The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1910-12-03

II
months. but as all of the work
has been done out of the usual work
hours and at odd times, mostly at
night, progress has necessarily been
very slow; and as the prime fea-
ture OF the work has been to con-
struct a stable machine, great care
was taken in putting each part of
the machine together. Hitherto the
great fault with aircraft has been
that they were not sufficiently stable
TO be safe. Everything possible Is
being done in the construction of
the parts of the Sumter machines to
make the machine stable. Another
| thing that tends to make the machine
constructed here a success is that
while investors and aviators, so far,
with some brilliant exceptions, have
proved themselves poor mechanics
while their ideas of aviation are ex-
cellent, they were not able to make
the two unite sufficiently to make
their machine a perfect one. Here
all OF the gentlemen interested are
| fine practical mechanics of proven
| ability. Mr.. Charles T. Mason has in
vented several devices for furthering
the usefulness OF the telephone, be-
sides other successful devices. Mr..
VanDeventer and Mr.. McKeown are
electrical engineesrs. the former be-
Ing also a patent lawyer. and both
being excellent craftsmen and me-
chanics. Mr.. Carl T. Mason, who is
supervising the construction Of the
machine is also fine practical me-
chanic. The machine Is his idea
and he intends to be, not only Sum-
ter's first aviator. but the first avi-
ator OF the South.
In speaking of the northern avi-
ators coming down TO Sumter to ex-
pertinent with their machines, Mr..
Charles t. Mason and Mr.. II. r.
VanDeventer both said that there
was one chief objection to their COM
Ing: this vas the lack of proper ac-
commodations after they arrived
here. there being no hotel here suf-
ficiently up-to-date to give them the
accommodations which they were ac-
customed to and which they would
expect. should they be persuaded to
make Sumter their winter quarters
for practice flights.
Mr.. Mason said that while he and
Mr.. VanDeventer were at the Hill
top aviation meet. several Of the
aviators from there semed TO take
very great interest IN what they told
them about the clhna,e and weather
conditions here anL that with a lit
tie persuasion he thought that they
could be induced to make this their
winter headquarters for practice
flights and tests of their machines
He said that the fiat country needed
for the experiments was not to be
secured easily In the north and that
the weather conditions were such
that frequently the cold wind was
such that the aviators could not go
out at all and some of them simply
had 10 put up their machines dur
ing the whole winter, as they lack
ed the proper conditions under which
practice flights were made. Here
there was none of the cold to pre-
vent the aviators' flight from being a
success. The winds were very sci.
dom strong enough to prevent flight
and were generally changing every
day. there being no steady winds to
prevent flights and tests, which was
one thing hard to get and much de-
sired. In addition to weather con-
ditions another feature of this sec
tion to make successful field for
them was that there is a great deal
OF fiat level country around here and
flights could be made over the sa-
vannah any day without interfering
with any one and no one would OBJ
ject To fii"hts over their cotton fields
or starts , nd flights from the fields.
as In the winter time cotton would
not be there TO harm. AS there are
several machine and blacksmith shops
here. where any part of the machine
when broken could be repaired, there
would be no objection on that score,
as was the objection at other places
AT which experimental flights had
been made.