The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-01-19
.KL0OR AVOIDS ANY MENTION 0F FIGHT BETWEEN COMRADES
Highly Praises Personal Con- duct of Hinton and Farrell In Testimony Before Naval
 Court of Inquiry
By Associated Press

Rockaway, N. Y., January 1S.-Careful- ly avoiding any mention of the fist fight between Lieptenants Hinton and Farrell, which brought to a surprising denoument their recent balloon flight into Canadian wildernesses and tramp back to civiliza- tion, Lieut.. Louis A. Kloor, Jr., who com manded the party, described their experi- ences in detail today before the court of inquiry Investigating the affair under or ders from Secretary of the Navy Daniels.
 Newspaper accounts have reflected on the actions of your two companions, the court told lieutenant Kloor. 'Now state what you know about the personal conduct of the party from the time of leaving the air station until your return.
 Picking his words with care, Lieutenant Kloor paid high praise to the personal conduct of hls companions until they reached Mattce, where the altercation occurred. That's all l have to say ne declared. but the court reminded him his story had rot yet brought the airmen back to Rockaway.
 Then he mentioned that Lieutenant Hinton had left the private car in which the two of them were seated shortly after arriving at Mattice to deliver to
  der against granting interviews.
 "Hinnton said he would tell Farrell, and in doing so he had to go to the Hudson Bay company store. after which he returned to the room we were occu- pying in the private car" Lieutenant Kloor said
 It was while Hinton was gone on this mission that the fight occurred. but the witness made no mention of it.
 CONDUCT ABOVE APPROACH
 s"The conduct of Lieutenants Hinton and Farrell or our return from Mattice to this station. he continued, was in no way questionable"
 Concluding his testimony, Lieutenant Kloor turned to the press tables anu smiled at a dozen. newspaper men, who were amusing themselves by discussing his apparent evasian of the question on the aeronauts' conduct. He was then eX- cused by the court.
 During the weeks they spent in ice bearded forests, at Moose Factory and in trudging through the snow back to civilization, Lieutenant Kloor said eacr of the men made sacrifice after sacr'- flee" He did not think there was any one particular hero
 The party left Rockaway with food to provide three meals for the three men he said They carried no balloon loe and the only maps were charts of the states of New York, New Jersey, Con necticut and Pennsylvania.
 After explaining that ''it would nave been as easy as falling off log foi the party to have landed at Wells, N. r.. on the evening they left here, Lieuten- ant Kloor sad they failed to locate Wells on chart before going onward When they asked inhabitants loo feet be- low them how far it was to Albany, he added, the only reply was: How should be lnow?'
 ~You've put Wells on the map now. So you'll know where it. is the next time, remarked Rear Admiral Kline. head of the court.
 Lieutenant Hinton sat near Lieutenant Kloor throughout his testimony He nrobablv will be quizzed tomorrow, and Lieutenant Farrell also, if the latter re- covers sufficiently from slight attack of tonsilitis-