Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1915-10-28
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Special star-Bulletin Correspondence,

Ii
Especial Star Bulletin Correspondence
FORT SKATER, Oct. 26.-Second
Lieut.. Edward L. Hoffman. formerly
of the End Infantry, has won some
fame In the motorcycle world, accord
ing to the latest Eastern papers The
lieutenant went on leave on the Mary
land in June and will return In No
vember to the oath Infantry to which
he was recently transferred, and the
following is an account of his trans
continental trip from an Eastern pa
per:
Lieut.. Edward L. Hoffman, U. S.
Army, started on motorcycle at 2
O'Clock on September 28th from Boston
to break the tfanscontinental record
for gasoline vehicles and incidentally
to make motorcycle test for army
service He planned to make Buffalo
his first stop. big Chief" Hoffman,
as his Boston friends know him, used
to be Boston & Maine engineer, and
is particularly well equipped in motor
cycle mechanism He disappeared,
and the next thing known to local ac-
quaintances he was lieutenant in the
army. The present transcontinental
record is II days, IL hours and 10 min
utes, made by Cannon Ball Baker.
This means averaging POI miles a day.
Bakers best days run was 41S miles.
Hoffman, with the best roads on this
end Of his run when he Is fresh, has
three single days runs laid out each
exceeding Bakers best day. When no
strikes Omaha Hoffman hopes to have
enough velvet" 10 enable him to pro-
coed without worry along through,
Cheyenne to Salt Lake and by the.
Overland route through Nevada to
Frisco. Lieut.. Hoffman knows what
he is up against. In fact, he Is now
the holder Of the second best record
for the run. When he came East this
last time he came across on q motor
cycle In Is days. He went by way of
Denver to see friend and made vari-
out unnecessary sacrifices of time.
This time. however, he is out for
killing. His machine equipped to start
weighed 400 pounds. big Chief;
himself weighs within few pounds
of 200 as dressed to ride, and he meas
Eures six feet three inches. He carried
only q single change OF clothing. but
will add a commissary department
where the jumps between towns are
long enough to require it.
- -
The 9th Infantry appears to have
encountered series of mishaps be-
ginning with the attempt of that regi-j
ment TO carry cut the orders of the
war department assigning the COM
mand to statIon6in the Philippine isl
ands.s When II was concluded to send
the regiment to- Manila some months
ago, it was contemplated that it should
go, as usual, by way of San Francisco,
with time and opportunity Afforded the
regiment personnel to visit the Pan
ama-P Pacific exposition. 1t then deyel
oped that there were not transport
facilities on the west coast within con-
troll Of the war department to send the
regiment on its transpaeific voyage
without resort to q commercial liner.
It was concluded. therefore, to have
the 9th Infantry, which was a part
OF the End Division at Texas City, sail
on the army transport Buford from
Galveston. Almost on the eve of the
date of embarkation the heavy storm,
which visited the Texas coast and
wiped out the camp at Texas City,
destroyed all the property Of the 9th
Infantry, and on that account and by
reason OF the possibility of need for
the transport, the date of sailing was
postponed until September 25th. 1t
took one month to replace the prop
erty of the regiment, and the designat-
ed date OF sailing was postponed again
for several days on account Of another
storm. The Buford in due time ar
rived at the Panama Canal only to
find that the CulebFa slides were In
action, and 1t is impossible for the
Bnford to proceed through the 18th.
milan waterway Inquiry was at once
made of the war department as to the
action to be taken, and there was a
prospect that the Buford would pro-
coed around Cape Horn, with an alter
native proposal to have the regiment
and its property taken across the 18TH
mus and placed on board steamer
on the Pacific side. 1t has been decid-
ed that the regiment shall remain in
the canal zone until the distractions
in the canal are removed.
Major Herbert O. Williams, who has
recently been granted three months
leave, viii sail on the u S. S. Mary
land when the cruiser leaves for the
mainland some time this week.