The Brattleboro reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1907-1912, 1911-09-15

opportunity was offered to secure see
ond and third rate aviators, but the
executive committee decided that only
the best was good enough for Valley
fair patrons Accordingly, l.. r. Hol-
den of the executive committee went
to Boston last week to see what ar
rangements could be made Several
propositions were made to him by VIII
lard & McCurdy, aviators, and consid-
erable correspondence followed On
Wednesday word was received that Mr..
McCurdy would come to Brattleboro
and make flights and Secretary y. f..
Benson of the fair association left for
New York to make a contract with the
aviator. Yesterday afternoon Mr.. Ben
son telephoned from New York that he
had closed the deal and that announce
ment could be made that Mr.. McCurdY
would surely be on hand. The aviator
will not only make flights over the
grounds each, day but will rise TO the
altitude of at least 1000 feet once
day. If the wind will permit he will
take up passenger each day on one OIL
his flights
Oversee flights have been few in the
history of aviation, principally because
they are the most dangerous. When
Bleriot made his famous flight across
the English channel it was heralded
throughout the world as the most re-
markable feat that had ever been
achieved up to that time. Since then
many startling things have happened
in aviation. but none have been more
striking or more daring than the flight
of J. A. d. McCurdy from Key West to
Havana, a distance of l05 miles over
sea. To the man who sits securely in
his automobile or railroad tram, or
lolls on the deck of sumptuous steam
ship, a Journey of l05 miles is not a
thing to be regarded seriously, but to
the man who goes up, in an aeroplane
and trusts his life on the slim thread OF
a perfectly working motor, knowing
that if it fails he will drop into the sea,
such trip is a matter of life and
death.
Mr.. McCurdy made his start on this
memorable trip at 20 minutes after Z
o clock on the morning of Jan. ~, 1910,
and 2 hours and Il minutes later he
dropped into the sea at the entrance TO
Havana harbor. Four minutes later he
was picked up by the torpedo boat
Terry and carried to Havana. That he
did not land on Cuban soil, as intended,
was due to no fault of his but to trlv-
ial and unfortunate accident HIS lu-
bricating oil gave out. The engine got
too hot and he simply had to drop.
The four minutes that he spent bob
binp about on the bosom of the ocean
in a disabled aeroplane, waiting for a
boat to pick him up were the most
anxious moments of his life. Every
where about him swan great man-eat-
ing sharks. waiting for their prey to
drop from his seat in the disabled aero
plane. when it should sink. "The only
thing I could do, said Mr.. MeCurdy,
when picked up by the torpedo boat
Terry. 'swas to sit and wait. This /
did. composing myself as best / might
with a handmade cigarette. | could
see the impatient sharks swimming
about and eyeing me as If they knew IL
would only be a question of few
minutes. I certainly welcomed the ap-
proach of the Terry
This oversee flight by Mr.. McCurdy
was watched with great deal of inter,
est. not only by the governments OF
other countries but by the government
of this country, as it was taken to mean
the demonstration of the usefulness OF
the aeroplane in war emergencies. Inc
United States navy department IN
Captain Hayden, commandant
of the naval station at Key West,
Florida to give Mr.. McCurdy every as
sistance, supplying government torpedo
boats and torpedo boat destroyers to
patrol the course over which he, would
fly. These craft were stationed at
distance of 10 miles apart, from hey
West to Havana, and eommunlcateu
with each other by wireless wShIen he
made his start, thus he We na'llways
within the view of at least the
ships after he made hIa.--9 us that Qua
at IT tn the entrance of H' god we we eat. It is
Mr. McCurdy. Ill directly on the z
business, Mr.. Will.fo tne material r q,
many fights, but .ul 1,oOa to teeth 30 becsnse Sn
most most dangerous from the inside, and :
career @ as an AWAIT, as all our lessons
'"ie'' teeth have made us Z
It childhood.