Arizona republican., 1910-02-11
TIMELY LETTER FROM
 AN OLD CONTRIBUTOR
One Who Saw the Los Angeles Avia- ton Meeting Teiis of It's Advertising Value and What May Be Expected of the Phoenix Show.

@hs''CN'1Nth itoS nave
 given to Arizonians the leading de-
 tails of the late aviation fiesta of
 Los Angeles, l will confine myself to
 general observations thereon, and in cidon,ally add but one or two details as l saw them under peculiar condi-
 tiOnS
 To mJchanicians. those aeroplanes as they rested in front of she grand stand before ascent. seemed to be crE6S and fanciiuil deN vices, and up in the air az aerial monstrosities. such as might Tighten supcrs;itious bar barians. When nn" considers the lini-
 itations of the gasoline engine and the methods of appN ing such power, The conclusion IS inevitable that heavier than aii' rhcles in shape and deais.. cannot be other than as they arr now. But that aviation meet has SD stimulated inventive capacity of necessity the engine must first re- ceive their attention. or. in other words. SO soon as the engine is sim plified and made easier to control and more power is developed in them without increase of weight. then &vta- ton will be more an exact science.
 But the aerOplanes as they art af- ford ipmense entertainment. Their most exciting movement is that glide up and down. in some respects like that of a steamer riding the waves. and yet unlike-it is motion unique and indescribable-hence the infatua- tiOn in them and the desire to see with ones own eyes a spectacle be- yond verbal delineation. l never can forget the nearly frenZied interest of humanity packed on the grand stand. and lifting up unwinking eyes into the air. In truth. the aeroplane stunts now provide the most bewildering. be- witehing and exciting spectacles- nothing else spectacular has equaled them.
 To the same extent that Divine Providence helps those who helI themselves. does the same Beneficence grant inspiration to those who grope over the earth or through the air anywhere in the reach of human in- telligence-for inspirations of things new and more sensational than any thing of the sort so far exhibited. The promoters of Los Angeles, who seem to never rest by day or sleep at night. caught on to the yearning of the rich and near-rich everywhere. and of such Of them as have sporting procliVitiest to behold themselves the action of aerOplanes Of which they had read each day. and Of an action they knew was indescribable by words. Can We not entice the noted aerOplanists and balloonists of America and Europe here?' inquired Dick Ferris. fan sof aerial craft. Yes, if we pay them their price" said other promoters. But consider their price. necessariiSz immense," But no financial measure of any advertising proposition stag gered any of them more than twenty- four hours: and then next someone exclaimed: The price is here, and there are hundreds Of rich sports who after catching on to the idea will each and all subscribe. So appoint and start out the finance and soliciting committee, and with their work done. the hardest of any work is done chorused most of those promoters. Then followed advertising that ex- tended all over the civilized world and boosting that aroused the most phlegmatic Californians And in all the Los Angeles papers the Associated Press dispatches had to crowd and jostle to secure any space, for the aviation meet absorbed nearly all Of the newspaper space and the thoughts of the people.
 The best and most that I can say is that the tout ensemble of popular enthusiasm, boiling on and bubbling over from the grand stand, and the spectacles of aeroplanes and gas bal looms ascending and floating in the air. comprised the most stupendouS and exciting affair that l had ever experienced in my long and eventful life
 will specially mention only one spectacle, that Of two great gas bal looms floating over the ocean. About noon of the l2th ut. l saw great balloon. the Peoria" ascend grandly from Huntington park; l saw 1t rise at once to a great height, and then. borne on the higher air current. fly directly toward the ocean. My point of view was from third-floor Win dow. that commanded a view of the ocean, the nearest point less than three miles off in front of Venice, and then north to Santa Monica, and south to RedondO. I had a fairly good small telescope. and l was con- cerned to notice the balloon after passing out over the waves, to show q dent in it's top;. and then drop swiftly, yet gracefully. down. l saw the cool, salty breath of Neptune had the gas. and thus caused the drop-down. l saw distinctly two men standing up in the car, and others, men and women, huddled in the bottom of the basket. Then l be- gan to notice that the pendant car was close to the waves, and l watched to see launches dart out from l was sure that the car was skimming the waves, and then the great sack rose slowly. but not high up, and. caught by the lower1 air current, the balloon began to drift back in the direction whence it came Afterwards, learned that the car had not quite touched the waves, and that the Venice life savers were ready for any emergency. | Then for an hour or more l watched | the spectacle move back toward the | city.
 The Peoria" was well on it's way pack when I saw another big gas | balloon come around the point near | .-1 l-;,,;au lnn- haral,-