Evening journal., 1921-08-26
Ocean RECORD
GOAL OF MANY
Columbus Crossed in 20
Days; Mauretania in 4
Days, 10 Hours
AlRSHIP MADE TRIP
IN SIXTEEN HOURS

The effort to cut down the time
necessary to bridge the Atlantic
either by steamship or by flight
though fraught ever with hazard.
has enlisted the skill and daring OF
many OF the worlds hardest ad-
venturers.
Eleven years ago. in September,
1910, the ocean greyhound Maure-
tania steamed from Southampton 10
New York in four days. ten hours
and forty-one minutes. a sea record
that has never been broken. On
June Il. 1919, Capt. John Alcock
and Whitten Brown. British aviators,
started from st. Johns, ~ F.. in a
Vfckers-Vimy biplane and flew across
the Atlantic. 1900 miles on that
route. landing at Clifton, Ireland.
the next day, after 16 hours and -
minutes in the air. Alcock was
killed in an air mishap the follow
ing December In France.
The R-34s time from England to
Long Island was los hours and -
minutes Columbus was seventy
DAYS in reaching San Salvador from
Palos, Spain.
For more than 800 years. dating
from the time Of Columbus. ocean
navigation made little progress. The
same method Of propulsion that
drove the Pinta. Nina and Santa
Maria across ''the great and un-
known deep" sail power was In uni
versai use until 1919. when the
American steamship Savannah. pro-
PEELED by steam. demonstrated a new
mode Of travel between Europe and
America.
1t was just 100 years after the
sailing OF the Savannah that the
three successful air flights over the
wide expanse Of tte Atln"tc wc-c
achieved. one in a hydroairplane,
another in a biplane, and finally the
third in dirigible balloon. The
hydroairplane. known as the NC-4,
one OF four United States naval ma
chimes. in charge Of Lieut.. Com
mander Albert c. Read. left Trepas-
sey, n. F.. on May 16. 1919. and
reached Horta, in the Azores. in Is
hours and is minutes, having trav-
ersed the 1900 miles at an average
speed Of 7S.4 knots. Later it few 10
Portugal and thence Of England.
Prior to the three successful
flights alluded 10 previous attempts
had been made to cross the sea
through the air. The earliest OF
these was made by Walter Wellman
American journalist and explorer
and Melvin Vaniman, on October Is
1910, in a dirigible balloon called the
America" They started out from
Atlantic City with a crew Of four
including an Englishman, an Aus
trailan and two Americans. Thei
objective was any point on the coas
eS England, ireland or France {
which the wind might carry them.
After being three days and night
In the air. sailing 1.01O miles an
tossed about by adverse winds. tn
party was picked up by the steam
ship Trent 35 miles east Of Cap
Hatteras. half way between New
York and Bermuda. The dirigibl'
was abandoned at sea.
Harry G. Hawker. British aviator
and Lieut. Commander Mackenzie
Grieve of the British navy, in a
heavier than air machine started
from ST. Johns, n. F., on May IS
1919, on nonstop fight TO Ireland
The attempt was generally regarded
us The most daring Of them all up &c
that time. Howker and Grieve. after
many hours OF peril in the air and
struggling against stormy conditions
We're rescued in mid-ocean by thu
Danish steamship Mary on May 10
Hawker was killed on July -. 1921
when the gasolene tank OF his ma
chine exploded while he was makini
a landing at Hendon CEngland) fly
ing field.