was the first to leave the
earth and at a time when dawn had
hardly broken. He passed the night
on Governors island and at about Z
o'clock rose but only for brief flight.
Two hours later Wright made his
first ascent, encircling Governors
island and remaining in the air for
seven minutes. After an hours rest
he again went aloft, this time remain
ing in the air for six minutes ana
thirty seconds, attaining a speed es-
timated at fifty miles an hour. With
glorious sweep out over the bay he
passed entirely around the great en-
blem of liberty. Wright made third
fight at $50 this afternoon before a.
big crowd.
The Wright machine showed greater
speed than that of Curtiss, but the
Curtiss flyer seemed to keep its
equilibrium better and remained on an
even keel. Wright, in fact, met with
one slight mishap in his flight, when
a wing tip struck the ground on land
ing and considerably jarred the ma
chine.
Cnalcnge TO SuTIlSS
Wright's action in circling the Statue
of Liberty today is taken as chal-
lenge to Curtiss, for Curtiss, it will be
recalled, was the first to mention such
a flight From now on, it is expected,
the two avators will strive to outdo
the other, although neither will do
anything reckless.
Tomlinson was the first TO start on
the dirigible balloon trip which he
hoped, to end at Albany. He got away
at II SO and headed north on the east
side of the Hudson.
Baldwin arose at 11:50, shot out di-
rectly over the middle of the Hudson,
and began travelling toward the state
capital In a few minutes he was
lost to view in a slight mist.
A puff of wind snapped one of his
rudder ropes and he was forced to be-
gin his descent on the water 250 feet or
the Jersey shore and opposite One
Hundred and Ninetieth street.
The balloon came down easily. Cap
tain Baldwin threw out drag nets, and
sailors from the battleships Rhode Is
land, New Jersey and North Carolina
swarmed to his rescue in launches
Baldwin swung himself into a boat
without getting wet.
Meantime Tomlinson, at height OF
5000 feet, had been going northward
overland. Both his gasoline and oil
tanks began leaking, and fearing an
explosion he was forced to land near
White Plains.
Just as the sky line of New York
city became dimly visible above the
haze which hung over the harbor today
Glenn H. Curtiss, winner of the Gordon
Bennett international cup at Rheims,
France, successfully tried out the aero
plane which he will use in his flights
during the Hudson Fulton celebration.
Mr.. Curtiss remained at Governors
Island over night, and at $3.50 a. M
made preparations to test the new ma
chine. After giving it a preliminary
run over the sandhills at the south end
of the island, Mr.. Curtiss and his as
sistant turned the machine with its
head toward the west from which di-
rection the wind was blowing at the
rate of five or six miles an hour.
On account of the resistance offered
by the soft sand, Mr.. Curtiss found 1t
necessary to run the machine for
greater distance than usual to get the
required initial impetus.
Driving on an even keel in short un-
dulations, he rose about thirty feet,
when, swinging his rudder to the left.
Curtiss turned his machine toward the
south.
AS the aeroplane reached position
Continued ON Page Two