The New York herald., 1922-05-17
BUSY LIQUOR Route
Shown ON AIR MAP
Filler at CrOton Leaves
Much Worn Chart of Way
to New York.
TWO LINES INTO CITY
Cargo Worth 81, 800 in Gross
Profits Left Behind OH
Hillside Above Farm.
PLANE NEW AND COSTLY
Farmer Recalls Mysterious
Party in Automobile Just
Before Dog Was Killed.

An oil stained, wind Wrinkled STRIP
map, pasted on long piece of canvas,
showing the country from Montreal to
New York was found yesterday in the
upended wreck of the airplane which
crashed just after dark Monday on
the hillside above Croton on Hudson
In this worn chart. which obviously
had Travelled many hundreds Of miles
pressed between the knees of a pilot
in the cockpit of a fast flying plane.
TIE State troopers and county officials
OF Westchester saw tangible evidence
OF a prosperous rum running business
by air. They also saw a reason why
Westchester county, with its numer-
Gus road houses and thirsty, well TO
do people. has had so many aerial
visitors.
Quite few airplanes have been n.y.
ing over Westchester lately. some run
ming low and out of gliding distance Of
the river. 1t was coniectured that many
of these may have been laden with
bottles like the mystery plane whteh
fell at Croton. =.
How the Map Reads.
The map. which was feund by George
J. Mccall Deputy Sheriff, owner OF the
land on which the plane disintegrated.
has the mileage from Montreal to Glens
Falls neatly written on its face, with
n black line to indicate the route.
Montreal is marked "175" and thu
various important towns have mileages
down TO Glens Falls, which is zero. An-
parently the pilot landed at Giens Falls
for gasoline. oil and water. Imme-
diately below Glens Falls Is the
numeral "17oc and the black line fol-
lows the Hudson River down TO Croton.
which is "30." At Croton the line forks.
one branch runs straight across country
over Briarcliff to Stamford. Conn.,, and
ends in cross in the middle OF Long
Island Sound. The other branch runs
to Manhattan.
Apparently Monday night at dusk the
big Curtiss plane. with a 16O-horse-
power motor, reached Croton. Here
the pilot appeared 10 hesitate, for he
flew low in circles around the farm OF
Mr. Mccall. about q mile north OF the
village. Possibly he hesitated about
landing on narrow field stretching
inward from the hillside and ending on
a stone wall or possibly in the darkness
he was not sure he had arrived at the
right place. At any rate. he glided
down close and then attempted to zoom
He cleared a road. but landed straight
ahead in steeply slanting brush COW
cred hillside The plane buried its nose
in the ground. the landing gear snapped
the metal tipped propeller splintered
TO bits the lower wings and several
struts snapped. and fully third or
the $50 quarts OF Scotch and Irish
whisky in the front cockpit were spilled.
said lie Was Mail Pilot.
Mr.. Mccall. who started Immediately
for his woodlot when he heard the
motor quit. found the plane deserted.
With flashlight he searched the nearby
bushes for the body OF the pilot, who
had scrambled down to the road and
met a party in a motor car. The fier.
young and good looking. told these
people that he was unhurt. and endeav-
ored to keep them away from the
plane. He said his name was Wynne.
that he was a former mail pilot. and
that he wanted motor car TO get TO
Mineola at once. He then dashed up to
the plane again and met Mccall.
Don't let anybody go near the
plane" he said snxiously, and raised an
oilcioth strip covering the front cockpit.
As he did so Mr. Mccall caught the odor
OF whiskey above the smell of hot gaso-
line and oil.
Il won't" he said grimly. moving
toward the pilot.
who are you?" the young man
asked.
Mccall let the nashlight play on his
dcputy's badge.
It'll be back in fifteen minutes with
q car" the pilot explained. and dashed
down the dark hillside. He was last
seen walking past Tumble Inn. a quar-
terof a mile nearer the Croton station
Mccall connected the arrival OF the
plane with the appearance two weeks
ago last Saturday light OF a mysterious
closed car which halted near where the
pilot had tried TO land This car
stayed until 4 o'clock in the morning
and few hours later Mccall found his
watchdog dead.
The cargo In the plane consisted OF
150 quarts, worth in Canada $3.50 a
bottle and in New York probably SO
more. so the gross profit on each trip
was about $500. The plane was no
second hand "jenny' that could be
bought at $3.50 or up. but was worth
several thousand 1olars and had been
little used. The motor was C-6
model, No. 33i. produced at the Buffalo
plant. and the marking on wing panels
ailerons. tail assembly and fuselage
onNAVo