Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-10-26
VELLNAN 5 TRIP
Although HE
-.
SCOfferS Put to ROut When ErSt.
while Aerial Arctic Explorer
Breaks BaIlOOE:ine
Records.
ByJAHrEssA. EDeHRroN.


Wv an airship was not a sue
cess, the very fact that such
an effort WIS seriously made is in IL
self victory. The WellmSn flight
broke two srecords. 1t was by far and
away the longest journey ever made
over the water either by n balloon or
an aeroplane. Indeed, It was the first
real oversee voyage ever attempted
since all other flights of this descrip-
'tion were only across narrow necks OF
the sea. Not only so. but the America
broke all records for sustained fight
on either sea or land, having been in
the air nearly three days and nights.
These points must be placed TO Well
mans credit-that he had the courage
to undertake a feat which the whole
world said was impossible and came
as near as he did to its accomplish
ment, that he risked life in the inter
eSts of science, that he provided his
airship with safeguards by means OF
which the whole crew was rescued and
that he discovered thu weaknesses of
his craft and made future flight across
the Atlantic possible.
Aeroplane May Succeed.
1t has been said that it is better to
aim at a lofty mark than an inferior
one, even if the arrow falls short
Wellman aimed at Europe and fell
into the Atlantic ocean some hundreds
of miles east of Norfolk, Va. If his
faiT
thing it is that the aeroplane and not
the dirigible must be the future means
of air travel The gas bag is too much
at the mercy of the winds. The dirigi-
bic is only n balloon equipped with
propellers and rUdder and has all the
defects Of the balloon.
There have been many nervy things
attempted in the history of this small
planet. Napoieon's trip to Moscow and
DR.. Cooks purple SHOWS message
about the north pole occurring to the
mind as conspicuous examples. Per-
haps these are not happy instances, as
they all resulted more or less disas-
trously. But that very fact shows the
nerve it took to put them over.
For eighteen carat, standard weight,
warranted. bonded and guaranteed
nerve. however, WeIlman's attempt to
fly over the Atlantic in a balloon has
put all the other exhibitions in the
also ran class. The air craft used is
the one in which MI. Wellman did not
fly to the north pole. After trying sew
eral summers the farthest he got from
the balloon house was something like
sixty miles. Then the equilibrator or
something broke and the trip was of.
But it made 4 lot of good newspaper
and magazine stories while It lasted,
likewise several lectures which Mr..
Wellman delivered before European
and American scientific bodies He
might have been trying for the pole
yet had Peary not taken it away from
him. Then there was nothing left but
the Atlantic ocean. and Wellman hur-
ried to it to be ahead Of all corners.
Wellman's Knockers Routed.
This last attempt was the signal for
the journalistic knockers to get busy
with the anvil chorus. 1t is inspiring
the way we newspaper men love each
other. Let one of US try to pull of
something outside the regular lines
and the whole bunch Of hammer WELD
ers is after him. Among the pleasant
names they had for Wellman was the
"Dr. Cook Of aviation" One Of the
papers printed pictures Of the two side
by side. Cook with the celebrated
wreath of flowers about his neck and
Wellman in a high hat That was Sun
for the gallery. They called Wellman
the literary aeronaut and said the only
thing he made fly was the money.
When he did get off a number Of
these loving brethren asserted that the
reason was a threatened mutiny of the
crew. Some of these stories were so
circumstantial that they had the crew
doing the whole thing and telling Well
man that they intended to cross the
Atlantic and he could go along or go
to a warmer climate. as best suited
him. When it comes to real fairy tales
Hans Christian andersen is a back
number.
The only answer to skepticism and
detraction is that Of deeds. IF they
made good the ridicule and unkind re-
marks would be forgotten. They had
not been gone n day from Atlantic
City until the world admitted that
IHeE EaC abuluantlF LA'ide Soou- Even
if they had advanced no farther than
Nantucket light they would have es-
tablished a new record in oversee avia- (
ton.
Trip Proved Merit.
The chronicle of the Wellman eXpe- /
dition is now ancient history, and yet
it is the sort of ancient history tina: |
never grows old. Early Saturday |
morning Oct IS. it was decided that |
the weather was right and that the |
long aMaited hour to mike the stnrt |