AERONAUTICS: Successful Failure

According to Postmaster General New, the first month's operation of the New York-San Francisco night mail has involved heavy losses; not in ships or mail but in expense as balanced by special revenue—this, in spite of an intensive and nationwide campaign to secure patronage on an adequate scale. The Postmaster General hopes for improvement. If six months' trial shows none, business men may lose the service.

On the physical side of operations, success is remarkable. In the first 31 days of the service 173,910 miles were flown. In spite of cloudbursts, tornados and severe electric storms, average westbound time of 39 hrs. 49 min. and eastbound time of 36 hrs. 21 min. were maintained. The poorest air mail schedule was 30 hours faster than that of the best rail schedule.