Evening star., 1933-09-12
by JAMES Y. NICOL.

THOR LAKE, Ontario, September II
While all that remains Of the balloon
Goodyear TX reposes amid the jack
pines Of the Thor Lake area, ruined
beyond repair. Ward T. Van Orman
and Frank Trotter. co-pilots of the
big Bennett air race bag, hoped to get
out Of the Northern Ontario backwoods
today under their own power.
To newspaper man who reached
the rough woodcutters' cabin where
they rested last night, the American
balloonists laughingly remarked:
Send word home that nobody 8
going to carry us out of here on q
stretcher. We are walking out of the
shop here Just the same as we arrived,
on our feet"
Laugh at Adventure.
Matching their wits for q full week
against the wiles Of the wilds, travers-
ing country that is an almost impene-
trable maze of slash in the lowlands
and defiant ridge Of rock above. laid
low by illness Van Orman and Trotter
are still prepared to challenge the
hazards Of balloons and brush heaps.
Happy at being safe. the veteran air
man Van Orman and his dark haired
youthful aide laughed over their adven-
lures at their temporary home under
the pines, IL miles from here. They
were found yesterday by James Barrett.
hydro repairman, after cutting a power
line in the hope 1t would bring assist
ance
The Canadian press correspondent
was piloted to their stopping place by
Sydney Fairweather veteran bushman
BY the light Of fashlight they ar
rived at the door Of the little shanty
where the balloonists rested.
On a large double cot covered with
q heavy gray blanket and dressed in
balloonists sprawled side by side. With
q weeks growth Of beard, they looked
like lumberjacks.
Smoked Last Cigarettes.
When they left Chicago on Satur-
day, September 2, the balloonists car
ried seven cans Of beans. four cans Of
fruit, six apples, six oranges and q
carton OF cigarettes They smoked the
last two cigarettes "a hours before they
were found
Asked about the crash. Van Orman
turned over the Goodyears log. written
as tersely as military dispatch. 1t
read:
Sunday. September 8. pm. used
Is bags OF ballast fighting storm. Ba-
rometric pressure at the ground at the
time Of final landing was 1898. Tenn
perature so degrees. Wind west south
west. velocity 40 miles an hour.
Forced down by heavy squalls and
severe lightning Paragraph glass
broken. Hard landing"
Van Orman left it TO his co-pilot to
enlarge on the story.
Vertical currents, rain hail and
thunder storms caused the crash, :"
Trotter explained. 1t was the most
terrific crash l ever experienced
The basket with its two occupants
struck tree 20 inches in radius. snap
ping it in two like a stick of kindling
wood. The force of the impact tossed
the basket like toy for 20 feet and
1t wound itself around another tree
like top string. The big gas bag vas
turned inside out
1t was a sumner" Trotter said.
AS soon as We got our senses we shook
hands. Van Orman was a brick. I
never lost confidence"
Slept in Basket in Tree.
They came down from an altitude of
5000 feet and slept the first night
in the basket in the treetops So
severe was the wind and lightning and
hal. that they didn't dare bulge.
Casually thumbing the pages of
little black book. Trotter recited the
events that followed
Monday morning at o'clock our
nrst move was to get the equipment,