The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1913-08-05

Almost before liz "Io
had happened the machine took a
plunge downward. The angle was
about 65 degrees at frst-pretty bad;
but later it went almost straight
down.. Billingsley was thrown for
ward out Of his seat, against the ele-
waiting lever. and on out over the bow
and int" space. This takes a ions
time to tell. but it all happened in an
instant.
the same time B~illingslsy was
thrown I was hurled from my scat,
| but 1 caught an upright and managed
to hold on. Then the machine be
| gan to dive straight down.. We mast
have dropped about $50 feet wnen
Billingsley fell out. OF course | can't
say exactly, out l think he fell be-
tween fourteen and fifteen hundred
feet-it doesn't max much differ
ence at hat height.
9TH doctors say man wouldn't
remain conscious long falling that
distance, turning and twisting the
way he did. l could see hin, below
me. His arms were spread OUT.
swinging around rapidly, and then
he was turning over. / couldn't bear
the sight Of him, whirling down,
down, that way. He was falling fas-
ter thar / was.
"The machine seemed to AXE quick
darts, shifts Of direction, now n
then. I don't know how / ever held
on.
"At first my instinct, or whatever
it was, told me to let go. l thought
to myself. the machine coming down
on top Of me will crush me. If 1
let go I may fall clear of the ma
: chine I had more fear Of the ma
chine falling on me than l had Of
!, hitting the water.
Then ! recovered presence Of mind
- ~ 40 r -~s-~ -
: certain death anyway. Falling from
hat height, il I fell by myself, i
might never come to the surface.
e Then I realized hat if l held on, my
I body would probably be found in the
: w~reckage.
r Just as 1 decided to hold on the
t machine checked suddenly with a
s vicious twist, stacking it's speed some
what, and turning almost bottom mp
This twist tore away the grip l had
with my right hand although I he!C
IN with every ounce of strength
had. With the last Of my enersy
d and will power, so it seemed I barely
managed to keep a grip with my lef
hand.
1.-The machines sudden change o
position almost SHOOK me off. Tn
muscular strain Of keeping my grass
Of the upright tore one of my rio
from the Observation-Disclosures wha
"a gives me a twinge Of pain now if
try to turn over on my side.
N The machine must have been 20
Ip ing off or a sort Of more slowly de
lie scending slant, like a piece of card
Us board that is spun into the air, whe
it starts to come down edge on an
then deadens its Roadway momen
tarily by bringing its surface partl
m against the air resistance. suppos
70 I was about 500 feet above the waite
Ills when the machine ooh this first Ion
le, dash sidewise.
%, Il don't see yet why it acted tn
ne way: it was the only thing that save
Isl my life, for otherwise l should ha,
gone down almost as fast as Billing.
al ley. There must have been som
e! thing the matter with the ~elevatir
plane, a when a flying machiI
hg ders act as a balance, like the tail
: l a kite, and the machine is apt to 5
straight on down.
en Still l had no idea that I shou
ne ever come out of it alive. After Il
eat machine turned upside down it sh
at down at last 400 feet. not straigl
but at an angle of about so degree
IRE Then it f1attened against the air r
~sistance. 1t was poised for a fracti'
ice OF a second. stopping partly Al
eet turning. Then it started down aga
hat on another dash in the opposite :
eet %rectiOn. 1t was about 400 feet hi.
n.y. when it began the last dive. Tt
ing time it o O a sharper angle.
II was still holding on with my J,
hand. unable to get a better or
lis, The machine was still upside dow
int The motor was now in a position
art, strike the water ahead of me inste
OF crashing down on me. 1t was t
q l best place for me-another stran
ing piece of luck-because there were
ne. heavy weights above me except I
the beams of the planes.
re- came the crash. I can
ere member hearing the lower wi
me strike the water, but l can't rememl
'ent hitting h water myself. I pas:
emit away. Everything went black.
when / came to / realized All II
had happened, but the fact tina,
go was still alive didn't make any j
un- preston or me. 1 was swfmmi
IS a but I didn't know 1 was. 1 rex
ma didn't know what l was dom.
hine Mechanically. @.