The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., August 09, 1918, SECOND SECTION, Image 17

About The Bridgeport times and evening farmer. (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1918-1924

Image provided by: Connecticut State Library, Hartford, CT

                
4 :
1 . l" Bill l;1 I
Holder of America's Cross-Country Non-Stop
Flight - Trick Flying Helping Uncle Sam,
Bond Selling to Charting Air-Routes
Copyright, 1918, The International Syndicate.
I ft ATHERINE STINSON, holder of
T America's, cross-country, non
I stop flight record, and the only
woman flier to whom has been
intrusted Uncle Sam's air mail, did not
intend to make Hying her lite work
when she went into the game, six
years ago. Her ambition was not to
be America's champion bird-girl. Fly
ing was to be only a means to an end.
Miss Stinson is a musician, and the
dream of the little girl in Jackson,
Mississippi, was nothing more sensa
tional than to become a teacher of
piano. She did not believe in doing
things by halves, and she wanted to be
equipped with the very best musical
education that was to be had. Her
funds were exhausted before she had
completed her preparation, which
was planned to Include study in the
musical centers of Europe.
So she took up flying with the de
liberate purpose of giving exhibition
flights until the education had been
provided for. She intended then to
come back to earth and live in the
same sphere as the rest of us. But
I the world has moved since the peace
ful days of 1912.
Pioneer In Aviation
Miss Stinson has been pioneering in
I American aviation in fair competition
with men flyeie, startling the world
I both with stunt flying and breaking
Life In Historic Mexico
,&gt j : rMmM: -Vf IMkwi MMl
for Centuries Past Magnificent Scenery and
Abject Poverty Go Hand In Hand
Copyright, 1U1S, The International Syndicate.
RESIDENT WILSON'S speech to
the representatives of Mexico,
in which he depicted us as a
Big Brother nation, will have
a tendency to convince the Latin
American people that we have no de
sire to be highwaymen, and that we
have no ambition to gain territory.
In other words, what we desire the
Mexicans and others to understand is
that we are champions of liberty. We
wish to hold a position of protection
toward smaller nations. It is to the
credit of our country tht we are not
eeklng territory, but ars fighting for
he triumph of certain principles. We
re trying to make Mexico and some
ther nations understand this.
The words of President Wilson are
f such a noble import that it is
oped they will give Mexico a clearer
nsight into our aims, and strengthen
he bond of amity between us. Car-
anza'i country has been so torn with
nternal strife that It may be difficult
o get a wide viewpoint, but the friend-
y attitude of our country, as manl-
ested In the speech of President Wll
on, may make them better able to
e clear vision in looking at the coun
try to the north of them. Those who
tmderstand Mexico, with her historic
ackground, charming climate and
tlcturesque cities, hope that this war
'ill emphasize the importance of
he diplomatic relations between the
United States and all Latin-America,
jBjTc
I I o : ...v-v- i
records for distance flights, and has
hung up an American cross-country
non-stop flight record that surpasses
all other distance flights of both men
and women aviators in this country.
She can stop flying now any tlma
that she wants to, and get the best
that the musical world has to offer.
But no one seriously expects her to,
for the government has observed her
work, and found it good, and since
by her 6ex she is hopelessly barred
from active participation in the war,
she has taken up, with characteristic
vim, the job of charting new air
routes for mail transportation and
carrying mail over the new highways
in the clouds.
Means To An End
Miss Stinson has also' found a way
to express her patriotism in. a way
that is more directly connected with
the war. In many cities where she
has been flying since the United States
entered the war she has volunteered
her services to the army, navy and
marine corps recruiting stations, and
has been an earnest and enthusiastic
"recruiting sergeant" pro-tem. This
summer she is taking up, in addition
to her recruiting activities, the pro
motion of the sale of War Savings
Stamps.
Katherine Stinson has crowded a
great variety of experiences and a
Practically the Same As
and the desirability that these rela
tions be friendly as well as commer
cial. The terrible conflict ought to
impess on all of the nations of the
Western Hemisphere that we ought to
have solidarity of interest and action
in international affairs.
Carranza Has Big Job
Those who know Mexico appreciate
what a task Carranza has in keeping
his country quiet at home and neutral
abroad. If war had meant loss of life
to Mexico that would have been bad
enough, but railroads and mines were
disabled, and public enterprises of all
kinds suffered by the Mexican revolu
tion. Carranza needs money to re
build railroads and carry on govern
mental work, and he has been facing
a difficult proposition.
Mexico City, though shot ridden in
places, keeps a brave front to the
world. Her shops were always fine,
and they are apparently doing a good
business. The Pasee de la Reforma
the grand boulevard of the city Is as
beautiful as In the days of Carlotta,
and the Castle of Chapultepec, indis
solubly connected with Mexican his
tory, rears Its head as proudly as ever
on the hill from which it gets its
name. It Is true, there are soldiers
oh the streets, and that in the country
bandits occasionally Are at passing
trains, but there is a generally opti
mistic feeling that the worst Is over,
and there is a great big. hope thai
THE BEIDGEPOKT TIMES:
r. A
vast number of thrills into her six
years of flying. Before the idea of be
coming a flier occurred to her she had
been impressed strongly bv the ro
mance of the air sport, which was
then far more hazardous than it is to
day, and John Moisant and Archie
Hoxey flying kings of their time
were her idols. It was a tragic co
incidence, but one that failed1' to daunt
her, that both of her heroes were
killed on the same day, Moisant in
New Orleans and Hoxey in Los An
geles. Exhibition Flights
The financial success which these
men were making of their exhibition
flights inspired Miss Stinson with the
idea of going into the work herself to
acquire the funds which her ambi
tious musical program demanded. It
was an unheard, of thing for a girl
and a girl of seventeen at that to at
tempt. But Katherine Stinson is an
innovator. Deaf to the remonstrances
and dark predictions of her terror
stricken friends, she entred an avia
tion school in 1912, and in July of
that year the Aero Club of America
issued her license number 148. Few
fliers alive today hold licenses with
lower numbers.
Her first solo fight was for this
license, and took place in Chicago.
She used a Wright biplane, with a
Wright motor that was good for only
forty miles an hour. The model
which she used on that occasion was
the one with which Walter Brookins
did the spiral dive standing the ma
chine on one end and sliding side
wise. Carranza will prove equal to the sit
uation. Villa may be instituting a
sort of Hoover food control among his
followers; at any rate he is credited
with this, but Carranza has the brains
and better social position. It is a sad
Mexico, but it has certain things war
fare cannot injure. There is the same
blue, blue sky, the same magnificent
white-capped volcanoes, and everyone
who knows Mexico is glad that Chap
ultepec remains the same, for it has
the- most magnificent setting of any
home occupied by the head of any gov
ernment, and It is historic in a mark
ed degree.
Queretaro the Present Capitol
Early in his assuming control as
chief Carranza established his capital
for the time being at Queretaro. This
city is to the north of .Mexico City,
and has a historic setting that makes
it of unusual interest. To the casual
visitor it is associated with its opals,
for of all towns In Mexico this is the
one in wtiich to buy opals. They come
in all varieties and hues, and are
worth from a few dollars up to sev
eral hundred dollars. $ut the trav
eler must be wary, for he may be met
at the train by a vender of opals, some
of which are merely glass with gilt
paper pasted os the back. Only as
w -S .
Immediately after receiving her
license Miss Stinson started giving ex
hibition flights. If she had simply
gone up and come down it would have
been all that was expected of this rara
ava this strange bird-girl. But Kath
erine Stinson has never expected spe
cial consideration because of her sex.
She figured that the public demanded
as much trick flying from her as it did
from any other aviator. Whether the
public expected it of her or not, she
furnished the thrills. Miss Stinson
has been from the first a stunt flier,
and she has never departed from the
dare-devil class.
She was having a new machine
built a military tractor when Lin
coln Beachey took his tragit crash.
Beachey had the best motor in the
world a Gnome and Miss Stinson
knew it. Hoodoos are nothing in her
young life. She immediately effected
the purchase of the wrecked ma
chine's Gnome motor, which she in
stalled in the new military tractor.
Twelve successful flights she made
with the new outfit, and on the thir
teenth the thirteenth, mark you
she reproduced the loop-the-loop trick
that Beachey himself liad created.
She was the first woman flier in the
world to loop an areoplane, and the
feat was accomplished by only two
men Beachey and De Lloyd Thomp
sonbefore she did it.
Soon after this Art Smith found
that he could amuse the public by
risking his neck in night flying with
the train moves out does this pur
chaser see that he has been swindled
most outrageously.
Queretaro is one of the chief cities
of the Bajio Valley, and associated
with much of Mexican history. It was
here that Maximilian fought against
the liberal forces, was defeated and
executed in- 1867, together with his
generals, Mejia and fcliramon. Every
one knows the story how Maximil
ian, deserted by Napoleon, rejected by
the Mexicans, 'was condemned to be
shot by Juarez; how the Princess
Salm-Salm pleaded for his life; how
Carlotta eventually became insane.
On the spot where that tragedy was
enacted the story seems doubly real,
and regrets arise that a life should be
needlessly taken. ' The Austrian Em
peror. erected a small chapel in mem
ory of his brother and the two gen
erals, and the place is filled with
tragic memories. The town has fine
churches, architecturally considered,
and many are the works of noted de
signers who have chosen the Oriental
motif. A table, said to have belonged
to Maximilian, is in the museum, and
it is said his death warrant was sign
ed on it. There is also the coffin in
which his body was brought from the
Cerro de las Campanas, or hill of ex
1913.
fireworks the most hazardous, fool
hardy and suicidal stunt that any
aviator has ever attempted and sur
vived. Any bit of trick flying that any
aviator does anywhere little Miss
Stinson regards as a personal chal
lenge. She felt that never again could
she hold up her head as an aviatrice
sans peur if she did not pick up Art
Smith's gauntlet.
Wilting In Fire
So, out In Los Angeles in Decem
ber, 1915, she rigged her plane with a
lot of calcium lights and an electric
igniter, soared to the heavens one
dark night, touched the button, dump
ed her machine, and the trick was
done.
"There is absolutely no excuse for
anyone doing this stunt," Miss Stin
son has since said. "You don't stand
a sporting chance, for you are utterly
blinded by the lights. You have to
loop and dip and dive to make a good
display, and you haven't the faintest
idea of where you are or what you are
doing. You just wait for the fire
works to burn out, and then if you
are lucky you right your plane and
get your balance." '
The morning after her first fire
works exploit Miss Stinson picked up
a newspaper and found in it a time
exposure night photograph of her
trick, in which the letters "C-a-1-" had
been clearly written by her plane in
its fiery course through the heavens.
Furious, she rushed to Jier manager
and held the picture in front of him.
ecution.
Quaint Old Customs
War has made little difference with
the- main features of this town, and
the queer street scenes continue here
as in other towns. Strangers still reg
ister their names on blackboards
placed on the office walls of hotels,
keys are unknown in many places,
and funeral cars seem a prominent
feature of the street scenes only in
time of war they are more frequent.
Often twenty pass the Plaza Major,
as the heart of the city is called, in an
hour. Gambling in a small way still
continues Carranza has been cred
ited with trying o stop it and it will
in some form always be dear to the
Mexican heart. At one time even the
street car tickets were good for a
chance. Always in war times there
is a certain happy-go-lucky spirit that
says, "What's the use of worry; let's
toss up the money, and our ticket may
win."
Life In Mexico City
The Mexicans have seen scenes of
terror, but they are a volatile people,
and rebound quickly. That is one rea
son why life in Mexico City seems to
the casual outsider to go on the same
as in the peaceful days of Madero.
Many times a day the streets are
sprinkled, pieces of paper are tied to
door gratings to let passers by know
that within rooms are to let, and the
fire engines dash down the streets
drawn by diminutive mules, gome
times they stop to feed these email
animals while the fire burns severely
on. All the Saints' aays are still cele
brated by total cessation from work.
I -,wS3y!f4'is' vl
"You know what I think of cheap
press-agent stuff like this!" she ex
ploded. "Isn't my flying good enough
so you don't have to fall back on
faking?"
"Do you mean to say," he de
manded, "that you didn't mean to
spell the name of the State?"
"Of course not!" she returned,
hotly. "It can't be done! I know
faked photographs when I see them."
The manager had to .call in two
newspaper' photographers, who had
"shot her night flights," and get them
to show her their negative before Miss
Stinson was convinced that she had
done what she thought impossible.
Even then she disclaimed credit for
it, and called it "just Katherine Stin
son luck." But the Californians took
it as an added trick , in their honor,
and the story of her writing in fire
works went all over the world.
In November, 1916, the bird girl
took her plane to the Orient to fly for
the Chinese and Japanese. Two days
before she sailed Ruth Law broke the
American cross-country flight record,
and Miss Stinson struggled hard
against a burning desire to cancel the
trip across the Pacific. She wanted
that record herself. But honor pre
vailed, and over she went. She gave
special exhibition trick fights for the
Emperor of Japan and the President
of China, and did the fireworks stunt
over Peking.
Not being able to write Chinese, she
did not attempt any heavenly inscrip
tions, yet an English-language news
paper published in Peking announced
the next day that she had only spelled
"P-e-k-," and complained that she
must hve got frightened then and
quit.
Once again she exercised her pro
fessional and feminine prerogative of
going up in the air.
"I suppose," she sniffed, "that if I
had spelled it all out they would have
felt they were swindled if I forgot to
dot the '1'!"
Flight for Red Cross
After six months in the Orient, Miss
Stinson returned to San Francisco on
Decoration Day last year. Her next
big flight was a cross-country tour
and the letter writers still sit on the
street corners ready to indite a love
missive or a business letter as occa
sion demands.
One of the sights of Mexico City
which still remains a sight despite
war and all its havoc is the proces
sion of automobiles and carriages
down the famous Paseo de la Re
forma. Like all great capitals, Mex
ico's fashion drives have shifted from
one part of the town to another.
Once the most beautiful boulevard
was the Paseo de Bucarell, then it was
the Paseo de la Viga, and after Maxi
milian and Carlotta came they plan
ned the Paseo de la Reforma. Up
and down this paseo, especially on
Sunday, there Is a constant procession
of the rich. War has Injured the pav
ing, but this makes no difference in
the number of automobiles, carriages
and horseback riders. The throng is
dressed In its best, women are beauti
fully gowned and wear brilliant jew
els, and it is a show of the aristocrats,
worthy of any European capital In
times of peace. Down this driveway
passed daily- Carlotta, Maximilian,
Juarez, Diaz, Madero to their summer
home in Chapultepec Castle, and now
that Carranza is at the helm the pro
cession still continues, though the
riders may suffer from bounces occa
sioned by want of repair due to neces
sary curtailment of the city's ex
penses. Castle of Chapultepec
This magnificent boulevard ends at
the "Hill of the Grasshopper," on
which is the historic Castle of Chapul
tepec. Every ruler of Mexico has
used this castle more or less, for it
dates back to the time of the Aztec
Montezuma. Nearby it is the Mili
tary Academy of Mexico, somewhat
like our West Point. Here boys are
trained for the army, and wjien this
hill was taken by the Americans un
der General Scott the young cadets
bravely defended It. To commemor
ate this a handsome monument has
been erected at the base of the hill.
A memorial to the Americans who
died at that time is in the American
Cemetery. It is fortunate that war
has not made havoc with this castle,
but no matter what man may do to It
the magnificent setting and view will
from Buffalo to Washington In honor
of the first Red Cross war fund of
$100,000,000 then being subscribed.
She picked up donations and cam
paign reports en route, and delivered
them to Secretary McAdoo on the
Treasury steps in Washington. This
was ona of the few long-distance
flights that have ever been made ab
solutely on time from start to finish.
Miss Stanton now found that she
had made a name for herself as a
cross-country flier, and fbllowed the .
Red Cross achievement with others of
greater risk. One was from Chatta
nooga to Birmingham, 250 miles
through tricky currents over bad moun- '
tains, where there was no chance to ;
land in case of trouble. Her course
1 T TT i TS a Alnlawto
the town where she was born, and
she dropped Red Cross and Liberty
Bond "bombs" en ljpute.
Still greater fame came with a fight ,
from San Diego to San Francisco over ,
the Tehachapi Mountains, a hazard
ous course that many fliers had tried
and failed. She did the 610 miles in
nine hours and ten minutes, and was
the first person who has ever had
breakfast in San Diego and dinlrer in
San Francisco.
Breaking a Record 3
Miss Stinson's flight of all flights up
to date was made only this last May, .
when she hung up a master record by
making a non-stop, cross-country
jump from Chicago to Binghamton,
N. Y. She followed the route of the i
Erie Railroad over this course, which
measures 783 miles. But the Aero '
Club of America figures all distance :
flights as the crow flies, and her offi- ;
cial distance record will be a little
less. i
Thus did Katherine Stinson break i
the American cross-country record of
510 miles held by Miss Law, and be
come the undisputed cross-country
champion of all fliers in the United
States. She had already, in Califor
nia, broken all long-distance records :
for men and women, and In the Chi-cago-Binghamton
flight she broke her
own record.
She hopes to do even better before
me summer is over.
remain unchanged. A winding road
leads to the brow of the 'hill, and
passes a cave in which Montezuma is
said to have disappeared for a time.
No matter how one approaches the
brow -of the hill there is no one so
tired of world beauties but he ex
claims at the scene. In the distance
are the abrupt eminences of Ajusco,
the blue heights of the Cordilleras, of
Las Cruces, the hills of Tepeyao and
proud Popocatapetl and Ixtaccihuatl.
Nearer are the green plains and the
blue lakes shimmering in the sun. In
all directions are tiny villages, old
wagon trails crossing, fields, groves of
ancient trees, haciendas, and in one
place the historic drainage canal. All
is beneath a sky serenely blue and
calm. It is an entrancing picture, and,
fortunately, the quarrels of man can
effect but small portion of it. The1
sky and mountains will remain, no'
matter what the fortunes of Mexico. ,
It is said that Carranza Is not In!
sympathy with the church system of
Mexico, but that is no new thing in
that country. Juarez was so opposed
that he took the gold and silver from
the altars, and used it for various pur
poses, and he Issued many decrees
which are in force now. One was that
no religious meeting could be held oni
the' streets. The street meetings are
never seen as in the United States. On ;
the other hand, though the Mexican
peon is poor and dressed in rags, he
is devout, and no matter what takes
place in Mexico the Cathedral of Mex-;
ico City is the most conspicuous and
most frequented building in the city.'
Nearby it is the National Palace, used
since the time of the Spaniards for the.
executive offices of the government,:
and in recent years associated ""with
the tragic ending of Madero.
When one sums up the country to
the south of us he stands amazed
at the Incongruities and difficulties.
Tempermentally the two social classes
of Mexico are wide apart, and what
suits one does not appeal to the other.
The admixture of Indian and Spanish
blood, the years and years of warfare,
and the large number of peones must
all be considered. Carranza is suc
ceeding, and he is entitled to great,
credit, for his task has been far from
easy.
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