The Monroe journal. [volume] (Monroe, N.C.) 189?-1965, 1912-07-09
LIKE PLUsMET FROM THE SKY.
Man and Woman Fall From Flying
Machine Thousands of Feet i'm
The Air-Had Joked AbOut lt
BefOre Going Up.


first woman in America 10 win an
aviator's license. Monday evening
became the second in America 10
lose her life. From a height OF
a thousand feet she was flung head
long 10 the tide flats of Dorchester
Ray, from which her broken body
Vas borne 10 the Squantum Avia-
ticn Field. where she had risen only
twenty minutes before.
With Miss Quimby in her tragic
flight and with her in death vas
William \. y willard. manager of
the meet now being held in Sguan-
tum. Bo,h were instantly killed In
their fall. which was so swift that
II WAS over minute before the
machine from which they had been
thrown crumpled into 4 hissins ruin
or the edge OF the bay.
Five thousand people on Sguar-
tum Head saw the accident Five
hundred Zee, above them was anoth-
o. spectator whom great nerve alone
saved from death Blanche stuart
Sect. Studcu. with Miss Quimhy
al the Moisant school. Mineola, l..
l.. and licensed Just three weeks In
ter. Twice Miss Scott started 70
descend. but twice the horror Of thc
scene she had Witnessed made her
falter.
Then, with an effort plainly vis.-
BILE from the earth. she turned the
nose of her machine downward. and
came 10 the landing like flash.
aud sxooned before any one could
reach her side.
Miss Quimby had begun her par
tieipation in the Squantum meet
with a picturesque passenscr-carry-
ing fish; on Saturday. when Harry
Willard, a son of W. \. =. Willard
and his assistant, went with her.
She had been a central figure all
day. in her plum-colored knicker-
bcckers and jacket. her close fitting
skull cap and her goggles raised
aboyer her laughing eyes. Her
machine had been almost as great
an object of attention-a pure white
Bleriot. Of the latest military mod F,
eli. equipped With one of the most
powerful Gnome engines ever seen
in this country.
STARTING HER FLIGHT,
The sun was sinking when Miss |
Ouimhy. with Willard occupying the |
first passenger seat behind her. |
rose for flight over the harbor to
Boston Light distance OF twenty
miles for the round trip. She made
one wide circle of the field, then
began to climb as she bore outover
the water until she attained a |
height of 5000 feet. For a little |
while the machine was all but lost |
to sight. Afterward il was found |
that her barometer read 5000 feet.
At the light, as the monoplane
was headed for the field again, Miss |
Quimby came up into a gusty, eight
mile wind. For time she took II |
head-on. then she began to jockey |
into position for a volplane back to
the Head. Through glasses the spec,
tators saw her get the position she |
wanted, and turn the machines nose
down.
Apparently-though no one will
ever be able to tell-the angle at
which Miss Quimby began her glide
was too sharp. 4 gust of wind flirt-
ed the tail of the monoplane up, |
For a moment the machine poised |
motionless.
Then. as the great white wings |
we're outlined agains; the flaming |
disc of the sun. the tail was flirted |
upward again, Willard went curving |
over Miss Quimby's head. the ma
chine tilted to a still sharper angle, |
and Miss Quimby slid from her seat
FELL LIKE \ PLUMMET.
Willard fell like a plummet. With |
only a bar of the parti-colored sky |
between, Miss Quimby turned in ev-
er widening circles above him. Tween !
~ feet from shore, where only five |
feet of water covered the tidal mud
Wizards body landed. An instant
later Miss Quimby's body had sunk |
from view beside il, and then. a |
long minute later. the machine set
tied fifteen feet further out
Both bodies came 10 the surface
of the water shortly after they
struck. and floated there until Har-
ry Willard, hatless and coatless and
sobbing as he ran. reached the |
beach, leading a little company of
those who believed they might reach |
the scene in time to be of service. |
willard kept on to the waters edge, |
where he was stopped by some men
of the signal corps.
Let me got" the boy cried. "Let
me 20 to my father"
The men held him back. however,
rs one of the soldiers waded in and |
returned with Wizards body. a
row-boat had in the mean time re-
trioyed Miss Quimby's body and the
two were laid side by side on the
sand Harry Willard kneeled by
his father until some one covered |
the dead Then the boy started