The independent. [volume] (Elizabeth City, N.C.) 1908-1936, 1927-11-25
TICHENOR CALLS FOR
A REAL CELEBRATION
Famous Promoter of Aeronautics Says Aero
Klan Should Get Behind 25th Anniversary
First Wright Flight

itwenty-iItth anniversary OF the
first Wrigh, Flight in 1923
should "be the most diStin-
gui>hcd that the world has ever
known in connection with 4
similar OCCASION is the opin-
lion Of Frank \. Tichcnor. edi-
itur ui the Nero Digest and one
!uf the leading lights in the pro-
imutiun ui acrunautics in Amer-
jica.
Mr.. Ticheunr who j. a member ut
the Nati"aal Advisory Council "f
the Kill Devil Hills Memorial AS>"-
citation. and who will iu>iSt that
Su.h a celebration bc held At Kill
ipCvn Hills. with headquarters nj
Elizabeth City. writes a> follows III
the November issue OF his Aero
Digest:
"De,Tmler. Ia2S. will he the
twenty fifth anniversary month "f
the Wright Brothers memorable
fIich, at Kitty Hawk. That start
ra il. Eut it really had Il meaning
bigger than the fact that William
Rogers. cX-Mayor of Hollywood. can
now breakfast in the Sandwich Is
lands um the fo1l their name 81
fully indicates and lunch in the
BermulaS "n that ruugent fruit
named after them. thus gainin:
lStrrm.th for one more flight. that
! same fine evening. to HeSSe-Darm-
~tadt ~ what have YOU.
That flight AT Kitty Hawk. which
has been several times described in
. Aero Digest. each time with new
details gathered while there still
may IL, Il possibility of :1iiuin. fur
thcr knowledge of the great event
was handled at the time with such
modesty that the world scarcely
heard If ii.
1t created Il new art. Il new ILL.,
du>try. Il new utility. Il new pro-
fe>sion. a new sport. q new means
of national defense. Name the
.ofh-r single creRiS iB the hiSt"rr
.Uf the United States which have
been of equal importance to the
world and 70 this country. l will
grant the first voyage 10y the steam
boat invented 10y Rolert Fulton
the first message hy magnetic teic-
.raph'. sent hy Samuel +. X. Morse !:
THE first glow of the electric light.
invented 10y the great Edison. and
the, first whisper of the telephone.
invented 10y Edison or Bell-or both.
No more. Eli Whitneys cotton gin
WAS notable. epochal. but less inn
portaut than these others.
The quartcr-cntennial Of this
great. aIl-American invention. the
heavier-than-air airShip. is impend-
in.. but not Il word has come from
Congress. from any State. LcSisla-
lture or Governor. even from the i'll
dustry. itself. suggesting fitting OBJ
Scryancc. an adequate party on the
twenty-fifth birthday of what we
iuow know 10 bc the most important
invention in the history Of civlll-
zatiUn,
Aero Digest here and now makes
the very first suggestion 10 this end.
Plans should bc made and prepara-
itinuS started instantly. The pro-
gram should hc the most di>tin-
.ui>hei that the world ever has
known in connection with a Simi-
lar occasion.
The recent cclebra ton "f the
steam railway centennial was i'll
icreStiug. but somewhat incoherent.
The first locomotive was an English
achievement. In America all We
have right to claim as ours was
the series of anniversaries dealin:
. with the first application of the
. locomotive Ia our own transport
We are utilizing Watts English
Stramen.inp and Stephenson Eng
liSh locomotive.
With the heavier-than- flyin:
machine the situation is quite dif
fcreut. The internal combustion
engine made flight possible. With
out it the WriclaS scarcely coun
even have thought out their plane
Internal combustion engines are al
I American invention. Then came tht
plane. itSelf-as American as The
Rncky Mountains or the RnuSi
Riders. Iieavierthan-air flight i:
/ OURS and ours alone.
The Wri.htS, Great men. Modes
men. Epochal. intellectually ant
p>ychulu:ic;Illy massive. Good busl
Il ness men aS well us SenlllSeS
Patriots for the United States til
they were So inSultcd by the nation
Of their birth that they felt im
pelled To and were justified in pre-
senliny the model of their first ma
chine no. the machine. itself. TO ;
museum iu England. Il countr,
which had shown them greater
Continued on page Four)