The morning times., 1897-02-19
THE WAY TO FLY

ST. Paul. Mimi, Feb. 18-AIbin Nelson
OF this city. aged thirty-two, a Swedish
aeronaut. was much perturbed by the pub
lished announcement that Leonard Claw
SOL and Adam Beck OF San Francisco had
inv ented a flying machine that would fly
II have not filed caveat for patent"
said Nelson. ''but filed formal affidavit
in blue print with an attorney some weeks
ago and have in this way good evidence
to protect myself against any other appli
cant. Those San Francisco fellows have
my principle. but / discovered it first"
1t was while experimenting with hot air
balloons in this city that Nelson saw the
great light he now boasts OF. He became
convinced that while the usual parachute
was umbrella shaped. flat parachute
would permit pc erfectly safe descent from
upper air This flat parachute need not be
more than twenty feet wide. and he
reasoned: IF a wide parachute offers such
resistance that | would sink gradually,
say one foot Sc cond. wouldn't it be pos
sible to push upward d folded parachute
high above the first parachute and bring
it down again so fast. say two feet a
second. that it would owe rcome the falling
tendency and keep me suspended at about
the same level? Now. If make each par
achute in a Sc rieS of shutters. like a wooden
window blind. then when the shutters
arethrust pwardthe will open downward.
But they canhe arranged so that they win
not open entirely, and will all be inclined
partly To one side. Thus, when they are
pulled down again. the uprushing air will
press against the half-open Stats, which will
close absolutely, giving the parachute a
strong purchase against the air in coming
down" Thus thinking, Mr. Nelson sud
denly observed that, when the parachute
was forced upward and the air rushed down
between the half-open Stats, the current
should be forced to one side. Inevitably, as
a ship guided by its rudder, the parachute
would be moved upward and to the other
side, as il climbing a Mill. II have dis
covered how to fly" he inwardly ex-
claimed. He had at least observed the
aeroplane principle on which would-be nav
igatOrs OF the air are now erecting their
most promising scientific plans. So Mr.
Nelson decided that If two series of wings
two paraciutes were attached by a crank
To central axis worked by any motor in
such manner that one parachute, or series
OF broad cloth Stats, would be below when
the other parachute OF similar coDstruc-
ton was above, the ascending one opening
its Stats and offering little resistance to
the air, the descending one closing its
Stats and coming down quickly enough TO
offset the gradual decline of the whole
combination parachute then the machine
would gradually rise. II the motion was
somewhat relaxed, the machine would
remain stationary. If the motion ceased, or
was almost arrested, the machine would
descend steadily and safely. A broad rud
der beneath and at one side. like fishs
tail, would direct the contrivance to all
points OF the compass, and, by turning the
stats toward any destination, progress
could be made thereto upward or on a
level
The inventor illustrated his point by
calling attention 10 the manner in which
a bird flies, which is on the same iden-
tical principle. The wing said he,
moves up and down in flying. The pin
ions however, are always separated if
the wing rises, and they ascend, not YER
tically, but at an angle inclined toward
the birds head-that is, the direction he
wants 10 go. When the wing comes down
the pinlOnS close upon one another like
the Stats OF a shutter. The same general
incline is maintained, though, and the
bird moves upward and forward. When
he wants to remain at the same level he
flies slower and the weight of his body
balances the force OF the wing movement
In descepding he needs merely to direct
his course. His tail is the ludder and is
assisted by the oar movement of his
wings"