The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1910-01-12

French aTiatorS. Paulnan tooh Ct anu
sped twice around the field enough
he never rose higher than 80 feet from
the ground. Several times signs Of
apprehension. and shrielSs Of nervous
women rese from the crowd as the tiny
machine. tossed by fierce gusts of wing,
rolled and careened in the air: Every
moment was fraught with danger so
great that when the flight was safely
over and the monoplane had landed
far across the field the throng APP
plauded wildly
Curtiss Won't Even Look at Rival
E apparently secure in his renewed
role of star of the meeting and de-
lighted by the applause, Paulhan
brought out his. Earman and flew
4wi, more, onee going probably two
miles. north of the immense aviation
field, out over the trees of a CONT
guous ranch: while Curtiss remained
silent. Clad in oil spotted working
clothes an old cap and shoes that had
seen heavy duty, he spent his time
turning up the eight cylinder motor
on the biplane with which he won the
! international cup at Rheims. Never
once did he look at Paulhan.
I.. When the fourth flight of the FAR
man ended the Americans machine
was trundled to the starting point and
without. preliminary flights Of any sort
Cuptiss motoned to Fancuilii tOaget in.
Climbing in beside his passenger the
aviator gave the word to his assistant.
A pop and rattle like automotic ar
tillery followed, and the most remark-
able flight of the day had begun.
Describing a wide circle in front
of the grandstand Curtiss flew at all
angles to the wind, giving his manager
thrilling fight. He landed almost
at the spot from which he started.
Makes Nearly Mile a Minute
Lieutenant Paul Beck of the army
signal corps, one *Of the judges, an
nounced that he figured the speed at
SO miles an hour. When the record
breaking figures were posted the. crowd
went wild Shouts and cheers rose
from the seats, automobile sirens
shreked and hats We're thrown up in
the air to be blown away by the wind:
Paulhan, standing beside his biplane
on the side of the field, saw the per-
formance through binoculars. He
dropped them suddenly, gesticulating
wildly as he ratified off instructions
to his crew, sending them racing to
start his motor Then he mounted
his seat and rose Enthusiastically at
the. same time Willard and Hamilton
brought their machines to the start, in
front of the grandstand. AS they
cose.- Curtiss reckoning to Clifford
Harmon, the New York sportsman and
ballonist. swept upward again.
The four aeroplanes circled the
course and the crowd cheered with
renewed frenzy.
Pauhan is Jealous
Paulhan landed in few minutes,
determined to regain some of his lost
laurcls. He ordered one of his as
sistants into the seat with him. Then
he arose and twice circled the course.
his great biplane soaring as graceful
ly with the extra man as it had done
with Paulhan alone.
In quick succession CurtisS tried
for starting recorc and u record for
landing He succeeded in establishing
both. but Willard, coming pcxt to the
trial at landing, beat the best lis
! chief could do. CurtiSs, however,
| set a new record for getting away,
rising from the ground SO feet from
the start in 2-5 seconds from the
! time his engine started. .
Paulhan tried to beat both mark S
| but the best he could do was t. rise
| IL 1-2 seconds from the time his en-
| CINE started and his machine ran more
| than 100 feet along the ground before
| it rose.
Harmon was delighted with the ex-
perience and determined to at once
make a fight alone. Wizards MAJ
chine was secured but the owner fixed
/ t SO that it could not rise from the
1 ground This was done at the request
Of Commodore c. C. Benedict of New
! York, who yesterday offered Harmon
/ the price of ten aeroplanes if he
/ would not go up. WIZARDS coup pre-
/ vented the sportsman from expert
encing more than rapid run along
| the ground for several hundred feet
Edgar Smith, California aeroplan-
j list. was the victim of the first seri-
Gus accident for the meet. He was
| tuning up for his first fight and was
/ struck down by the metal blades of the
| propeller. sustaining cash on the
head and a broken arm He will be
1 unable to attempt flight for ten days
5. In an attempt to break the worlds
/ record for altitude in a heayief-than-
/ air machine, Paulhan. in Bieriot mon
! onlane, rose into the air and after
/ one turn of the course during which
he did not rise more than ten feet from
i the ground, he came down for sec
ond and then rose again to a height
4 of so feet This altitude he maintained
i for some time while he flew over the
! course, making the turns as gracefully
/ as bird. Paulhan remained in the
air five minutes and made two miles
during the flight.
! Raulhan. in the Farman machine
left the ground in front of the grand
stand an hour later and few for two
I minutes and 81 seconds, describing a
| circle which caused him to turn in the
5 face of the wind His biplane tipped
/ to an acute angle as he came around
but righted before the turn was ended
Again he appeared before the grand
istand and landed close to the place
f.of starting