The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1910-06-23
GAMEST MAN
toontlnued rrom FIrst pare.l

on the same thing 1t wasn't 80 easy
then. ! had always worked on the
problem from my college days. My
family feared for me, and my friends
told me that my business standing
would be injured, and the public jeered
at me. / didn't mind that much,
though. used to enjoy some of the
funny stories that we're printed about
me. You know how it is with young
mamie is wrapped up In the pursuit
he thinks that every one who dis
agrees with him is wrong. Hamilton
is the same way. We laughed together
at the ridiculous stories that we're
printed when l had dragged him
through the East river, mounted on a
glider, which i towed from an auto,
or when tried to glide, and the thing
obstinately stayed on the ground.
Sometimes those stories hurt-those
that made 1t seem that was hare
Drained crank. But / learned not to
care"
And then the philosophy which he
has learned on a bed of pain through
weary years came to the surface.
"You know" he said, 81 believe that
God-or Providence-or whatever you
call the over-ruling power-plans these
things. The history of every great
human achievement is marked by the
tragedies of those who fail. But when
the day comes for that new power to
be given to the world, the right man
steps forward and the thing is done.
Five years ago the man who tried to
build flying machine was laughed at
from ocean to ocean. His friends
apologized for him or cut him. He
had to conduct his experiments in
secret, or else be the target for a
crowd that only failed to throw things
because they believed words reached
the mark better. If he had failed, he
was forgotten and condemned.
"And then one man won-and to-
day the world is standing with hats
off in adulation Of the flying man. Ten
years from now all that will be changed.
Then believe the aeroplanes will be
as common as automobiles are now
not in the city, perhaps, but through
out the country where great open
landing places may be had. think
that within year, perhaps, the one
great problem of flying will be solved
that of automatic stability. 1 think
l have solved it myself, and will soon
find out. / have been at work on IL.
But the point is that flying has been
redeemed from faddism, and has be-
come a business. The Wrights will
clear not less than $500, 900 from their
exhibitions and royalties this year
alone. They may clear ten times that
much. l can not tell. That will de-
pend largely upon whether they win
the suits that are now pending. But
l believe 1t would be for the good of
aviation II they do win those suits.
Then Curtiss and Hamilton and the
others will have to abandon their use
Of the Wright machines, in which
stability is dependent upon the dex-
ferrous manipulation of the tips. They
will be forced TO tackle the big prob
lem-that of automatic stability-and
some one will solve 1t.
1t was not possible to ask Israel
Ludlow II he regretted that accident
that cost him the use of his limbs.
1t would have been equivalent to
asking soldier wounded In war II
he were sorry that he had volun-
teered. "We we're on the right track
four years ago." said he, "You know,
Hamilton and the rest of us were
working in the dark. All we had to
guide us we're the tables prepared
by poor DR.. Langley-Whose heart
was broken by the scoifers. They
were all right as far as they went,
those tables-but they didn't 60 far.
DIR. Langley had worked out the ta-
bles on a foot-square basis. We had
to work out new tables covering the
action of plane Of four or five hun
dred square feet. We had to learn
the angle of incidence and the fol-
lowing surfaces, and all the other
things by experiment. There was
nothing to go upon. Naturally
enough, some Of us got hurt"
"And how did the gliders in which
you and Hamilton had your falls,
compare with the aeroplanes of to-
day?"
"There was no difference in prin-
ciple," said he. 'They were not per-
fected. We must have kept at 1t
until we learned just what surfaces
and angles were demanded. But we
were absolutely on the right track"
81 IA.