Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-03-17

from the air It's population Of 1000
600 is spread out on many elevations.
Mont Serrat, sort of shrine. whose
historic though natural ruggedness Is
visited by thousands of pilgrims year
". Mont Tibidabo, an amusement cen
ter and health resort on the summit OF
which stands a high tower. $500 feet
above sea level. Its heights give the
most advantageous view of the city.
Imagine, then, the view I had from my
seat in the skies. 1t seemed like lit
tie stepladder, that tower! There Is
no mistaking the two bull-f1ght arenas.
I stayed a week in Barcelona, the
longest visit I had had since Berlin.
1t was my original intention to ny
to Madrid and perhaps Seville to see
the other Spanish exposition. Then
progress, via air, to Paris. But the
service of the Summer had been dis
continued and the service of the Winter
season had not yet begun. I refused TO
use the trains. And my long visit in
Barcelona had limited my time con-
siderably If intended to meet Miss
johnson IN Paris.
So, back to Marseille and on to Paris,
via Lyon. The second trip across the
Pyrenees. in the same plane, with the
same pilot, was spent In slumber. Ny
only disturbance was fly in the cabin
at over 1000 meters up. It rained all
the way into Paris. The outstanding
memories hold are riding in the cock
pit nearly all the way to see as much
as could through the rain, wonderful
view Of Mont Blanc looming before US
in all Of its 4,800-metered splendor,
conversing in English-French with
Laulhe, q one-time friend of Mrs. Gray
sons. He was to fly the L'Oiseau
TAV e.
1927, but weather prevented; an excel
lent lunch at Lyon, Burgundy, the
Seine, the Eiffel Tower, LIE Bourget.
lie Bourget Is the oldest airf1eld In
Europe. Since 1914 1t has done military
service and since 1917 commercial
There are II military and IS CONNER
cial hangers. It traffics so planes a
day. It seems busy enough, but unso-
ciable. 1t lacks the atmosphere of
Templehof
At the Ambassador I found that every
one else had arrived the day before. It
was good to see familiar faces. and ii
was stopping there but half the boat.
And, in addition, some friends from
Berlin.
But I'm writing an aviation story and
not trayelog. France, with over $4,000
miles of air routes, is considered second
in length of airways to Germany.
To Sam Barr and Gen. Kincaid go
the honorS of seeing to finish the
first air cruise. in history. although my
flying mileage exceeded theirs.
At LIE Bourget we met again to fiy in
the same big Farman to Berlin. via Co
logne. Essen and Hanover. We were go
ing back to Berlin for the aeronautical
exposition. We few over the battlefields
of France. With us went the son of
Louis Bleriot, on his first visit into
Germany. He was to exhibit the mono
plane OF his famous father at the expo
sition.
The Ma was an aeronautical revela-
ton. I was beginning to feel that I
had learned something about aviation.
only to change my mind again when
saw model after model of the Oldest
and newest airshipS of all the countries
Of the world. I saw the Roman. which
Is at present the biggest seaplane In the
world. Later I rode in its sister ship
and heard DR.. Rohrbach say Of his own
handiwork:
build. 1t is not perfection, but it ap-
proaches. 1t will serve as a stepping
stone Then I talked with Juan de
la Cierva, the inventor Of the marvellous
Autogiro. which, according to autliori-
ties, is a great step toward aviation
safety. Its huge windmill takes the
plane almost vertically into the air and
descends in the same way. Then
heard. first hand. Of some of the war
time and postwar time experiences Of
such famous pilots as Goring and Udet,
and felt truly that my education was
only beginning.