The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-10-02
MEN, WOMEN
 AND THINGS

1 l was busy digging out a story Monday afternoon when I saw everyone in the news room go to the back door and out on to the steps and gaze heavenward. I had much ahead of me and tried to go on with my work, but at last my cu- riosity got the better of my determine | iton to turn out copy and so joined the | sky gazers, for two birdmen were giving a wonderful exhibition over the heart of the Gcity.
 l It's funny how soon we get accustomed ] to the marvellous and take miracles as a matter of course. I remember it was l only few years back that we people of Birmins s4fam got a thrill when a bold man in an amateurish flying machine made something of long glide through the air from one end of the field to the other.
 It was only a few years before that when we looked upon the balloon ascen- sions as the most reckless stunts ever undertaken I think it was Gentry Hill- man who got name for being reckless of life for consenting to go aloft with one of the professionals Then a prize was offered for any couple who would go up and then come to earth and get married.
 But after awhile plain balloon ascen- sion lost it's power to draw, and so new thrill had to be invented, and then the parachute came into being. I will never forget the first time I saw man drop from the clouds. can almost catch my breath now as I think of how I waited to see if it was going to open, and when it did there was such sense of relief that I could hardly keep from shouting.
 
 I'll never forget standing at my office window in the Morris hotel, which was then an office building, and where the Chamber of Commerce now stands, and west of it was an open field, watching them make ready for the balloon to go up. I saw boy. nearly grown, caught
 in the ropes and carried higher and higher as we held our breath in anx- iety. It looked as if he would go to his certain death, but he hung on and escaped with broken leg.
 Then at the last fair came Ruth Law with her wonderful flights and daring loops until she was the sensation of the week. People from all over the state came by the thousands to see her in her daily and nightly performances, and when she circled the track time after time beating driver in racing automobile it was the talk of the whole city. She did do some marvellous stunts, and there is no question about her being a skillful pilot.
 I was at Camp Mcclellan the afternoon she flew for the soldier boys, and the whole camp was astir with excitement from the general and his staff down to the men. I was standing at headquarters when she flew high over and began to make loop after loop. I saw her start for the athletic field. and it seemed that eiiS AoANo anu iiiio Hdo sQooSAAy NSSStA'O alive with men racing to see her light.
 I heard General Rafferty thank her warmly for giving the camp such great pleasure. That was just about year ago, and now airplanes are so common throughout the country that it takes many of them to create much enthusi- asm President Buster Brown ana Secretary Dent knew this and that's why this season they are going to have sure enough flying squadron.
 I saw the advance scout in one of the Liberty Loan drives when he stuck the nose of his machine in the plowed ground because the man who came ahead refused to take the advice of Secretary Dent and placed his mark at the wrong spot I also watched the coming of the old Birmingham boy from the aviation