New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-06-03
AVAT0R'S FALL DUE
TO ENEMY, He SAYS
Head|esS BipIane Was Ham,
strung, Sherwood
Asserts.
CHARGES DIAB0LICAL PLOT
About 1000 People See Youth
Soar Over the Hackensack
Meadows and Then
Plunge to Earth.

Hackensack. June 2.-After operating
. new tvpe of headless biplane over the
meadows for several minutes here this
evening. Oliver Sherwood, young avl-
ator who had taken the same macnlne
al a great height as far as The Bronx
n,,Inged TO earth, wrecking the ma
chine. but escaping himself with only
slight injuries.
About two thousand spectators saw
the accident, and when Sherwood re-
gained his senses he said some person
had tampered with the machine before =
left the hangar. with the deliberate pur-
pose of causing the accident
The front wheel struck the soft ground
and after bounding along for distance
OF fifty feet the aeroplane turned coin-
nIete somersault AS it made the turn
sbarwood's body was shot out from his
sea, and was seen TO land just as vie
machine settled in a crumbled heap.
Women among the spectators screahed
and men paled. for it was believed the
Young man was crushed TO death under
his machine.
Hardly had the aeroplane made It's
final plunge than Sherwood was seen u
rise from among the wreckage. he was
stunned and stood still for moment
as though 10 reassure himself thaS ne
was not hurt. Then he hoped over the
broken biplane. and, after giving one
look at the wreck hurried away WIN
his partner, E. Vail Church, after whom
the headless biplane is named 10 ui'
hangar.
"somebodv trified with the biplane be-
fore l took it out Of the hangar
Sherwood, as he rested on COT III 'he
hangar. II never knew had an enemy
in the world, but some dastardly ie!lo"
seems TO have had evil designs on my
life this afternoon. In the first place
had no sooner prepared for the hlght
than I discovered that some one had put
two pin holes in the bulb pump use 10
force the gasolene into my engine, tor on
NV plane my gas tank is lower than
gravity and have to force the gasolene
into my engine.
This made me suspicious, for some
one with the knowledge of the damage
this would do If unnoticed must have
been responsible. Had l not discovered
these holes I would not have been able
70 go very far, and might have been
shot TO the ground suddenly. When my
front wheel hit the ground my right
wing doubled up, leaving the left wing
TO do all the lifting. This caused the
aeroplane to turn over on It's rlght slde.
II is my belief that the same person VINO
mt holes in the bulb pump filed several
of the wires TO a point where the least
lar would cause them to snap"
When asked why he landed with the
wind and with his engine wide open, the
aviatot said there was not enough Wlnd
TO make any difference, ana that ne al
ways landed with power on, though
shutting IL off as soon as the front Wheei
touched the ground. The held Is SOFT
where Sherwood landed, ana II seeiIeu
IN many that he volplaned at too great
an angle. and there were those who
Thought the great speed at which he was
travelling. together with the resistance
from the soft ground, caused The aero
plane to turn over.
Church said Sherwood would undouot-
sdIv have been killed had he not been
thrown clear of the wreck when 1t cap
sized. .,. a.,
"There was nothing to obstruct the
ni,ots passage when once unseated, and
as he was not strapped to the seat he
uas made free the NOM the aero
,Iane turned over" said Church. L
pshare Sherwood's belief that some one
;ntanded TO harm him by putting holes
in the bulb pump, and the way the right
wing doubled up makes me believe that
sorne of the wires must have been tled.
nxamined ali the wires before the flight,
Int ali seemed firm. 1t would be impos-
D,hie 10 detect wires that have been
s,ed IN the course of our usual examina-
The damage done to the pump COM
nelled Sherwood to put gas tank on ms
aeroplane above gravity before making
his fight. He sailed around Tor about
ave minutes before descending. Despite
The Ia:eness of the hour the crowd re-
mained to see the fight.
steve Moore, who came here win the
church Sherwood combination to MAKE
diehts in Hackensack, remarked that the
accident looked very suspicious 10 MIN.
The aeroplane is a complete wreck.