Evening Republican, Volume 18, Number 83, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 April 1914 — The AIR RACE'ROUND the WORLD [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

The AIR RACE'ROUND the WORLD

4MK) MAJORITY of experienced aviators believe the proposed aeroplane flight around the world this summer, while it wlll be a marvelous demonstration of human progress and efficiency, is never-vSlr'-'a theless feasible. The directors of the uWsTx Panama-Pacific exposition at San FranWggT cisco are assured of the co-operation of all t>e great nations over whose terrltory the monoplanes and aeroplanes will whirl. Feat after feat of endurance must be (n performed by the aviator who traverses ; the broad American continent, makes I the great jumps from island to island of the North Atlantic, pursues the well-traveled air lanes of Europe, safely passes over the bleak and forbidding wastes of Siberia, and fringes the almost uninhabited coast line of northern Asia and -Alaska.

But each of these feats has been exceeded already In the air records now on the books. Now all that is needed is the combination of them. The performance of one great air journey after • another means luck, enormous luck, to a greater degree than in almost any sporting contest ever organized.

Several aviators have signified their intention of entering. They are willing to take the risks. They are not actuated by the desire for gold, for even the successful contender, who will win the >150,000 first prize and also the $50,000 offered by Lord Northcliffe for the first crossing of the Atlantic, will find his $200,000 and perhaps more eaten up by the expenses of his undertaking. It is quite certain, however, that plenty of men of large fortunes and sporting proclivities will be found to finance this peerless air event The eyes of the world will be upon the brave contenders, even more than they were upon the pioneer aviation racers in that first meet at Rhelms in 1908. ~— The attention of the close students of the race is centered upon the problem of the Atlantic. After passing due east from San Francisco across the Sierras, through Reno, Nev.; Cheyenne, Wyo.; Kansas City, St. Louis and New York, the aviators will coast along the seaboard to Belle Isle, between Newfoundland and Labrador. Here the flight across the Atlantic will begin. The flyers will probably head for Cape Farewell, Greenland, 610 miles away. From Cape Farewell to Iceland the distance Is 670 miles, and from Iceland to Stornaway, in the Hebrides, is 570 miles. Three enormous leaps—6lo, 670 and 570 miles. None of them Insurmountable in Itself. But to hit the bull’s-eye three times in succession—there’s the rub. Then these seas are not always as hospitable as the Mediterranean, which Roland Garros has now crossed twice. There are fog and wind and rocky landing places. But If a row of warships patrol the course, lent by their governments in the interests of science and human progress, the risk will not be greater (for instauce) than that taken by the late John B. Moissant when he set off in an untried machine with a fog In his face to fly from Paris to London at a time when thtuchannel crossing alone was considered almost a miracle.

Compared with the Atlantic crossing, too, the rest of the journey seems fairly simple. The proposed route is by way of Edinburgh, London, Paris, Berlin, Warsaw, St. Petersburg, Moscow and the Trans-Siberian railway to Manchuria and then south to Vladivostok. The next lap takes the aviator across the sea to Corea. He must then cross the Japan sea to Kobe and Tokyo, turn north to Kamchatka and travel along the coast either to East cape or to the Aleutian islands. The distance between the two continents here varies from 30 to 200 miles. From Alaska the course will be southward to Vancouver, Seatr tie, and home to San Francisco. The aviators who hesitate about pronouncing the journey possible in the present stage of their are calling attention to the distance —28,000 miles. The successful flyer must travel an average of more than 200 miles a day for four months. Will it be possible to accomplish the trip in the few months of summer of the Northern regions through parts of which the course lies? Vedrines was five weeks in doing the 3,500 miles from Paris to the pyramids, flying at an average of only 100 miles dally. This explains clearly how greatly the proposed journey would outdo anything yet accomplished. Besides the notable flights already mentioned, Oscar Bider has flown practically every high mountain in Europe, Garros has made a flight from Marseilles to Paris without stopping; Brlndejonc des Moulinais has toured the capitals of Europe, and two besides Vedrines have reached Egypt from -France. Yet these journeys pale before the difllcultles of the race around the globe. It is to be noted, however, that the history of aviation is one succession of surprises. Scarcely anything of Importance accomplished has not been called impossible beforehand. Aviators have done so much* that one hesitates to doubt their ability to do anything. Special aeroplanes will be constructed for the race. These will probably be swift, but not built tor the maximum speed. They will make say, 60 miles an hour. Reliability will be th* object

There will be accommodations for two men, both pilots, who will relieve each other at the tiller. A large supply of fuel and oil must be carried. It will be a splendid test for the machine builders, and most of the factories on both sides of the Atlantic are expected to be in the field. In the United States the following constructors have tentatively signified their willingness to build a 'round the world plane: Glenn H. Curtiss of Hammondsport, N. Y.; Orville Wright of Dayton, O.; W. Staffing Burgess of Marblehead, Mass.; Thomas Bendist of St. Louis, Emile Berliner of Washington, D. C.; the Heinrich Brothers of Baldwin, L. I; John E. Sloane of New York city, Edlton F. Gallaudet of Norwich, Conn., and Ingles Uppercu of New York city There are now TfOOv licensed aviators In the world. Out"'of this field there must be several hundred who would attempt the proposed flight if the financial backing were forthcoming. The first man in America to get in his entry was Beckwith Havens. Capt. Mathew A. Batson of Savannah, Ga., a former army officer, who is the inventor of a flying boat, announces he will enter the race. Lincoln Beachey will also compete. From abroad come many expressions showing enthusiasm for the race. The time before the start Is short, however. By May 1, few could have their machines In readiness at the Golden Gate. Claude Grahame-White, the noted English aviator, thinks the exposition officials should take off the time limit entirely. He thinks the trip around the globe cannot be made this summer, but might be accomplished in 1916. He said: "They (the exposition officials) might as well offer $10,000(000. It is as safe as in the Bank of England if the offer Is to be withdrawn at the end of 1915. Ido not believe you would have time now to get a machine ready even if you worked day and night. **l think It would need to be a comparatively slow machine for the race; that Is, one doing 60 miles an hour. I certainly would not have a mono/ plane, for I do not think monoplane construction lends Itself to a big weight-lifting machine.” The London Dally Mail, Lord Northcllffe's newspaper, doubts that the feat can be accomplished. It says:

"The exhibition committee’s offer indicates re- - markable confidence in the future of aircraft, though there is little prospect of the feat being accomplished by the proposed date. But it is merely a question of time before an airman puts a girdle around the world.” Roland Garros said:.. "They can count, me in, provided oceans are eliminated, as in the case of an automobile trip, and other conditions are decently fair. I am an aviator who will not attempt the impossible. lam positive that no engine today could stand the whole Journey. Without having to fly across the oceans, I believe I could accomplish the feat with one engine, provided* I were allowed to. repair IL” Capt. Thomas Baldwin, a veteran of the balloon field before he took up aeroplanes, said the great-

est difficulty would be to cross the Atlantic ocean, and for this trip special machines with arrangements to carry provisions and fuel for 20 hours at least must be constructed. • "Except for the flight across the Atlantic," said Captain Baldwin, “the race will not be difficult I figure that the aviators will have to travel 28,000 miles. Of course it will be necessary for two pilots to travel In each mar chine so that they can relieve each other. "Motors now are made so ““that they are fairly reliable, and the trips across the water for stretches of 500 or 600 miles may be accomplished with comparative ease. The trip by land over Europe and Asia will be made without great difficulty, anfl arrangements for crossing the Bering strait will insure success for that stage of the journey.” The exposition officials ex-

pect to have at least $300,000 to offer In prizes. The first prize will probably be $150,000, although it may be SIOO,OOO or $200,000. The race will be under the supervision of an International commission consisting of men from all the countries on the route of the race. The commission will be scientific and advisory, and Its duties will be to suggest the route and offer counsel on geographic, meteorologic and scientific problems. The commissloh will be named by the president of the United States, the king of Great Britain, the president of France, the German emperor, the emperor of Russia, the emperor of Japan, and the premier of British Columbia. An international fleet will be organized. Japan and the United States will be asked to patrol the Pacific ocean course with scout cruisers, and the United States, England and France to establish the same sort of a guard In the Atlantic. Russia will be requested to distribute troops over the desolatq wastes of Siberia and Manchuria.