AVIATION - René QUINTON (1866-1925, biologist and physiologi - Lot 284

AVIATION - René QUINTON (1866-1925, biologist and physiologist, passionate about early aviation, founded the "Ligue Nationale Aérienne" and created the world's first flying school) / Autograph letter signed, 2 p in-4, "Ligue Nationale Aérienne" letterhead, Paris, May 5, 1912, to a friend, on the subject of the petition by Bazin, "a fine figure and a man of great worth" (this is an extraordinary aviation pioneer: Albert Bazin, 1854-1923, a well-traveled merchant, was fascinated by birds, and his reading of Mouillard's book on ornithology applied to aviation, back in 1882, so enthused him that he worked with Marey, the initiator of cinema, on the decomposition of bird flight, becoming a mad inventor who worked solely on the basis of his observations of birds; Quinton's correspondent asked him to support Bazin's project, but "his petition was unfortunately rejected. On the other hand, Quinton, who knows Bazin and his obsessions well, asserts that "the question of gliding interests me particularly, which tells you how much I agree with Bazin, but I know that any approach to Colonel Hischauer would be pointless", "We should be able to give Bazin 150,000 francs for initial research. Boutre (n.b.: the engineer and builder Adolphe Boutre) has just spent 250,000 fr on his stabilizer, which is giving perfect results and which I'm killing myself to get adopted" - "It's nothing to invent, the trick is to apply. As I often say, thinking of my own work: it's easier to beat death than the living" - A fine piece of aviation history.