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SAW THE AIRSHIP

The Mysterious Aerial Wonder Visits This City

Reports from time to time have come from various cities and towns in Kansas and Nebraska alleging that a mysterious aerial body, commonly supposed to have been an airship, had been seen. These reports have been scoffed at and put down as illusions when strong proof was offered in support of these statements.

Tuesday evening, Mr. and Mrs. William Walker, accompanied by their little daughter, Laurene, spent the evening with Mr. and Mrs. P. I. Lancaster at their residence in east Goodland. At 10:30 o'clock, while on their way home, Laurene became suddenly frightened at something she saw in the sky and directed her parents' attention toward it. About a quarter of a mile above them, they saw a brilliant light moving rapidly westward. At times, the light would fade away and then flash up as brilliant as ever, as though it were a searchlight turning toward them and then away. The night was very dark, a drizzling rain falling at the time, which precludes the possibility that the light could have been an astral body. The outline of the supposed airship could only be partially seen owing to the darkness of the night and the failure of the light to reflect on its frame. The light seen was probably used by the airship as a headlight and appeared segregated as would a locomotive headlight under similar circumstances. Gradually, the light died away in the distance and was seen no more. The veracity of Mr. and Mrs. Walker is beyond question in every particular, and those who have heard their description cannot but believe that it was an airship they saw.

In Tuesday morning's Omaha Bee, the following appears:

The mysterious "airship" is once more in evidence, and scores of people who were out last night at 9:30 assert positively that they saw the mechanical bird as it floated over the city in a direction from northwest to southeast. A carload of Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben, who were out to the Den last night, swear positively that they saw the ship as they were returning to the city about 9:30. A motorman on the Sherman Avenue streetcar line gives the best description of the ship. He got his first view of the curiosity near Sherman Avenue and Binney streets. He was so surprised that he stopped his motor and rang his bell for the conductor to come forward. They both stood on the front platform and assert that they secured a good view of the mysterious stranger.

According to the motorman's description, the ship was about 600 feet in the air and was almost directly over the car when he first discovered it. It appeared in the gloom to be about 90 feet in length and was elliptical in form. Forward and aft on the sides were large projections which seemed to be large wings, and upon the forward end, there was a bright light, which was evidently used as a headlight. Upon the rear, a red lantern was carried. The ship, for a few seconds, appeared to slow down and was almost stationary in the air and then, gathering speed, once more started off at a rapid gait.