The San Francisco call., 1909-07-28

1000 feet in the circumference
sometimes IN long sweeps and again
Su shorter circles. The machine kept
nearly e3 feet high. save where some
stray currents OF air rocked il up and
down
Spectators Go Wild
After the SEVENTEEN turn a great
shout went up. automobile horns were
footed in 8 deafening chorus and hand
clapping and cheers and waving of
hats and handkerchiefs told the men in
the flying craft that their task was ac-
complished. The crowd expected Or
vile 10 come down then, but he kept
on until he established the new record.
While his brother was circling
around birdlike in the air, Wilbur,
standing on the ground, cheered wildly,
The army officers began TO chah VIII
bur over his losing the worlds record
20 his brother.
watch him on the next turn; he's
got me-" said Wilbur. When he comes
by. let's give him cheer"
Wilbur Gets Excited
Wilbur waited until the machine was
almost overhead. then rushed ahead of
T. waving his hat and dancing glee-
fully. II was the first sign OF emo
fion Wilbur had ever shown at Fort
Myer The crowd was yelling hysteri-
cslly and up at the presidents tent
General Edwards forgot the president
and shouted like a boy. The president
100. was showing signs Of elation.
Then the machine descended. slid
along the ground in a, cloud OF dust
and stopped almost upon the identical
spot Of last September's fatal fall This
time there was no faIl. the beautiful
seroplsne was unmarried and the two
men stepped out unhurt and triumph
ant.
Was Nervous at First
4 was nervous at first" said OrviIle;
you know this was my first attempt
with a passenger since last year. Grad
ually the machine found herself, how
ever, and I felt as sure as if I had been
swung at the end OF a string. with no
such problem as direction or elevation
or speed TO solve. / could hear Lieu
tenant Lahm at first but the terrible
racket Of the motor soon deadened my
ears and we abandoned all attempts at
conversation. I did not intend to land
as abruptly as ] did. and was trying
some low flying, but 1 misjudged the
elevation and before I knew il we
struck the ground / could have re-
mained up another hour, but there was
no necessity.
DESCRIPTION OF MACHINE
The machine used in the flight con-
sists Of two planes, one five feet above
the other and measuring SO feet from
tip TO tip. The seat for the operator
IS placed in the center of the lower
plane, of to the left of the motor. The
passenger sits on the other side of the
motor.
The motor itself is a product of the
IL, F1r.~ 81
1nder. 80 horsepower, water cooled gas
oline engine. The gasoline is pumped
directly into the intake pipes, there
being no carbureters.
The tips Of the planes are flexible for
about j feet. By means of a lever
they can be turned in a curve resem-
bling a heIiocoid. the wings moving in
opposite directions second lever
controls the twin rudders, which are
supported by a brace 10 feet from the
rear OF the planes.
EQUILIBRIUM MAINTAINED
BY working the two levers together
the equilibrium is maintained. Ten
feet in front Of the operators seat two
planes resembling box kite. about
j. by 3 feet are used for controlling
the ascent and descent. Two propellers
about nine feet in diameter and reyolv-
ing in opposite directions are used to
thrust the aeroplanes forward. The
weight of the machine, including both
operator and passenger, is a trife un-
der 1920 pounds.
Latham Falls Into Sea
DOVER. July 27.-Hubert Latham's
second attempt to fly across the Eng
lish channel ended disastrously today.
Almost at the moment of victory his
monoplane fluttered down into the sea
two miles beyond Admiralty pier.
Thousands of persons crowding the
water front saw the fall and for nearly
half an hour they were kept in s1sz
pense as the aeronaut's fates
A flock of large and small craft raced
TO the scene Of the disaster and a
pinnace from the British battleship
Russell picked up the unlucky flyer
and put him aboard the French tor
pedo boat destroyer Escopette.
AVIATOR INJURED
After surgeon had attended to his
injuries the destroyer brought Latham
ashore and he was taken TO a hotel
His face was bandaged and bleeding
and his nose was broken. The ma
chine, badly wrecked, was hoisted from
the boat TO the dock Latham's flight
10 the moment Of its sensational finish
in some respects echpsed Bleriots. He
made greater speed, Deing only 20 min
utes in the air from the time he left
the coast OF France. Apparently he
steered more straight than Bleriot as
he was making direct for Dover when
he fell
The disastrous ending of the fight
furnished a dramatic scene. Shortly
before o'clock the clamor of sirens
and bells on the ships in the harbor
notified the town that another channel
crossing was to be attempted. In a
n1arvelously short time the water front,
the piers and the cliffs behind the
town were crowded.
THOUSANDS WATCH ON SHORE
Thousands gathered there, many OF
them carrying telescopes. marine anS
field glasses and cameras Soon two
French torpedo boats. which preceded
the aeroplane, We're seen approaching
at a furious pace, thick clouds of smoke
putting from their tunnels.
Fourteen minutes after 6 o'clock an
airship was discerned heading straight
for the center of the town. The rapid
ity Of its flight was evidenced by the
quickness with which it grew larger
and assumed birdlike outlines.
Suddenly it began TO slaeken speed
at the same time gliding toward the