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[[left column]] THE BIRMINGHAM AGE HERALD, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11,1917 --- RUTH LAW TO SKIM TRACK AT FAIRGROUNDS FRIDAY IN RACE WITH MOTORIST --- [[image 1]] [[caption]]Ruth Law, aviator, and Ivan W. Isinger, motorist, who will compete in an air and truck race at the fairgrounds Friday afternoon at 3:30. Isinger will drive his Stutz racer and Miss Law her airplane.[[\caption]] Says Isinger's Stutz Must Show Speed or She'll Show Him Her Heels By FRANK WILLIS BARNETT "Yes, I know I wrote a story about Ruth Law in yesterday's paper, but she and her act are worth many more, and it is without any hesitancy whatever that I give some more space to her sensational feat, which is literally sweeping thousands daily and nightly to the fair. Her husband-didn't you know, that she was married? Yes, there is a man on the ground when she is in the air, and a very human kind of fellow. He dropped in to tell me Wednesday morning that the picture used in connection with my story was taken of his wife just before she started on her trip from New York to Chicago, and that the machine she is using here is the one she used in that flight. She told me that Mr. Curtiss told her that it was good only for short trips of 100 miles. "But," she added, "I broke the world's record in it for long distance flying, and as a result I am wearing a diamond badge he gave me." Charley Oliver, that is Ruth Law's husband, said to me, "I don't want Ruth to make any more night flights after she leaves Birmingham, for no one, unless he is familiar with the flying game, has any idea how dangerous it is to make an ascension in the dark. It is tremendously spectacular, but it is also tremendously dangerous. Very few knew it, but she came near having a smashup Tuesday night, and nothing but her nerves of steel and absolute confidence in her ability to handle the machine kept her from having a serious mishap. DANGER OF EXPLOSION "She has worked the last two days with a new motor, which means that it has not been broken in well, and I am a bit nervous every time she goes up, for it is so high-powered that there is danger of it exploding in the air. Then the variety of machine she is using is unusually hazardous on account of the heavy engine being at her back, which means that in a smashup it is bound to crush the life out of her. The regulation machine now used is very much safer, but they are so rigid that it is impossible to do stunts in them and that is what the people want to see" She was all excitement Wednesday afternoon over the race she going to have with Ivan W. Isinger, the fearless driver who will seek to beat her in a mile race on Friday afternoon at 2:30 in his Stutz racer. It will be for a purse of $250 and she is anxious to annex it for pin money, but she wants to win the loving cup for a keepsake. She says she is going to fly low and fast and that she will make him show speed or she will show him her heels. There is a great deal of interest in the this race among the show people on the grounds. I was standing in the field with her a little before she started her flight Wednesday afternoon, and "Buster" Brown said to her, "Miss Ruth, as you come down the track before the grandstand, swing low enough to blow my hat off." "All right," she replied, "I will be sure to do it." True to her [promise she came swooping down and] [[article cuts off]] [[image 2]] [[caption]]Ruth Law, Ivan Isinger and the car he will drive Friday afternoon when he will race Miss Law in her airplane around the fairgrounds track.[[\caption]] little boys, James, aged 11, and Samuel, 10, had gone to the fair on Saturday all by themselves to see her fly, but that Samuel, the younger, had wept bitterly because someone of the neighbor boys told him the next day that "Ruth Law had offered $50 to anyone who would go up with her." He went racing home to tell his mother how he had lost $50, for, between sobs, he said: "Mamma, I would have gone up with her if I had only known about it." The Rotarians were out in force and had dinner on the ground and were much in evidence when the birdwoman was in the air. Every one of them voted her wonderful. Joe Rosenberger was the only one to kick. He was overhead to say that it was" a living shame the fair was perpetrating, for they were giving a fellow too much for his money." He said it in fun, but it is a truth, it is worth any man's dollar to see the world's greatest woman aviator fly. Mr. Caruthers, her manager, tells me that he has managed a number of the famous aviators, including Lincoln Beachy, the man who did not know what fear was, but that Ruth Law was the most daring and graceful flyer that the world has ever seen. What gave point to his remarks was that she was over 3000 feet above our heads making loop after loop as if she were having the time of her life, and in no more danger than if she were turning handsprings on the ground. As she came spiraling down and lit as easy as if she was stepping out of her bed, he exclaimed: "Don't she beat the world?" PUTS ON NO AIRS "Another thing about her," he said, "is her good nature and friendliness. Every helper and man and woman on the grounds who comes in contact with her [[are Ruth Law 'fans.' I have had much]] [[column text is cutoff]] three months' experience in France, where she got her famous French police dog that she gets so much pleasure out of. She was overjoyed at getting a tryout in one of the sure enough high-speed war airplanes. "I opened it wide," she said, "and it gave such a dart forward that for a few moments I could hardly catch my breath and no wonder, for I happened to look at the little instrument [[?]] the pace and I was making 130 miles an hour. I hope yet to have such a machine and fly in the interest of Uncle Sam." But she was all excited over the race she was going to have on Friday. --- [[center column]] THOUSANDS AWE STRICKEN AT FEATS IN AIR CIRCUS --- Thousands held their breath at the fair grounds Monday when Ruth Law, intrepid flyer in her airplane performed feats in the sky never before seen in this part of Missouri. From the moment the airplane, piloted by Lieutenant Verne Treat appeared until it was lost to sight, again the crowd understood why Ruth Law is called the greatest aviatrix in the universe. Lieutenant Treat coursed the machine so as to give the crowd in the grand stand a chance to see her perform her amazing stunts. Meanwhile Ruth Law was uncorking any number of thrillers that brought vociferations from the multitude. The climax of her entire demonstration was when she stood on the top wing of the plane while it looped the loop twice. The circus in the afternoon opened with a special event, staged for the first time in the state of Missouri. After mounting to a height of 2000 feet in an airplane, piloted by Lieutenant Treat, Sergeant Jas. Cope of New York clambered from the cockpit, unfastened a parachute and jumped from the side of the plane. The boy and parachute dropped for several feet before the huge umbrella opened, and was driven by a wind from the east toward the grand stand. Directly to the race track the parachute daredevil descended, and the throngs in the amphitheatre held their breath as it seemed he was going into a fence. With a twist of his body he threw the parachute forward, and guided it toward the amphitheatre where it alighted directly in front of the vast throng. One of the most hazardous and difficult feats of aviation was the change from a racing car, driven by Cliff Woodbury, to an airplane, driven by Lieutenant Verne Treat, made by Louis James, the 18 year old daredevil of Chicago. The same hearts of those who witnessed the above performance of the drop from the plane, forgot how to beat for several seconds when the Chicago youth changed from a racing car, traveling faster than 60 miles an hour, to an airplane by means of a rope ladder than dangled from the plane and appeared almost impossible to grasp. The change from auto to airplane was not the only thriller in the James performance. High in the air he made those below believe he had lost his balance and was dropping into space. From the end of the plane James fell quite a distance before spectators knew he was to be caught by a cable. He also hung on a rope ladder by his knees and did other great stunts. He hung suspended by one hand, then one leg, with arms waving to the crowd below. James felt right at home on the wings of the ship [[Right column]] Big Crowds Thrilled By Great Auto Races And Daring Ruth Law War Veterans Two-Day Meeting at Delorimier Park a Splendid Sucess from Every Angle - Big Crowds Were Present on Both Days The biggest sporting event pulled off in Montreal in recent years was the week-end automobile and aviation meeting held at Delorimier Park under the auspices of the Great War Veterans' Association of Canada. From both a sporting and financial standpoint, the meeting was an entire success. Over ten thousand people witnessed the racing on the two days, and saw thrilling races fought out on the track, and daring performances in the air by Ruth Law in her Curtiss biplane. The War Veterans netted a tidy sum, upwards of $2,000, as a result of the meeting, crowning their first venture into sporting activities of this kind with great success. Secretary Victor Brown and his committee worked untiringly, and the result was a well-conducted show. If the Veterans again attempt venture into sport circles, it is an assured fact that they will have the confident support of the public. DRIVER THROUGH FENCE. One accident marked the automobile racing, late yesterday afternoon. "Red" D'Alene was driving a Marquette-Buick in the final heat of the Victory handicap, and was racing in third position. Rounding the turn into the back-stretch, he missed his way in the clouds of dust thrown up by drivers in front of him, and shooting to the outside edge of the track, tore into the low fence. There was a crash and a grinding smash as the big black car ripped through, with huge splinters of fence shooting high into the air above the clouds of dust. When it had cleared away, D'Alene was observed to be walking unconcernedly around, examining the damages to his mount, which were numerous. The radiator had been torn to pieces, the exhaust pipe battered out of shape, and the frame badly sprung. D'Alene had only a few scratches to show for his experience. If he had gone a few inches farther out, he would have dropped into a three-foot ditch, possibly with disastrous consequences. The race was resumed later, and Gaston Chevrolet won the final heat by inches only from Jerry Wonderlich Disbrow's Special was not working well, and he was a poor third. During the afternoon Disbrow piloted the big Christie car, a 800-horse power front drive racer, around a lap. He made it in 33 seconds, holding the car to the course with some difficulty. --- DID FINE WORK AT VERTANS' MEET [[image 3]] [[caption]]TROOPER V. R. BROWN Secretary of the Great War Veterans Association, who made a fine success of the two-day automobile race meet at Delorimier Park on behalf of his organization. It was the finest sporting event pulled off here in a long time.[[\caption]] --- RUTH LAW POPULAR Ruth Law, the girl flyer, made a hit with the crowds and was given great ovations on both days. She gave a thrilling exhibition in her Curtiss bi-plane, looping the loop, flying upside down and doing other spectacular turns. Miss Law defeated both Chevrolet and Disbrow in match races, winning by narrow margins on both days. Chevrolet twice defeated Disbrow in matches for the dirt track championship, Wonderlich, driving a Simplex, made the fastest time in the one-lap speed trials. Owing to the poor condition of the track, no records were approached, Wonderlich's 35 2-5 being the fastest lap. The track was heavy with sand dust, and the going was rough in spots. --- A morning paper which says that the autos didn't travel very fast, adds that the five-mile race was run in three minutes, 32 seconds, which ought to be fast enough to suit almost any speed bug, as it would constitute a world's record. --- The grounds were splendidly policed by men from the Military Police. The crowd was kept well in hand, the fences were free from spectators, and when the accident took place, instead of there being the usual stampede, not a single individual crossed the track. [[image 4]] --- A Source of Innocent Merriment --- NOW THAT MISS RUTH LAW HAS SHOWN THE WAY [[image 5]]
Transcription Notes:
Part of the article is cut off. A portion of the newspaper is faded beyond reading.
Image 1 - Newspaper photograph of Ruth Law seated on, and Ivan W. Isinger leaning on, her stunt plane
Image 2 - Newspaper photograph of Ruth Law and Ivan W. Isinger standing in front his car and her stunt plane
Image 3 - Newspaper headshot photograph of Trooper V.R. Brown in uniform
Image 4 - photograph of car and airplane racing at track in front of grandstand full of spectators
Image 5 - Line drawing in newspaper, depicting Ruth Law flying her plane. Plane is loaded with parcels, boxes and decorated with ribbons. The image is partially cutoff at the bottom.
