Los Angeles herald., 1910-12-31
LOCAL AMATEURS
APPEAR IN FORCE
Los Angeles Inventors Test Aero
planes, One to Imminent
Peril of Crowd

Amateur aviators. cmboldencd by
| the success Of their brothers in the
professional ranks, are coming out in
greater array AS the aviation meet
| nearS the close. Two aeroplanes of
| home manufacture were successfully
| launched last evening. one owned by
| Glen Martin Of Santa Ana which was
| ca aPsized Thursday, made Il complete
| circle OF the course. winning the lirSt
! prize of Si50 offered for the daily com
petition of the amateurs. Tile other
was No. 4. belonging to Cannon, a
Los Angeles inventor. The machine
sailed for several hundred yards down
the course, but the aviator rcGraincd
from attempting any turns.
One of the sensations of the day
came just as night Was coming on and
most of the spectators had stal led for
home. \ queer looking Cralt was
wheeled onto the course and finally
brought to the starting line. 1t WAS a
monoplanc driven by the owner, Edgar
Smith of Los Angeles. Tho aviator
took his scat underneath the wings
of the machine. With the engine sput-
tcrng blue smoke and fire above hln.
With a loud buzzing the machine
whirled around and started directly for
the judges stand. where most of the
crowd which had waited for the anna
teur performances was gathered.
QUICK TURN AyERrS DISASTER
When disaster was imminent with
scarcely foot to spare, Smith man
aged to turn his craft, which. buZzing
still more noisly. bumped over the un-
even earth to the opposite side of the
field Again it was guided back into
the course and spun around in a circle
like "A gigantic pinWheel, to tho amuSc-
mcnt of the spectators, but to the evil
dent disgust of Smith, who finally
stopped the engine and emerged from
the contra aption none the worse for the
experience.
The machine WAS trundled back ia
the starting line and another trial was
made This time the engine seemed
TO act a little better, and with steady
whirr the odd looking craft sped over
the ground. twisting and turning ike
an oVergroWn 'nigger-chaSer set
loose by some mischieYous boy When
the length of the field had been ira
versed il turned and repeated the per
formance with the introduction of a
few leaps and bounds.
Smiths monoplane looks like flyer
if it had been equipped with a stronger
engine. but the tWo-cycle two-cylinder
affair with which it is now provided
is too weak to raise it from the ground.
Martin has a four-cyCle, four-cylln-
der MCt 'OlllDP1 eIlS iut. Ilt - 'pl''i'' -
of making some real flights in the
early afternoon if place can he found
for the amateurs in the busy schedule
of the after dinner program.
one of the amateur machines to
arouse the interest of the spectators
was B. r. Roehrig's Roehrlg- -tar>nah
biplane, which was on the course dur
ing the late afternoon, although no
flight was attempted
SEVERAL STILL UNTRIED
Several of the amateur machines IN
the hangers have already flown IN
nractice on their home fields but have
hot bccn "tuned up for flight here.
C,,is is the case with the biplanc owned
and built by +. w Prigan and a. l..
shepard of Hollywood. Tho machine
looks more compact and "fliable' than
the majority.
l. l. Slavin. a Los Angeles inventor,
has a machine on the ground which
he expects to be able to put into the
air. Everything in the machine e%-
ccpt the magnetic was nfade In Los
Angeles and it is therefore a real An
gcleno machine.
frank Stikcs and John Stikes, broth
ers. have a machine which has flown.
At the time of dying, however, it was
ecuipped with a 60-horse power engine,
while at present S-cylinder Eldridgc
is being tried on the craft
The "Birnie t. built and owned by
Bernard Bernie of Los Angeles, is now
without the necessary power to raise
into the air but Bernie expects to equip
it with a Mortimer two-cycle, 3-cylin-
der revolving engine before long and
raise himself and the craft into the
upper air.
II. Wilson of Los Angeles has fitted
| his aeroplane, which is modelled after
| the Cultiss machine. with 7-cylinder,
four-cycle engine of the McCombec
| type.
Charles Skojland has a machine of
| his own make on the ground With
which he expects to get up in the air.
while G. II. Day of Los Angeles has an
| aerocraft equipped with 5-cylinder,
| four-cycle engine also of his own de-
sign. Day expects to have his craft
ready for action Sunday afternoon.