The San Francisco call. [volume], July 30, 1911, Image 37

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

Image provided by: University of California, Riverside; Riverside, CA

                
THE
SAN FRANCISCO
SUNDAY
CALL
AMERICA’S FIRST BIRDWOMAN
IS A
SAN FRANCISCO
GIRL
tIAGAZIIff
SECTION
JUIY 50, m
* A y MERTCAN women are not grainy (Imr irata'/H
../\/ it; conies,'to sports. But they .have be«a slew
il comes to sports. But they have been stow
vj[T^ in taking to flying. There are already .severs!
...,, ujjj .V French, '■women '.aviators," bat only within tKa
J week has the first American woman taken out a pUot*4
•'license. „ .". ..•:..'.•'•■; , '• ■. v v ■;•-. j-.,- • ?.-. *;'" >O. ;
That woman., is Miss Harriet Qulmby, a Callfonda
Ctrl, most of - whose- life-has been spent In San Trap*
-Cisco. . Miss Quimby went to New York a few y*aaa
ago. |where. she- undertook to' make her : own 4' way *4'
.writing. ..; Her • success may be : guessed from the f teal
J that her j pastime ?■ during the last few j years has been,
motoring-, ■ and« now sho ; has '^ron» ■in for •'aviation. | Bhe j
■ has distinguished, herself In aeronautics •by f being • the '■
■ first j woman in the world to undertake ; the manipula- •
, tion of. a : monoplane.;- - . '■>.. '^ jv>': ..•'-■> ' %^--l' - •
-,At Ilempstead:plains,-Long Island, for the f last stx
j weeks ; ; there has been a good deal jof curiosity about
one of the students. -.If seemed an enthusiastic younf ■
chap was there promptly at 4:30 every morning, oat '■
with the very earliest- birds,; making- the most daring
i attempts at night under the direction of Andre Houpert,
' chief instructor. The costume/of this enthusiast wu
,a.,] sort vof combination jacket and trousers of wool*
backed satin, fitting the slender, youthful; figure trimly,
, High,, velvet-topped boots, heavy'goggles,' and " a hood
. attached to the "' jacket completed a ' very striking ana
very practical flying outfit. ,: But the part that piqued
the curiosity of those who straggled 1 out •to the flying
: grounds ; while the dew was. still on the grass was a.
thick veil that ' swung . from the top of the hood and
covered the s young aviator's face../ ■
-Curiosity begot rumors, and more people came out
s to watch this early bird. And then one morning, after
two weeks .of baiting the curious, there was a little t
more wind than usual., and, as the "aviator crossed the
field toward j the hangars,, the veil was blown' aside
long' enough .for one who knew her well T to recognls*
Miss; Quimby. .V • ...'-', '*. •'..
;She laughed when discovered, and had to begin an
siverlny ' the usual /questions.
'"Do I like flying? * Well, the t fact that- I'm out her*
every- morning at 4 o'clock ought *to answer that. I -
took up the sport just because I;' thought I would en- .
j Joy; the * sensation, and I'm 4 not sorry yet. > I've don*
•a lot of motoring, and that's all right, but after sea
ing 'monoplanes in the air, motoring began ito seen
tame.'and > I couldn't resist the desire to try the roads
higher . up ■ .where •;there -rare neither ; speed < laws , nor
traffic police, and ■ where one needn't ; go clear around -
Central park 'to; cross Times, square. *
T ; 'Then, too, I thought it would be nice to be th«
first American woman to win "a> pilot's license. -5*
many Amorican women , have .^ driven motors that ; It
-seems/odd^ notieof them have tried flying. You see,
flylhg-ilobks a Ki'eat dc;il nioro 'dahserous than: It is. :
„' Continued on ;\ext i'ug*