BEATRICE, GAGE COUNTY, FIRST FREIGHT BY AIR.

A couple of hundred people gathered at the field a mile east of the city Thursday morning to see the arrival of the Royal Air Truck and the delivery by parachute of a consignment of portable typewriters to R. R. Roszell.

The big machine hove in sight from the southeast at about a quarter past eleven and was soon overhead and circling about looking over the grounds and the crowd. The pilot located the landing field by the crowd and the white sheet Mr. Roszell had staked to the ground and in a few minutes flew on west and maneuvered over Beatrice awhile, then came back to the Lenhart farm and after circling about a few seconds, the trap door in the bottom of the plane was opened and the box of typewriters with parachute attached was dropped while the airplane was directly over Lenhart's house. The wind was in the west and carried the parachute a few rods east, alighting & gently on the ground between the two lines of cars and directly behind Mr. Roszell's automobile. The landing was as gentle as that of a feather and the parachute did not pull the box an inch after they alighted. The crowd rushed to exam-It ine the box and the parachute. The latter was made of medium weight white muslin and the cords were of white 1-8th inch fish cord joined at the bottom to a galvanized ring a foot in diameter. This was fastened to the woven straps around the box by halter snaps. The wooden box containing the three typewriters was about two feet square. Inside were of three Royal portable typewriters in their cases and paper coverings, but a with no other packing except an extra crating to keep them away from the outer box. Mr. Roszell opened the box on the spot to satisfy the crowd that no damage was done to al the contents by the novel manner of delivery. One machine was unwrapped and K. C. Roche, editor of the Beatrice News, tried it out and found a it to be in perfect working order, while Bob Stratford took moving pictures of the scene with the crowd in the background. The big triple-motored Fokker (sic) monoplane was an impressive sight. It looked like a giant hen with outstretched wings and the two extra motors like chicks under her wings. It was painted gray and orange with black lettering on the body, labeling it Royal Air Truck, Royal Typewriter Company. The pilot waved goodbye to the crowd when he headed north for Lincoln and Omaha for further deliveries and was given a parting cheer. The cars and the crowd was kept in order by Frank Lenhart and Sheriff Sailing so there was no confusion and no one was hurt. The thing went off as calmly as a pink tea. And thus came to Beatrice the first delivery of freight by airplane.