Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-03-03

'eh'eu' out ana out, two new methods of
getting about for which nature offers no
suggestion. 1 mean the skate and the We
loclpede. Why then should he not adapt
10 MS own purposes a mode of locomotion
long familiar being furnished with count
less models ready at hand to copy from?
There is no doubt in the minds of ad-
Vahced thinkers on this subject that flying
man must initiate the birds He will never
get very Iar toward the solution of the
problem by the use of balloons. Obviously.
the hrst thing required is that he should
study the flight of different kinds of feath-
ered creatures. in order that he may ascer-
tain which Of them furnishes the best
model. Naturally the eagle suggests itself.
he is king of the air. But the humble pig
con outstrips him in the sky, as the grey
hound flashing by the mastiff
How would the frigate bird serve as a
model? AS it scars aloft a mile or more
ABOVE the earth, upheld apparently with
out movement of it's pinions, 1t seems
the beau ideal of a flyer. Yet there are
circumstances under which it cannot rise
from the ground, requiring much exertion
ana plenty of space to make a start. The
sparrow is. perhaps, the most perfect flyer.
AS to speed, he outstrips the pigeon; as to
power, he can rise vertically. to considera-
bic heights; as to journeys, he equals other
birds. But his feats of volitation are ac-
complished by an expenditure of energy
and skill which man cannot reproduce
1t is evident that man must initiate the
large soaring birds, which have moderate
strength in proportion to their size A suit
able type is the vulture. which floats aloft
upon the wind without effort. He sails and
spends no force, using the breezes instead
\
how to alight without danger-two things
which are difficulties to some other large
birds. II you have ever seen a great vui-
ture in full flight, you may well have been
struck with the possibility that its mode
OF locomotion might be adapted by man to
his own use.
How Fast Birds Fly.
Birds are sustained ~ the winds in just
the same manner as the kites which boys
fly are held up in the air. 1t is a rather
curious fact that those feathered creatures
which have small wings are the most rapid.
Every sportsman knows the astonishing
speed OF ducks and looms and the slowness
OF herons, iapwnSs and barn Owls. by COM
paring the progress OF birds with mat of
railway trains, II has been determined that
the large sailing bros IN null hight through
Space Get over ABOUT thirty seven miles an
hour. Thus II may be reasonably inferred
that flying man will attain a speed OF at
least mile in two minutes. bird may
fly with the wind or tack against ii. In
the former case its velocity may reach 100
miles an hour.
''One difficulty to be overcome by flying
man is that OF getting start Sailing
birds, especially the very large kinds, find
this troublesome matter. A tawny vul-
ture cannot rise twenty yards on a start
of forty-five degrees; he cannot rise ten
yards vertically. So this king of soarerS
may be Kept a prisoner without
a roof, provided the sides walls are
twenty yards high and twenty yards apart.
The rapid-fying swift. so perfectly at home
in the air, cinnot rise vertically six feet
1t is securely Gagged in large box without
a cover; and yet, If any creature is thor
oughly equipped for flight, it is he. The
same is true of the large sea birds. a frig
ate bird is helpless without a big space in
which TO perform its evolutions.
The birds which have most trouble in
getting a start the large water BIRDS
which, in setting of from water or ground
are compelled to run long distance using
both feet and wings. in order to gain the
speed required for support. The big vul-
lures, if on the ground, likewise get their
start by running. the running steps merg-
ing into a series of leaps, which continue
as long as their feet touch the ground
Birds of prey start from. the ground by a
leap measuring yard. When they are
on the perch, being always at great heights
they simply launch themselves into space
and spread their wings open to get under
full motion. The first rule in aerial voli-
tation is that success in flight is based upon
speed.
Obstacles in the Way.
ITO come safely to a stop will be another
difficulty for flying man. That is always
a serious business for a large and heavy
bird. The big bird stops himself by oppos-
ing his wings and body to the wind, which
thus brings him to a pause. If there is no
wind he avoids a jar by gliding upward at
steep slant, thus opposing gravity to
speed. BY such maneuvers the eagle is
er abled to alight with incredible lightness
and without shock. This will have to be
carefully studied when man comes to ex-
pertinent seriously with aerial apparatus
He may add lot of embellishments such
as elastic nets, beds of straw and watery
beds for floating machines.
THE vulture solves the problem of re-
manning in the air with the least expendi-
ture of force. 1t may be said that he flies
or rather scars with the greatest science
In order to get living he must rise to
great height to gain large field of observa-
ton, and must remain aloft for long time
without fatigue. On windy day he can
actually leave his perch in the morning
travel many leagues, spend the whole day
in the air and get back to his perch at
night without a single beat of his wings
He Is Sailer par excellence. 1t is not
true. as commonly averred. that he scents
the carcass from affair." He is not able to
find tainted meat that is hidden from view
his sense of smell not being well developed
In fact, he will pass close to 1t without
finding the meal
"Nultures discover their prey by the ex-
ercise of a vision more powerful than is
possessed by any other animal They may
be said to establish a complete network of
observation all over the earth. When one
of them spies a meal, others see him start
for 1t and they follow. Thus they assem-
bic very rapidly. 1t is more than likely
that they sometimes go to sleep on the
wing-at all events that they doze. as a
horse does while standing. though the lat
ter animal retains sufficient control over
his muscles to preserve the eQuipoise on
his four legs.
Some naturalists have advanced most
curious explanations of bird fight, especial
ly Of soaring or sailing flight. They have
tried to show that the air contained in the
hollow bones of birds makes them light.
Such notions are absurd. Birds weigh as
much for bulk as terrestrial animals Their
of mammals and of fishes Deprived of
their feathers they sink in water
M. Mouillard, the French savant has
made some interesting experiments by al
tering the wings of various living birds
Some of the wings he clipped short; others
he heightened by piecing them out with the
long primary feathers from the wings of
birds of prey. fastened on with glue The
birds thus treated behaved very curiously
They would start off to fly in their usual
manner, but, finding that their wings were
no longer adapted to that method they
would find themselves obliged to fiv like
birds of the type which they had been
made to resemble. For example, a kestrel