The Oroville weekly gazette. [volume] (Oroville, Wash.) 1905-19??, 1913-07-04
TO THE PUBLIC

Il is with the keeneSt regret that
the Gazette is compelled to announce
that owing to circumstances over
which neither the executive committee
of the 4th of July celebration, or the
citizens at large, had any control an
aeroplane flight at Oroville on the 4th
and 9Th will not take place. No one
can possibly feel more disappointed
over the inability of the committee
to fulfill the promise made to the pub
lie that an aerOplane would be a
special feature of the celebration of
this week than the citizens them
selves When the news reached OrO-
vile Tuesday afternoon that the avi-
atiCn company, that had entered into
the contract, could not carry out the
agreement the people of the town
were so crestfallen and disappointed
that all the spirit was taken out of
them.
The people of Oroville acted in per-
feet good faith in the announcement
of an aeroplane flight for the 4th of
July. Negotiations with the company
that was to enter the machine were
carried on for days. Public announce
ment of the flights was withheld until
there could be no failure to carry out
the promise made. Indeed the exec
utive committee acted in such good
faith and the final announcement wa
not made until the contracts were
signed up and the money placed in the
bank to meet the heavy expense of
such an exhibition. The only thing
that could possibly prevent the prom
ised flights was the interpositiOn of
Providence. And Providence at the
last moment interposed.
On Sunday evening an aviator was
testing out the machine at Spokane
that was to come to Oroville to fly
on the 4th. The machine and avi-
ator fell The man was cruelty in
"a, and the machine wrecked. Tho
accident was unfortunate for Oroyille.
More unfortunate for the birdman,
who was shockingly crushed by the
tumble. The following item taken
from the Spokane Spokesman-Review
of Monday, June 80, tells the story
of the attempted flight resulting in
the accident that prevents Oroville
from making good according 70 ad-
vertisement:
Flying so feet in the air in a Spo-
kane-made Farman biplane, Edgar P.
Murdoch, ~ years old a Chicago doc
tor who fOrsOOk the practice of med
icine to conquer the air 1S months
ago, turned the new machine at a
sharp angle and aviator and machine
alighted IN heap in a rock pile east
of Helena street and Sprague avenue,
beyond the city limits at $50 last
evening. The machine is wrecked
and Murdoch lies in the Sacred Heart
hospital with a fractured left leg,
broken right collarbone, wrenched
Dack, abrasiOns of the face and body
and internal injuries. He retained
consciousness during the entire acci-
dent and last night talked freely of
his perilous drop, although he was
unable to raise his head or arms or
move his body.
When the police patrol wagon, car
rying Emergency Hospital Steward
Philip c. Milburn and Emergency Of
ncer Richard w. Hinton, arrived at
the scene the aviator was lying in the
rocks surrounded by a crowd of sew
eral hundred people who had been
watching him make the trial flight
with the machine that was to be taken
TO Oroville, WASH, for the Fourth OF
July celebration"
Preparations for the celebration
nave gone 100 far now for any change
OF plans, and the aviation company
was so dilatory in reporting that the
contract could not be carried out that
IL was impossible for the committee
IN charge to send out notices to the
surrounding country notifying the
people that the aeroplane would not
De ON exhibition. There Is no desire
on the part of our people to attract
crowd to town under false pre-
fences, and prompt measures would
nave been taken to make public the
tact that there would be no flying ma
chine in town on Friday and Satur-
day had knowledge of the accident
reached those in charge of arrange
ments in time. Those who come to
oroville on the 4th expecting to see
hying machine will of course be
Keenly disappointed, but they will be
given such entertainment as is in the
power of the committees to provide.
Ihere will be good horse racing, good
pail games, and numerous other in
teresting features. Perhaps in the
END 1t Is just as well at this time that
the machine did not come, for if it
was not perfect, and an aviator had
10 take tumble our people do not
care to have a man smashed up or
killed just to make an Oroyille hOli-