Evening journal., 1912-07-02
FIVE PLUNGE TO DEATH
WHEN VANIMAN'S BALLOON
BURSTS 1000 FEET IN AIR
thousand Persons, Including Daring Avisfors Wives,
Saw Immense Gas Bag Which Mas Expected TO
Cross Ocean, Burst Like Bubble at
Atlantic City.
VANIMAN, HIS BROTHER AND CREW,
VICTIMS, BURNED AND MANGLED

air into the interior bag, COMPRISING
the gas which already was affected bd
the air conditions in that altitude. Th4
pressure IN this was so increaeed
that the big envelope gave way.
10 had been reported last evening that
Naniman would fly carly today and fof
that reason many persons we're on the
lookout when the Dig dirigible took ths
air AZ q o'clock. II was a beautiful sight
as she mounted the atmosphere easily
and gracefully under perfect control.
Two Thousand Feet Aloft.
After circliug 10 the 1000 feet level
Naniman cruisod about for a few min
utes Then the balloon started to dc.
sccnd A minute later the watchers saw
the great envelope suddenly part In 4
moment the whole airship was enveoped
in flames and with flashing fame roar
ing upward the balloon with its pass
sengers dropped earthward.
lt fen rapidly, and long before anyons
could reach the scene the bodies Of Vani-
man and his companions had been sub
merged IN an inlet about half a mills
from the baseball park. The water in
the inlet was about nine feet deep.
/ What remained of the burning bag and
! lNt AiNU'WhAk i'il ON lllt INt men tNU
crushed them into the water. IL is be-
lieved probable that they lost conscious
ness. however before they hit the water.
Tho point where the balloon fell is
about half mile from the nearest solid
ground. Rescurers Immediately went
out in boats, but had difficulty getting
az the bodies, which were evidently still
under the Akron's frame One body was
! fstI.. AZ 80. l.ttI L.Il
burned aud manglcd so that il could
not be identified at the time ltt0as
taken into boat and started for the
city.
That one man leaped from the big
dirigible and that another man fell TO
the ground hanging over the balloons
side was the declaration of Thomas To-
bin. Of Philadelphia. ai eye witness.
Il was on my way TO the railroad
station" said Iohin. when saw Nani-
mans balloon Suddenly, something
seemed TO 90 wrong with it The bag
shriNellcd man climbed ont and
plunged to earth and another man climb-
ed over aud hung to the side OF the car
apparently afraid TO drop. Then the bag
collapsed and tumbled earthward.'
Rational Airship, He said.
Describing his airshlp in his last pub
nc statement. Naniman said;
at last the rational airship I feel
so happy over il that can hardly dis
,uss Il yet II sounds too good TO he
true What the new cloth does is sim-
ply this. II means no more equilibrator
problems, no more ballast problems, no
more drag-rope or sinking into the ocean
al midnight We have prison of hydro-
gen AZ last that viii hold il. Put hydro-
gen in strong steel case and heat ID
and IL can't expand, IL becomes cons
pressed. iust as steam does on air.
you have got to have for the air the
exact counterpart of the submarines Of
the sea- have long sought TO build the
submarine Of the air now have it,
The Akron was not composed OF the
new cloth. on which Naniman mainly
depended for the success OF his new idea,
but there is little doubt that he had
equipped it with the interior air bag
control, which was TO be big feature or
his new balloon.
Vaniman. by his skill and daring had
won strong financial and official back
ing General Allen, of the United States
Signal Corps, recently said u expect
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