Daily Kennebec journal., 1910-05-30
Wins the $4,000 Prize...CoVers the 137 Miles
In z Hours, 81 Minutes With Thrilling *
perience, But Without Mishap-.-Makes One
Stop at Poughkeepsie... LOUDLY Cheered.

| New York, May 29.-Glenn H. Cur
tiss liew from Albany to New York
City in an aeroplane today, winning
| the $4,000 prize offered by the New
| York World He covered the distance
of 137 miles in hours and 81 minutes
and came to earth as easily and as
lightly as pigeon.
| His average speed for the distance
54 06 miles an hOur-surpasses any rec
ord ever made by an aeroplane in long
distance flight and in it's entirety
eclipses anything man has attempted
| in heavier than air machine.
Albany was quilted at 7.03 o'clock
| this morning under weather conditions
| as near perfect as the most rastidious
aviator could demand. One hour and
80 minutes later he had reached his
stopping place near Pougkeepsie. where
| there was an hours intermission
Resuming his flight at 9.26, he sped
| southwark and landed within the
| boundary of Manhattan island at 10. 35.
| Only one hundred yards north of the
| point on which his craft settled
stretches Spuyten Duyvel creek, separ-
atng Manhattan island from the main
| land.
Had he failed to cross this his flight
would have bene in vain but as he
swept over it, the prize WAS his.
Thence t. Governors island his task
| was but a whim of triumph and the
concluding lap of a race already won.
PaulhanS fight from London to
Manchester, 1S6 miles. exceeded Cur
| tiss' feat of today in distance but not
| in speed and danger. The F'renchman's
average speed was only 44,3 miles an
| hour and below him lay English
meadow land. Curtiss followed the
winding course Cf the historic Hud-
son, with jutting headlands with weeds,
| slopes and trcacheouS palisades. He
swung nigh over the gre at bridge at
| Poughkeepsie, dipped at times within
| so ieet Of tho river's broad surface, and
| iockcved like d falcon at the turns.
Only once did his craft show signs
| of rebellion This was off Storm King,
near West Point, where at a height of
nearly 1000 feet a treacherous gust
struck his planes. The machine dropped
| like d rock for 40 feet and tilted peril
| ously, but Curtiss, always COOL kept
both his head and his seat. and by
| adrcit handling of his levers brought
| renewed equilibrium to his aerial
steed
CurticS was up before dawn today.
hestant despite favorable weather con-
ditions. But with eyes and brain clear
ed of the cobwebs of Sleep he went
with his mechanic and a handful of
spectators to Van Rensselaer, island, in
| the Hudson. three miles south Of AL
bany, whence he was to start. Wait
io1
| train for Mrs. Curtiss and her party,
who had not accompanied the aviator
| to the island. From the train they
could not see the actual start. but
| those on the island witnessed re-
markable scene.
Curtiss arose from the ground like a
rocket. There was no preliminary
maneuvrings-there was no trial flight.
| The aeroplane ran hurriedly over the
surface of the island and darted
straight for it's goal to the soutnward.
turning only for moment to the west
| ward so that Curtiss might comply
with the terms of the competition un-
der which he was flying, and techni-
cally cross the Albany city line.
Straight up scared the aeroplane in
| TO the distance When it reached a
height estimated at 500 feet, it seemed
| for a moment to hold a level pace
| and to rise again to further levels.
| PERHAPS 700 feet would be a conserva
tive estimate. Certainly Curtiss was
| f1ying at height which he had never
| attempted before his life. In three
| minutes he was a minute spec in the
| distance. in seven minutes he vanished
| from sight The whole performance
| was over in a twinkling.
/ When the racer was wheeled from
beneath her canvas coverings shortly
before Z o'clock the sky was blue and
| clear and what little wind was stirring
blew from the north--a direction fav-
| orable to Curtiss-at a speed of per
| haps four miles an hour.
| The gasoline tank was inspected and
the sparkling apparatus was given a
| final test Two assistants held the air
snip in leash. while third cranked
/ the engine. There was a roar from the
| exhaust, the two blades of the fan
| angular and lean, magically merged
4 into blurred gray rose. the muscles
| of the assistants on each side tauten-
ed as the racer tugged against them
II The hair of the assistant at the rear
stood out straight from his head in the
gale from the fan
Let go!" cried the pilot and she was
i off.
| over the level run way. the aero
plane hustled on wheels. like par
fridge running to get it's wings, and
like the beating wings of a partridge
was the road of exhaust from the
pulsating engine. With q little lift
she had taken the air and. as her rib
| bed wings spread brown and dusty
against the sky. the suggestion of a