Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1910-10-22
why BALLOON
WAS ABANDONED
WeIIman Says the EquIllbratoI
Made the Trouble.
II HELLO OIRIGIDLE BACK
Says Alrshlp Was In Good Condition
When Abandoned Jack Irwin's
Graphic Story Of the Adventure.

Graphic Story Of the Adventure.
Walter Well.nan and his Ave COM
panions, who were rescued at sea from
the dirieible balloon America by the
steamship Trent, Captain Charles Z.
Down. OF the Royal Mail Steam Packet
company. about 3I5 miles east of Nor
folk. Va. Tuesday morning while at
tempting TO fly from Atlantic City TO
Europe. reached New York aboard the
Trent.
Mr.. wellman. still wearing the
khaki aviation clothes which he has
worn since sailing from Atlantic City
in the balloon last Saturday morning,
showed no more i'll effects OF the voy-
age than did his companions, other
than that he was somewhat pale and
carried one arm in sling owing to
an injury to the little finger of his
right hand.
After Mr.. Wellnan had greeted his
wife, his four daughters. Mrs. Vaniman
and Mrs. Loud, who is the aged moth
er OF Mrs. Vaniman and OF Engineer
Albert Louis Loud Of the Americas
crew. the newspaper men worked their
way 10 Mr.. Welman's side TO ask him
The reasons for the abandonment Of
the dirigible and consequent lack OF
success OF the voyage
Mr.. Wellman surprised his inter
viewers by stating that the airship had
met with no serious engine troubles
mud that the ssfsat,e nf paS frau tho
bag was negligible In two statements
signed by Mr.. Wellman just after the
rescue and In conversation with Cap
tain Down and passengers on the
Trent. Mr.. Wellman was quoted as
saying that the dirigibie had met with
mishaps SO serious that the balloon
when sighted by the Trent could have
hours longer and that her machin.
cry had gone awry.
The equilibrator was our great
trouble" MIR. Wcllman explained. BE
fore starting out on this balloon voy.
age we were OF the opinion that no
dirigible could reach Europe without
an equilibrator. Now we know that
dirigible cannot get there with an
equilibrator. The eQuilibrator. which,
being partly formed OF small tanks of
gasoline arranged In links and trailing
as tail down into the ocean, was the
very cause or our being compelled to
throw overheard some of our gasoline
on Sunday night and Monday. The
trailing tail held the balloon back and
AZ times pulled II down toward the
water. and we had TO ballast ship at
the cost OF loss OF gasoline dropped
10 the waves. Try again? Well, some
thing better than our equllibrator will
have to be invented. Until II is | can
not answer definitely when | shall
make another trial. The balloon was
in good condition when abandoned"
Jack Irwin. the wireless operator,
said:
Nobody felt any fear. even when
things were going their worst We quit
all right, but we quit only because we
were running out OF gasoline. The
equilibrator, holding us back like q
new brake, made MS throw out the
gasoline. We seemed to be going along
In the right direction ON Saturday and
Sunday. and as Sunday morning dawn.
ed the wind was working around back
OF us to help us along. We found after
dusk Sunday night that we were well
on the Long Island coast and still
heading east by north. But the wind
helped us only for little while. For
while on Sunday II had kept us
working to keep of shore. but when
observations Sunday night showed US
that we were about 40 miles east by
noroth of Nantucket the wind began
TO come out OF the north and started
our troubles.