AVIATION RECORDS.
The permanent success of the Wright brothers' invention was proven in 1905 by long distance flights in England, France and Ger many, and the armies of these powers grasped the merits of the revolutionary discovery of flight in heavier-than-air machines for war purposes. The governments aided advance ment in the new art so that air squadrons soon entered the conflict when the World War reached its fiercest stage. But the war para lyzed competition in popular races and records have not been accepted by the International Aviation Association since 1914. The enor mous impulse in advancing the science of avi ation caused by the use of the machines by the belligerent governments becomes clear to us when we read the few wonderful feats per formed by the improved types of flying struc tures. Some former prominent events were: The Paris-to-Madrid race won by Vedrine in 37h. 26m. 12s. in 1911. In 1910 Grahame-White had covered 100 kilometers (62 miles) at Belmont Park in 60m. 473/gs. or 61.3 miles per hour. The United States army in 1911 had her first intercity race, from New York to Philadelphia (about 83 miles) which was won by L. Beachy in two hours (net time lh. 50m.), and G. Fourny accomplished in that year 447.3 miles at Buc, France (without stops) in 11h. 29s. Against these records we have in 1918 (when the United States army inaugurated first airplane mail serv ice) the New York to Washington route per formed in 3h. 30m. Mail aviators flew last year (with mail) from Paris to London and return in 3h. 10m. In a long series of runs between New York and Washington in 1919 the mail planes have averaged a speed of 70.80 miles per hour. In the revived English aerial Derby, which was interrupted by the war, the course of which is around the suburbs of London, Captain Gathergood, in 1919, won, averaging a speed of 140 miles an hour. T. Sopworth won that of 1912 (in a Bleriot) at an average speed of 59 miles an hour. In 1913 Gustav Hand
won it (in a Morane) at an average speed of 76 miles an hour, and an American, W. L. Brock, won the 1914 contest at a speed of 72 miles the hour. For altitude flights January, 1919, Cap tain Lang, British army, held the record with a height of 30,500 feet. On 28 May this year Adjutant Casale ascended 31,000 feet and on 8 June beat his own record with a flight of 31,168 feet. This record was bettered on 18 September by Roland Rohlfs, whose altimeter registered 34,610 feet. Lieut-Col. Leonhard H. Drennan, of the Air Service, flew from Boston, Mass., to Hazelhurst Field, Long Island, in 83 minutes, a distance of 175 miles, in a DeHavi land four machine. Col. Davenport Johnson and Lieut. H. S. Ormsbee (pilot) of the Air Service flew from Chicago to Selfridge Field, Mich., a distance of 250 miles in 140 minutes, in a DeHaviland four. And in this same year (1919) is realized the ultimate dream of the aviator, flight across the Atlantic Ocean. Under the supervision of the United States navy the naval seaplane NC-4 (piloted by Lieutenant Read) made a flight from Rockaway to Ply mouth, England, a distance of 3,926 nautical miles, in 55h. 33m. actual flying time, averaging 70.80 miles an hour while in flight. The entire course and dates are as follows: Rockaway Chatham (forced to land) 8 May; Chatham Halifax, 14 May; Halifax-Trepassey, 15 May; Trepassey-Horta (Azores), 1,200 nautical miles, 16-17 May; Horta-Ponta Delgada, 20 May; Ponta Delgada-Lisbon, 27 May; Lisbon Mondego River, 30 May; Mondego River-Fer rol, 30 May; Ferrol-Plymouth, 31 May. Still more remarkable was the non-stop flight across the Atlantic Ocean, from Saint Johns, New foundland, to Clifden, Ireland, made by Capt. John Alcock and Lieut. Arthur W. Brown, 14 15 June, in an English Vickers-Vimy bomber biplane. They made the distance, 14-15 June, 1,980 miles, in 16 hours 12 minutes, at 120 miles per hour.