The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-07-17
State Journal Aerial Distribu-
tiOn This Afternoon.
First Attempt To Make Use of
Route Thru Clouds.
LEAVE Topeka At 6 O'CLOCK
A Few Minutes Later News
papers VIII Reach Town.
Innovation in journalism VIII
Be Matter of History.

"on July, Il. 1919, Lieutenant Thomas
Weber, British flyer. accompanied by
ms manager; Roy GodSey, former To-
tion in the west when he carried special
edition Of the Topeka State Journal 20 the
subscribers at Eskridge distance OF q
miles as the air men fly.
Hundreds Of Interested spectators were
assembled Mt the flying field on Wash
burn college campus to see the first actual
aerial delivery by n kInsas newspaper.
To those who saw II the eveent was epOchal,
comparing with the first mail delivery by
railroad when the first steel rails were
strung across the Kansas prairies and n
short time later with the first time tiny
wire carried the human voice down the
valley Of the Kuw from Kansas city to
Topeka.
AT Eskridge hundreds Of eyes were
fastened on the little speck in the sky
that grew larger and larger as Lieutenant
Webber sped closer and when he circled
the town and spiralled to his landing field
paper which every one wanted to keep as
a souvenir and n reminder OF the first
news from the clouds
In words similar to these the his
torian who has the honor of writing an
account of the development of aerial
transportation viii probably describe
the first big step taken in Kansas to
make an airplane an instrument Of
public service. This step will be taken
this afternoon when Webber will carry
the Topeka state Journal extra aerial
souvenir edition to Eskridge.
All plans we're complete this MORN
ing for the big event. The special edi-
tion will be printed Immediately after
the regular Postscript edition is run
off the presses. A Roy Payne taxicab
will be waiting in front of the state
Journal building and the special edi-
tion will be loaded into 1t and rushed
to the Washburn field.
A telephone message to Washburn
will notify Lieutenant Webber that the
papers are on their way and he Will
Immediately start his engine. The
papers will be loaded into the pit with
Godsey and it should take less than
five minutes to have the papers in the
air after the presses stop. It is esti-
mated that they will be delivered in
Eskridge in less than twenty Iainutes
from this time.
The Topeka State Journal will have
a circulation man. Morris Milan, walt
ing at Eskridge in car so that In
case Webber is unable to find a land
ing field right in the town and has to
come down in the country near by, the
p9vnrs c1a be loaded into the car and
rushed 10 town. F. G. Willard. the
photographer, who went up with Web
ber last week and made a series of pic
lures for the Topeka State Journal,
will also be at Eskridge to make pic
lures of the landing and the delivery
OF the papers.
At EsISridge Friday.
Lieutenant Weber plans to remain
at Eskridge all day Friday and to re-
turn to Topeka Saturday morning
Next Tuesday he will take copies of
The Topeka State Journal to subscrib-
ers at Baldwin and later deliveries
will be made to Wamego and other
surrounding towns.
In addition to the regular papers
that are delivered to subscribers in
these towns several hundred extra
copies are delivered and distributed.
The number OF extra copies is limited
by the carrying capacity of the Web
Der plane.