The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1892-11-09
EXPERT KITE FLYING.
Four Chinese Show Their Skill Near the
Washington Monument.

Yesterday afternoon there were four
Cinnamon down in the monument
grounds evidently out for frolic, and
for about an hour they were the CEN
ter of wondering crowd of Ameri-
cans who enjoyed the most fantastic
piece of kite flying that it is often the
lot of good Yankee citizen to see.
Two Of the Celestials were attired in
faultless tailor-made clothes, but the
other two still clung to the flowing
costume of the east, though their light
silk tunics and embroidered shoes
we're of richer material than one often
sees aside from the members of the le-
cation. Their kite was of the famous
dragon pattern, and from the ground
looked the exact counterpart of a huge
red and white lizard twenty or thirty
feet long, with a staring head, blue
whiskers, and waving tail of flaming
red cloth that lashed about in an ex-
cited way.
The monster cut all sorts of strange
antics. For while it would lie still,
straight and rigid except for the cease
less movement of the red tail. Then
it would begin to undulate like great
water snake, and darting about the sky
strain at its tether, threatening to
crawl down the chimney of the bureau
of engraving and printing, and then,
changing its mind, mount away
heavenward again with snaky quiveI
throughout its whole length.
The little Chinaman in lilac silk
shirt, who was engineering the ground
end of the kite string, seemed to have
some occult understanding with his
strange pet. in virtue of which it obey
ed his slightest motion. A slight turn
of his slender brown wrist would SEND
the creature mounting upward into
space, and at a sweep of his arm il
would 90 through a whole aerial cir
Gus act. 1t pulled like demon, too
and after capering around on his feet
with it for half an hour in the stiff
breeze, it's master was glad enough t6
sit down on the big ball of string OF
| the ground and let his arm rest.
But the most remarkable part of tht
performance came when one of the
kite-fyers produced a light bamboo
| frame covered with rice paper whicl
unfolded in the shape of butterfly.
pack of tirecrackers was attached to it
| and when it was hung on the string O
Gn0 k1G0 III CIdNIeu SI0stulIJ uPWdIN
till within few feet of the dragon
head, when the crackers went off, ant
the framework folded up and slid bacl
down the string.
When finally tired of their sport tht
orientals hauled in the monster, ant
as it lay on the ground its construc
ton could be clearly noted. 1t had ;
grotesque face with gaping moutl
and windmill eyes that blinked with
rotary motion. The body was mad
up of twenty or thirty of the lightes
discs of rice paper, varying from tel
to three inches in diameter an
stretched on delicate bamboo hoop
and hitched tandem a foot or NOR
apart The whole was wonderful
light, but when extended presented
surface to the air that made it foa
like a bird.
Its owners said that this was nc
their feast of kites. That came O
Sept. 9, and there would be probabl
many more dragons aloft in the sky
They were out merely for good time
and, as one of them remarked with
grin, "This mlakee lil'e fun, amy
| hoW."- W0SbipQtOn Post.