The evening times., 1895-12-07
TRIED the BALLOON KITE.
Unique Experiment in Progress
at the Weather Bureau.
REGISTER AERIAL CHANGES
Mr.. Potter Is the IDvcntor-It Re-
srmblcs Neither a Balloon Nor a
Kite-TriaI Trip Yesterday Does
Not Attain Desired Altitude of Two
Miles,

People in the neighbor hood Of the
Weather Bureau buildings just before noon
yesterday, IL they happened to look sky
ward, sa " a huge object outlined against
the azure dome.
If they were superstiiious, or didn't think,
may be they were scared and thought 1t
was an aerial nian-of- war come from some
-unfriendly nation, OF else some huge, wing
less, tailless bird on evil bent, hOverinG
over Washington because Congress had
reassembled. ,E,---,,,..
Those who at least pretended to be not
afraid looked close and saw that IL was
neither ship nor bird, but some object OF
parallelopipe,l form and unquestionable
ability to stay at high altitude. A string
reached from the object to group of
officials and cxperimentcrs at the Weather
Bureau. 80,
1t was a kite-balloon. Mr.. Potter made
il and they were trying the device. Every
body about the bureau seemed pleased yes
tcrday with the behavior OF the kite
and now they will go experimenting some
more.
- CHIEF MOORE EXPLAINS IT.
what we are after, as has been stated
frequently BEFORE said Mr.. More, the
new chief of the Weather Bureau, 10 the
reporter uf The Times, is a kite balloon
that we can send 10 an altitude uf two
miles. Then, We think, We can DO snine
good. There has been too much talk and
not enough work. There was nothing par
ticularly new about this last experiment.,
bat its result was encouraging. There are
three men now at work trying to master
the sitnation-a sort OF emulation, that
viii most likely end in the invention.
I'VE have succeeded in getting a kite
balloon up about. 1 800 feet. That, of
course. lacks much uf two miles. what we
want TO be able Ia do is 10 find the rondt-
tions uf the air at that height and find
them at once. Balloons have gone that
high, but when you send n balloon up
yod never know when YOU viii get II back.
If you tie 1t, IL will keep the string taut
and come 4, the ground. What we want
is some object we can pm right In when the
instruments have registered their maxi
mum or minimum records.
The Kites seem to be- the only practical
agencies, and we have been experimenting
with them for q considerable time. We
did not send any instruments up with that
one YESTERDAY, and. In fact, have not sent
them up at all yet, but We anticipate no
trouble On that score II we can get them to
fly. The Instruments can be tied on by
strings or fastened inside, possibly"
KITES PECULIAR CONSTRUCTION.
The kite made by Mr.. Potter and flown
yesterday is irreconciiable tn the idea of
the kite used by the schon!buy. On the
other hand, IL resembles balloon about as
much asa brick house look silk n fnenagerie.
The object is six feet hng, four feet
wide and two feet high. When flying under
ordinary conditions the apparatus inclines
from a huriznDtal plane to an angle OF
about ten degrees.
The skeleton ,,t the kite is made of light
wodd. Entirely around the frame work at
either end Is wrapped muslin that extends
on either side one-tird of the length OF
the frame. The central third Is left un-
covered un all sides.
The ends are left without covering too.
Theb idea of its appearance can be gotten
from comparing ii to two muslin covered
boxes, both of the same size, aud each OF
which, after having the ends knocked out,
is set beside the other with the ends facing,
and then after moving the two boxes apart
the distance OF the length OF either one of
them, they are connected at each OF the four
corners by delicate wooden stats.
Much care has to be exercised in starting
the kite that is raised in the same manner
as other kites. The action of the air
against these muslin planes, altogether
eight in number, it will be seen, keeps the
object up aud in motion.
The string used yesterday limited the
kite to an altitude of 500 feet. 1t would
gone higher had 1t been given
an opportunity. II would not have rea ched
anything near the height the experimenters
are working for, however, and was simply
an incentive for them to continue their ef-
forts. As one gentleman remarked, the
scientists have more hope of the success
of the kite than others have rea son to have
of the success of air ships.