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the first flight of an airship to be made within the United States.

"You surely made history, didn't you?" asked Jane as she began to read exerpts [[excerpts]] of an address given by President David Francis of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition which was held in St. Louis in 1904. The ST. LOUIS REPUBLIC reported his address at the Nebraska Day exercises in Festival Hall: "The people of St. Louis advanced $10,000,000, not with the expectation of getting the money back, but through a sense of patriotic pride to commemorate an event in the country's history. Whether we receive any of that money back or not it is still our belief and our boast that this Exposition is a great success."

"One event today took place which will more than compensate the people of St. Louis for all of the expense of the $10,000,000 and for all of the time and trouble involved in the building of the Exposition---There never has been a successful ascent until today and since you have assembled in this hall an airship has been and now is in the air.....It will revolutionize commerce and will immortalize this Exposition. It will be the beginning of a line of discoveries that may result in making within a few years an air-ship that will become the ordinary and usual means of transportation. My friends, Mr. A. Roy Knabenshue had just returned from the most important and sensational flight through the air ever made in America!"

"Darling," Jane said, growing serious for so early in the morning, "Won't you tell me about those early days of flying? I'd love to hear about them again."

That did it! That little incident gave me the impetus needed to write this book. For as I retold the story, thumbing through pamphlets, letters, pictures and newspapers, Jane took notes and from them my life's story was written.