New-York tribune., 1909-07-28

remained up another hour or so. but there was
no necessity I satisfied with the flight
and having surpassed my brothers record.
Before his achievement OF to-day the best
Orville Wright had been able TO accomplish with
a passenger aboard was flight of o minutes
61-3 seconds. This in a trial flight made
over the Fort Myer drill ground on September
IL 1908 when he cIrcled the field for distance
OF IS miles with Major George o. Squier, act
ing chief signal officer of the army. as his pas
senger In the same week he made flight of
fraction more than six minutes with Lieutenant
Lahm. his passenger OF to-day. a companion
THE DEATH OF sELFRIDGE-
1t was in attempting to improve these two
experimental flights that he met with the aCci-
dent on September Il. 1908. which resulted in
the death OF Lieutenant Thomas E. Selfridge. OF
the signal corps. and serious Injury to himself
on this occasion the machine. after completing
two circuits OF the Fort Myer drill ground. was
dashed TO earth from a height of seventy-five
feet by the breaking OF one Of the propeller
blades. When the aviator and his passenger
were extricated from the debris II found
that Lieutenant SeIfridge had sustained a tract
ure of the skull and Orville Wright had thigh
and several ribs broken. The unfortunate young
army officer died less than three hours after the
accident but Mr.. Wright recovered quickly. and
went to France. where his brother Wilbur had
been gaining fame
In his flights at lie Mans and Pau Wilbur
Wright again and again demonstrated the abil-
ity of his aeroplane 10 sustain the weight Of
two men in flight Count DO Lambert. Paul Tis-
sander, Captain Lucas Gerardville. Of the
French army and dozen more or less prom
nent aviation enthusiasts have gone up with
him in the machine, and until the flight OF to-
day It was with him that the worlds record
for two man flight rested. This was made at
lie Mans last year. when. with Professor Pain
love- of the French Institute, aboard. Wilbur
Wright remained aIoft for / hour minutes and
81 seconds Previous to this effort Wilbur
Wright had 10 his credit a flight of 1 hour
minutes. also made at lie Mans. with Major
Fordyce. of the French army. as his passenger.
The machine used I'm to-day's test fight con-
sists of two planes one five feet above the other
and measuring thirty-six feet from tip to tip
The seat for the opera tor Is placed in the centre
of the lower plane. TO the left Of the motor The
passenger sits on the other side of the motor.
The motor itself is a product of the Wright
brothers and IS four cylinder thirty horsepower
water cooled gasolene engine. The gasolene is
pumped directly into the intake pipes. there be-
ing no carburetors. The tips of the planes are
flexible for about twelve feet BY means Of
lever they can be turned I'm curve the wings
moving I'm opposite directions. A second lever
controls the twin rudders. which supported
by brace ten feet from the rear IF the planes.
BY working the two levers together the equi-
Iibrium of the machine is maintained. Ten feet
in front of the operators seat two planes re-
sembling a box kite. about fifteen by three feet.
are used for controlling the ascent and descent
Two propellers about nine feet in diameter and
revolving in opposite directions, are used 10
thrust the aeroplane forward. The weight of the
machine, including operator and passenger is a
trihe under twelve hundred pounds
Mr. Herring the New York aviator, applied 10
the War Department for an extension OF time to
day and obtained until August ! 10 make his
fastd fQhf