Kite
a common aerial toy, a light flying machine. The kite consists usually of a light frame of wood covered with paper. The kite rises with the wind, and is held in tether by means of a long, light cord. A tail is attached to one end of the kite to steady its movements. The name was suggested possibly by the fancied resemblance between the movements of a kite and those of the bird of that name. Kite flying is an amusement of boys in Europe and America. In Japan, and to a less extent in China, it is a national pastime of men. In these countries competitive flying, with more or less elaborate kites, excites as much interest as horse racing in English-speaking countries.
Of late the construction of kites has attracted the serious attention of scientific men. In 1895 Captain Baden-Powell of England arranged a series of five kites by means of which he was able to raise a weight of 150 pounds 100 feet in the air. Others have succeeded quite as well in raising weights with kites. In 1897 Mr. W. A. Eddy, a Boston operator, sent up a series of nine kites attached to piano wire. They attained an elevation of 5,509 feet and remained up fifteen hours. A string of nine kites, having a surface in all of 170 square feet was sent up to a height of 9,375 feet. Three miles of piano wire were used. Kites are said to have been sent up to a height of four miles. At that height, the air is rarer, but the wind blows faster, so that kites fly as well as they do nearer the surface.
The United States weather bureau has begun to use kites to determine the direction, as well as the moisture and temperature, of the upper currents of air. Special recording instruments have been devised, which are attached to the kites. Mr. Eddy, who has already been mentioned, has also devised a system of cameras which he sends up with a kite and operates by means of a cord, so as to take a complete view of the surrounding country. Military circles are considering the possibility of taking views of an enemy's fortifications by means of kite cameras. The government of Denmark maintains a kite-flying tower--a weather observatory--at Viborg at the extreme northern point of the kingdom. Kites are already in use for signaling purposes. They are transported more easily and are far less cumbersome than balloons.
The picture shows a respectable and prosperous Chinaman beckoning to an aerial monster, which he is apparently coaxing to eat out of his hands. This proves that the camera may be a very plausible and entertaining liar, for the facts in the case are quite otherwise. Indeed, the pig-tailed gentleman is so absolutely master of this tameless denizen of the upper air, that he offered to sell me the dragon outright for $5, the same being a Frankenstein monster of his own creation and well worth the price.
Yes, you've guessed right; it's a paper kite, but such a kite! It is about twelve feet long, and is composed of twenty-six circular frames for bamboo, over which are stretched as many eight-inch circles of silky paper. The upper halves of the discs are painted bright red, the lower halves are white, presenting the appearance of a dragon's belly, and emphasizing the writhing and contortions of the monster. The nose projects from the face on the first disc and the eyes are fixed on pivots so that they whirl in the wind, lending a pleasing animation to otherwise immovable features.
The rigging of fine cords which hold together this twenty-six jointed nightmare is very complicated and requires nice balancing; in fact, a vast amount of patience and skill and full five-days' labor are represented in the fragile toy.
The picture was taken in a vacant lot near "Chinatown" in Los Angeles, California. It is curious to note that the kite flyer is a full grown man who has not taken the trouble to bring any of his youngsters along to provide an excuse for indulging in this juvenile pastime, or, as the Chinese would put it, "to save his face." In Chinatown, you see, the flying of kites is considered a high art.--Charlton Lawrence Edholm, in Popular Mechanics.