Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1910-10-18
BELIEVED TO-DAY
HE is CROSSING SEA
OF WIRELESS ON
SHORE TO REACH PARTY IN
BALLOON Is TAKEN AS INDIcA-
TioN or PROGRESS.

New YORK, OCT. II.--W1releSS sta.
tions along the coast as far as heard
from today had nothing to report as
to the progress of Wellman's balloon,
the America, across the Atlantic.
The absence of news from Wellman
! is taken to indicate that he has struck
out to sea. Yesterday there were sew
eral wireless messages from him, and
1t was believed that he was not far out
from shore. Efforts to reach the
America by wireless on the shore to-
day failed and it is generally believed
that the America and its crew are
are headed for Europe.
WelIman Heard From Sunday.
Siasconsett, Mass, Oct. 17.-Some-
where east of Nantucket Island, off
the coast of Massachusetts, and ap-
proximately 800 miles from Atlantic,
the starting point, Walter Wellmans
airship, America. signalled a wireless
"alrs welP' and good bye at 1:45
Sunday afternoon, and swung on up
the coast through the fog. This mes
sage, the last OF the days wireless
was received here sby
I AZ. III Ginnan, the Marccfli operator
who had been on the alert. since
dawn.
AT - O'Clock Sunday morning Sias-
consett first came in touch with the
dirigible Then, although the wireless
range of the craft is comparatively
short, owing to necessarily limited
power and antennae, the station was
surprised to hear its CALM S.
clear and strong, followed by W." the
code signal for the airShip
Judging from the strength of the sig
mails it was assumed that the America
was in close proximity to Nantucket,
and Immediately all the life saving
stations and lighthouses on the island
were notified by telephone to keep a
sharp lookout. But the fog which had
enshrouded the America since her de-
parture Saturday morning, still hung
ever the ocean, shutting of the view.
The Marconi station, however, be-
gan a rapid fire Of interogations and
learned from Jack Irwin. the Amer
ican operator, that the ships motors
had been stopped and that the dir
igible was heading east northeast and
making twenty-five miles an hour with
the wind Nantucket's excitement was
acute, but with motors idle the airship
sailed along as silently as phantom
in the sky where ordinarily the engines
exhaust would have reverberated
along the coast However the electric
voice Of the Marconi station filled in
at timcs what the eye and ear were
denied. At 10:30 a. m, signals from
the dirigible became suddenly
stronger and it was momentarily ex-
pected that the American would come
in sight of the station.
Irwin in fact flashed that he thought
he could hear the sound of the break
ers. but the fog effectually shut the
craft from view, although she was
passing over the shoals surrounding
the island. From that time on the sig
nails from the airship grew steadily
weaker until at 12:45 message was
flashed from her asking if everything
aboard was o. X. Family came the
reply, "yes," then fainter still, the
two letters "GB," (good bye).
Record Trip in Balloon.
London. Oct. 17.-Another remark
able chapter was added to the history
OF. aviation yesterday when the French
dirigible balloon Clement -Bayard made
the 1876 miles by air from Competgne to
London in the remarkable time Of six
hours, rail journey requiring seven
hours by the fastest express trains and
boats. a
This is also the first occasion on
which dirigible balloon has crossed
the English channel. The over water
route occupied As minutes.
The Clement -Bayard, with a crew Of
six aboard, left Compeigne As. miles
from Paris, at 7:15 O'Clock Sunday
morning. and reached London without
q stop at about LIS in the afternoon
Des Moines Man Suicides.
Des Moines, Oct. 17.-Peter Benson,
As years old, committed suicide in his
room at GIL East Second street early
Sunday morning by cutting his throat
with jackknife. Dependency over
a loss of work is assigned as the cause
Gets 500 Per Acre.
Birmingham. Oct. 17.- Especial "A.
C. Fisher has sold his farm of 1863
acres to G. A. Woolums of Packwood
for $10g per acre. Possession will be
uivau March 1911