The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-10-20

proximately 900 miles, and a rescue the
like of which is unknown to all his
tory.
None of the aeronauts expressed re-
greet for the loss of the America. They
agreed that it had served it's purpose
and taught it's lesson. All stand ready
to renew the attempt as soon as Well
man and his engineers find way to
conquer the difficulties that brought
their first trip to it's thrilling end last
Tuesday morning 400 miles southeast
of Sandy Hook.
Standing on the deck of the Trent,
clad in the same suit of khaki he wore
when he and his crew launched the
America last Saturday at Atlantic City,
Wellman made this statement:
1--WE thought we could not get along
without the equihbrator. Now we ind
we could not get along with it. Our
plans for the future are indefinite I'M
til we find something that will do what
we thought the equilibratOr would do"
The "equilibrator," to which Well
man attributes the failure of his voy-
age was the series of tanks contain
ing gasoline which f1oated in the water
attached to the airship by a long rope.
Its purpose in addition to storing gaso-
line and serving as a wireless ground"
was to keep the balloon steady, COM
pensating for the expansion and con-
traction of gas due to changes in tenn
perature which would have made the
America rise or sink erratically.
Steering Impossible.
The Americas experience proved that
this floating tail jerking at the deli
cately poised airship, made it impossi-
BILE to steer or make Roadway in the
desired direction, and severely weak
ened the structure. To find another
means of compromising for this I'M
avoidable change in the volume of gas
is the problem to which Wellman and
his engineer, Melvin Vaniman, will
now devote their attention.
The direct cause of abandoning the
America was the exhaustion of the
supply of gasoline, which had to be
thrown out to save the ship, for when
the crew abandoned the balloon only
enough was left to last "A hours
Wellman tried to grasp a rope thrown
from the Trent and the rope got twist
ed about his hand. Before he could
get loose it nearly tore off his little
finger and badly bruised the rest of the
hand. The other members of the
Americas crew said they felt as well
as ever, and they looked it. They are:
Melvin Vaniman, the engineer; ]
Murray Simmons, the navigator; ]. K
Irwin, the wireless operator, and AL
bert L. Loud and John Auburt, the all
sailors.
There was also the gray kitten
which was so pampered by the women
passengers among the Trent that he1
sides bulged with feeding.
It was the Morse lamp, winkling its
message through the darkness, thai
Just preceded the dawn of Tuesday
morning, and not the wireless, thai
first attracted the attention of those
aboard the Royal steamer Trent to the
distressed airship.
Saw a Faint Light.
Stanley Angel, an ordinary seaman
IS years old, and George Sangster, al
able seaman, had the early morning
watch Angel saw ahead of him, higl
up in the northeast. a faint light
"At first" said the boy, 4 though
it was the morning star. Then I say
two faint red lights beside the whit
one and next made out a dark blu
against the sky. The white light KEEP
a wfnking, and then 1 knew it was
signal, and reported it to G. J. F'itz
gerald, the fourth officer, in charge o
the watch"
Fitzgerald. notified w. H. Lanison
the chief officer. By this time the out
line of the airship had been made GU
against the moon lit sky. and Lanisol
called Captain Down out of his berth
s'H-e-l-p! h-e-l-p!" was the messag
the white electric lamp on the Americ
was signalling to the steamer.
Then the wireless was called int
use, and between Louis NJ. Ginsberg
operator on the Trent, and Jack Z
Irwin, the operator in the life boa
suspended below the gas chamber Q