South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1917-10-24

s.
A Duck In Flight, Illustrating the Curved
the Wings Which Make It Possible 70
Heavier Than-Air Bird to Ply
A FEW weeks ago suit was fled in the
- Federal courts of New York and
Washington that has no parallel in
history In the far-reaching effects likely to
attend It if successful The Wright Brothers
have been given, almost universally, the
credit for having made the aeroplane posi-
bic. Their inventions had been held by the
courts to cover the basic principles of aerial
fight m machines heavier than air. The
Wright interests not long ago won their
points against the only other American man
ufacturerers and creators Of seroplaneS, the
Curtiss combination. And very recently the
Wright-Martin Aircraft Corporation, as the
concern which the late Wilbur Wright and
his brother Orville started, is named, formed
a juncture with the Curtiss interests, estab-
fishing what has been referred to as 1.-The
aircraft trust"
The suit in question has been fled by the
heirs Of Professor John j. Montgomery, Of
California, a noted eeronautical inventor,
who lost his life in a machine Of his own
continuance. His heirs allege that Professor
Montgomery and not the Wrights discovered
the basic principle In heavier tn an air ma
chimes that makes human fights possible
They allege that to Professor Montgomery
should go the honor due to this discovery
and not to the Wrights, and that to his es-
II Io1r1
amounting to many millions of dollars.
But the really important effect, il is
claimed, If their suit is successful, will be
the dissolution Of 1.-THE aircraft trust" and
the bringing about of what may be called
"the freedom of the air. "
Specifically, the Montgomery heirs charge
the Wright brothers with having appropri-
sted the old scientists ideas on aeroplane
construction, especially the basic principle
of the curved wing and with infringements
of patents which Professor Montgomery OBJ
tanned In 1906
Professor Montgomery invented and pat
tented an aeropiane with curved wings and
means for warping the wings. Early in
their experiments, the Wright Brothers
found that fight was impossible without
some device for curving or warping the
wings of their apparatus, and every success
full seroplane that has since been built en-
bodies this apparently indispensable feature.
Who first discovered it,
Shortly before his death, in 1911, Profess
sor Montgomery, who had been engaged in
seronsutic experiments for some twenty-six
years, declared that as far back as 1885 he
constructed machine which embodied the
very warping principle which the Wrights
have since regarded as the vital feature of
their successful machines
81 began experimenting and built six
machines of varying success in 1884" de-
clared Professor Montgomery, in disputing
the Wrights claim to be the inventors of
the secret of safe fight. "The best of the
six weighed only thirty pounds and would
glide 200 yards. But l found that the ma
chine swung from side TO side In the wind.
One or other of the wings would dip, and
once the apparatus turned right over.
That led me TO make close study of the
wings Of birds, and in 1885 built machine
with triangular section of the rear corners
of the surface hinged on. These tips were
held by springs, and would automatically
Weld 10 the gusts of wind.
"I also had them connected with wires