The Wolf Point herald. (Wolf Point, Mont.) 1913-1940, 1928-10-19
GIANT ZEPPELIN'S SUSSESSFUL
FLIGHT, GERMANY TO AMERICA
Mammoth Gas Ship Reaches Lakehurst Safely With
Sixty People Abroad Ground Crew Walks 1t Into
Place by Sister Ship-Greeted by Curious Crowds.

LAKEHURST, N. j., Oct IS
Completing journey of some
$500 miles which kept it's 60 oc-
cupants in the air for more than
III hours, the German dirigible
Graf Zeppelin dropped down on
American soil at dusk Monday.
For three days crowds had been
waiting at the air station to wit
ness the arrival of the greatest
airship afloat, but all except 5000
or so had given up the vigil when
the ship arrived.
Those few thousand, however,
were so eager to see the airship
that they broke through police
lines and fought for the oppor-
tunity to touch the dirigible or at
least get close enough to shout
greetings to passengers and crew
The Graf Zeppelin appeared first
as a faint smudge low above the
northern horizon Slowly, as day
light began to fail, it took definite
form although it's metalled coat
remained dim gray in the dusk.
Half again as big as the Los An
geles, which completed a similar
journey just four years ago Mon
day, the Graf Zeppelin seemed to
engines were inaudible until it
blotted out half the sky.
1t showed no lights in the
deepening cleaning and its idling
engines eyre inaudible until it
was above the field.
At day turned into night the
mammoth ship glided low over
the trees that fringe the air sta
ton and dipped toward the flying
field and waiting crowd A turn
of the ship brought lighted cab
in window into view, strikingly
bright against the gray sky across
which the airship slipped like >an
animate shadow.
AS the ship dipped earthward the
srowd below raised a wild shout
Z greeting and observers saw
some one aboard wave from the
Fellow window Many said they
,ould see it was a woman and if
hey were right it was Lady Drum
nond Hay, a British journalist and
he only woman on board
From the top of the tower near
he fields edge, light winked
he information to DR.. Hugo Ecke-
Ter, the pilot, that the ground
Wind was from the west and of
egligible force, and the great
hip suddenly gave it's engines
ull throttle to dive downward to
position near the mooring mast.
The roar of the 550-horsepower ,
ngines seemed to make the air
igrate and the sliding ship in y
loment became gray arrow
hooting through the darkness.
Contrary to expectation, the
nip was not moored at the mast,
opes being dropped to a landing :
,ew of 500 sailors who drew the :
Zip gently to the ground. :
AS customs agents boarded the .v
Zip, as they do any docking At y
ntic liner, the crowds enthus- D
sm boiled over and police lines :;
eioeu oeioie INC iu'n noio al
as scuffling and rough and tum- ~
e encounters in plenty before or
II was restored. -
A few reporters managed to get -
| the ship with the II customs :,
en- but they were all discovered -
ID ordered out. Brief words were -
ID with a few of the passengers "
It they consisted almost entirely W,
generalities, assertions that tr
eryone had had 'fine time" or
d denials that any one had suf-
ed from air sickness. y,
Great care was taken to avoid 81
y possibly of disaster through n,
plosion of the highly inflam- "a
lble hydrogen lifting gas stored w.
the 100000 cubic foot bag OF in,
: Graf Zeppelin. AS soon as ~
J dirigible was brought near the M,
ngar, smoking was forbidden fo,
ywhere in the building, even in
, secluded press room on the nj,
zzanine floor where some 200 or,
wspaper men and women were of
nding out their accounts and ~
pressinos of the airship. to
'he Graf Zeppelin was the sec isf
airship to cross the ocean ira
m Friedrichshafen, the navy di in
ible Los Angeles was crowded
inst the hangar's south wall yo,
h two non-rigid blimps tucked lat
Ter her tail, to make room for pol
big sister. mo
he Graf Zeppelin carried foil
W of 40 men and 20 passengers, mar
uding one woman. 1t also fint
ught large consignment of the
1. con