Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1911-09-08

was DEBATING whether to try for any
more altitude with the darkness Of
evening gathering when my engine
began to sputter and miss In a way
that sounded as though there were no
more gasoline in the tank.
This. however, / knew could not be
the cause of the trouble. The tank
had been well filled before l started.
and what the trouble was have new
er ascertained. but felt the power
beginning to give out. and l showed
my steering post forward lust about
In time to get the machines nose
pointed down when the engine stopped
entirely. There was nothing for 1t but
| to plane down and get rs near back
home as possible.
With the machine pointed right for
long spiral glide. looked below to
get my bearings. and that is where I
got my first fright The mists had
gathered so thickly that / could not
see single glimpse of the earth.
There was nothing below me but a
billowy sea of clouds, impenetrable to
the eye.
blamed myself in forcible language
flii note Of my position on the upward
climb. Now 1t was too late. l had
not the slightest idea what part of the
country ] WIS over nor in what direc-
ton | was headed. but l had nil
could do to take care of the machine,
rushing downward through space rs
"'':s at the rate of seventy miles m
hour or 'more. l thought of nothing
except the steering and instinctively
tried to keep her going I'm n general
way in about the same wide circles
that had followed on my Journey up.
Saved by a Fluke.
Soon l entered the clouds and began
to catch glimpses of the earth. I
thought | saw something that looked
like one of the buildings on our
grounds. and | stccred accordingly.
aiming to plane down so as to havo
plenty Of room in the open land that
stretched for miles away from the
hangers
Suddenly 1 plunged through the
'niSts into the ordinary atmosphere of
tho earth's surface. and below mo
there was nothing but trees. trees.
trees rs far rs the eye could reach. I
seemed to be directly over the heart of
nmitless wood. To land in the
branches meant certain wreck. 1 had
no power in the engine to give me n
chance to look about me for nm omen.
ing There was nothing to do appar.
entity but to plunge down among the
forest giants and trust to luck that the
wreck of the machine would not cut
me up badly and that my fall from the
top or whatever tree I landed in would
leave my features in good enough
shape for Identification Mt the inquest.
took n deep swoop downward and
then desperately turned the aeropiane's
nose upward to coast ns high MS the
momentum would take me and search
TOT clearing in this momentary re-
spite
plunged downward for a hundred
feet Mt terrible rate; then Mt the mo-
ment of turning up my heart nearly
stopped beating as heard choking
cough from the engine. then another.
then another. and suddenly the br-r-r-r
or the cylinders as the cxplosf hame
win full force. and the propts<5 >Sct- q
Ting Its grip on the mir. put on aIi&ts<
power. and climbed snfely away FROM
the trectops. everything working nerl
foctly and once more in control of ~
safe and efficient piece of machinervx
S'ii'c close to the ground until recf
osh'%ed some houses over the edge o.
the wood was moro than twcnt{
miles from home: but. with the engirl
working smoothly. the trip hack w:
mere child's play, and | WIS soon N ~
IN" ;'round again. br!ng nltcrnnt 70 -
cursed and Rugged by Mae while d
mechanics trundlcd rho Rlcr.nt To 4
hangar 5
The Eternal Question.
They are never pleasant TO d
about-thesc narrow escapes. n
Oest To forget about them as
after they have occurred as posd =
Tor they get on the nerves. and III II
that get on the nerves are not ed ~
aviation. 1t has always struck -
odd that almost the first ouestid M r
average man will ask after he I'D
me ia:
What was the narrowest G5}{l & -
from death you have ever had n
This Is simply another ma e J. :.
tion of that morbid desire I'd
Mt another mans expense by
Ing feats the aeroplane was )
tended to perform. The aeroplS :
Its limitations. and they are. so far
very narrow ones. 1t will do certain
simple things very we'll and if not
pushed too hard is not n great deaI
more dangerous than manufacturing
dynamite or being picked out by the
Black Hand
The late Ralph tombstone recognized
this clearly. and he once said, ut will
get US all some day" ut" got him
Just as 1t has got many another good
man who is trying to advance the
new science. but these are the things
hat 1t is best for us not to think
about
\ rQmaTOhar xpbar tho a.