New-York tribune., 1909-06-16
FALLS $500 FEET, ALIVE
AEROPL4NE VAS STARTED
FROM BALLOON.
although IruentiJc Blacksmith
Drops Great Distance Not a Bone
Is BrOken-U'W Try 4gain.
TRy Telegraph 10 The Tribune. ]


Berwyn. Neb., June 15.-Dropping thirty-fve
hundred feet from the clouds to the EARTH
Ulysses Sorensen, a Berwyn blacksmith. whose
homemade flying machine failed to fly at a
critical moment is alive TO tell the tale Within
an hour of his remarkable descent he at
work upon aeropane to replace the one
which was smashed pieces in the fail.
Sorensen has been at work his flying
chine for many months. following ideas of his
own. When not busy shoeing horses he worked
on the machine. The construction such
that it was necessary to launch the aeroplane
from a balloon. Late to-day the start was
made Sorensen sitting in the aeroplane. which
was fastened TO an ordinary balloon Every
body in town was out to see the flight.
The ascent was made without incident, and
when a height of thirty-fve hundred feet was
reached Sorensen cut loose.
To his CONSERVATION the steering rudder
would not respond. and the aeroplane. refusing
10 be guided. shot downward like stone, turn
ing over and over as it descended.
Sorensen was thrashed about like a straw. but
cIung to his seat. In its downward flight the
wings Of the flying machine unfurled. and when
within a few hundred feet OF the ground checked
n some extent the terrific speed at which
sorensen was approaching the earth when
the ground was struck Sorensen was on top OF
the machine which was battered and twisted
into a mass OF debris.
FRIENDS THOUGHT HIM DEAD
sorensen was picked up by friends, who sup
posed him dead Under the care OF a physician
he recovered consciousness. and II was founo
that not single bone was broken and that ne
was not injured beyond being mass OF bruises
Within an hour he was ordering supplies Tor
new flying machine.
I'm all right and my aeroplane IS all right
t15lr
not to bed And what's more, that blame thing
Sc going 70 Hv and TO solve the problem of fly
ing lust as soon as this soreness wears off
I'll begin work on another one. l have already
ordered material. and I'll be all right in couple
of DAYS Not single bone broken. and wish
could say as much for my flying machine
That's certainly smashed.
But guess it's got right to be smashed
Let ANYTHING fall half a mile. and I guess most
anything would smash
Yes. I suppose I the only man in the
world who ever fell that far and lived to tell
about It.
What got the matter with the machine?
Well I am not quite sure. but as near as 1
could tell the rudder got TANNED and refused
to keep the aeroplane IN horizontal position.
We tipped forward and then we turned over.
After that we just kept on turning over until
I thought we were spinning around like top
going sideways.
u can't imagine how the rudder happened 10
jam. I am more than ever Npositive that tie
thing will fly If given half a chance.
When the balloon reached a high point. prob
ably $500 feet I pulled the cord by which the
aeropIane was attached. Like a fash We started
doWnward-I and the aeroplane.
COULDN'T FALL OUT.
That was what I expected Then I pulled
the lever which should have moved the rudder.
but instead OF doing ii the connection jammed.
Then came the first turn over
WHY didn't / fall out? ] didn't have time to
fall. That aeroplane falling just as fast as
I was: and anyway. I was braced in.
I'VE went down Ike streak of lightning. it
seemed 10 me- and yet 1 sure that was
falling for at least month. All the time /
kept pulling at that lever. If 1 could have
moved that rudder knew the aeroplane would
have righted itself.
After turning over half dozen times l lost
track Of the count My friends who were
watching say 1T didn't take me many seconds
to come down.
u didn't once think of being killed In fact,
never thought Of what would happen when hit
the ground. All / thought Of was TO get that
lever and rudder to working.
..I never knew when l hit. In my turns /
saw that ! was getting closer to the ground
! but that didn't bother me.
! "-rben came a jolt. as II somebody had hit
mo in the stomach with a baseball bat. All
/ my breath went and I never knew anything
.ftor that moment until came to, half an hour
/ afterward.
YES. I'm sore. but I'm more sore at that
rIIdder than at anything else. In my next
machine III have that thing fixed so that II
will work all right. 1t will take me seVeral
r,o,+bs 70 make another one. but I'll do it all
right and the next one will fly too