New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1870-03-27

Honor and shame from no cOndltlon rise;
Act well your part-there all the honor
lies."
Written for the New Orleans Republican,
KITE-FLYING.
A School Boy Seeks Knowledge Under
Difficulties.
EDITOR REPUBLICAN,:
lam little boy and don't know nothing.
I mean by that to say that don't know
how to make good kite, one that will fly
or stand all by itself. have tried the four
cornered, the six cornered and bow kite;
but can't make them fly or stand alone in
the air; they always have too much tail or
not tail enough. have put on and taken
off lots of paper, sticks, stones and weeds,
but can't get the tail right. If get the
tail right, Then the hanging is wrong; if the
hanging is right, then ma says that it must
| be that the proportions of the kite are
| wrong.
My big brother, Bob, wont help me one
bit. Bob used to be a good fellow; but ever
since Pa gave him that little, old, broken
down spawned pony, Bob has been putting
on airs; he carries little rattan cane, takes
stuff out of a bottle and rubs il over the
| red furze that is trying to break out on his
upper lips, takes girls older and bigger than
himself. and who know more than what he
knows, to the matinees, and wont even look
at my flyers, or rather look at my flyers that
wont fly worth a cent.
Dirty Foot Johnny, boy bigger nor what
T NM opd uho liyau ovar tho uav hos a
| frst-rate flyer, that stands alone, and
he made it all by himself. Well, l
gave Johnny six marbles, two fsh.hooks
and my old Barlow knife to make me
a kite, that was to be just as good as his'n.
and I furnished the sucks, the paper and
| the paste, too. But after he had finished it,
| it just wouldn't fly at all. but darted down
on to the ground and broke all to pieces.
| believe that he botched it just on purpose,
because I've got more string than what he
has got, and he was afraid that my kite
| would fly big her than his'I, and then he
wouldn't give me back my marbles, my fish
| hooks, nor my knife, and when told Bob
about it Bob just laughed, and called me a
| silly little fool.
At the dinner table the other day. l asked
| Pa how to make kite, and he told me to
go down on Carondelet street, where l
would find great many gentlemen engaged
| in the kiting business, and perhaps | might
| find out all about it. So went down on
| that street, but did not see any kite stores.
Just as I turned to go back home, feeling
pretty bad, heard one gentleman say to
another, Well | that Newmattock stock is
Just going kitlng, it will reach two hundred
yet. Two hundred feet high suppose he
meant. No! said the other, it has too
much tail for that, and it is not well
hung either. Not tail enough you mean,
and as to the hanging it is hung just
right. Well! well! said the first gentle
man, we will see. Well, we'll, you acM see,
replied the other, then they bowed to each
other and parted on the curb-stone. want
ed to ask them ali about the Newmattock
stock kite, but then was only little boy,
and only wanted a little kite, and they were
talking about a big kite for men. T hese
gentlemen never smiled once whilst talking
about their NewmattockIkite, and their faces
were all covered with deep wrinkles, and
their hair and whiskers were quite grey.
Yet don't believe that they were so very
old. 1 spect that they have played too
hard, and look old too soon; but they did
not look as though they liked fun one bit !;
but perhaps they were what Pa calls 'gay
old boys" and when they get OFF to them
selves 1 spect that they fly their kites and
plump marbles for keeps, and try to cheat
eacn other just as Dirty Foot cheated me, but
hope not.
hav'nt told Pa or Bob about going down
to Carondelet street, and 1 am not going to
do so, either, as now suspect that they
were only teazing me but I'll just
bet that they can't make good standing
kite, smart as they think themselves to be.
Well, 1 can beat Pa and Bob both fishing,
anyhow, and don't put any nasty medicine
on my hook, or spit on it. either, and l will
tell you all about it, Mr.. Editor. if you will
only help me out in this kite business.
The other day got hold of an old musty
copy of the Knackerbocker magazine, printed
ever SO many years ago, and edited by
Willis Gaylord Clarke. Now, Mr. Clarke
talks great deal about kites; says that he Is
yet boy upon that subject; describes the
fun he has in hiding himself away up in the
| steeple of an old church in the great city of
New York, and letting his kite fly to the
wind; says that the Chinese are the most
| ingenious people in the world in the manu-.
| facture of kites; that they make them in the
| shape offlowers birds, serpents, ETC., but MIR.
| Clarke does not tell a fellow how to make
| kite. l asked Ma who this Willis Gaylord
Clarke was, and che told me that he was a
| distinguished literary character, and an
amiable, accomplished gentleman, whatever
| that may mean. l am sure that he was q
frst.rate fellow, and if he was only alive
now, just know that he would tell me all
about kite making. l went to the city
library not long since in search of informa-
ton upon the subject of kite making. After
some time found copy of Kiteleg's Table
Talk, but there was not one word in it about
kites. There was some other books there
that looked as though they might tell fell
low about it; but then they were ell locked
up in their cases, and Ma says that little
boys must not be troublesome. Now when
I get to be rich man and give to the city a
large library, wont have book in it put
under lock and key, and wont have the
books in an old, musty, dusty, gloomy room,
but everything shall be clean, bright and
cheerful, and free to little boys and girls,
| citizens and strangers.
Now, Mr.. Editor, if you will just tell us
boys how to make iam-up, first rate kites.
you shall have a great. big, long string OF
fresh perch for your breakfast.
| Yours, truly, DICK.