Fares in Advance

Up to last week five states were without regular airmail or passenger service: West Virginia, Rhode Island, Delaware, New Hampshire and Vermont. Last week New Hampshire and Vermont were hoisted out of the groundling class by a curious procedure.

Amelia Earhart Putnam and Paul Collins, who formerly helped operate Ludington Lines between New York and Washington, made a deal last August with Boston & Maine Railroad. The railroad opened an airline between Boston, Portland and Bangor, Me., hired Mrs. Putnam and Mr. Collins to run it for them as National Airways Inc. The company thrived well enough to interest the neighboring Maine Central Railroad and Central Vermont Railway which run into New Hampshire and Vermont. The difficulty of surface travel made air service logical, but would there be enough patronage? National Airways hit upon a simple scheme. Let local boosters prove the public demand by selling 1,000 tickets in advance. No tickets, no airline. Last week the 1,000th ticket was sold, airplanes flew between Boston, Concord, White River, Vt., Montpelier and Barre, Vt.

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