The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-09-02
KITES 1T BROAD RIPPLE
SCIENTIFIC FLYING OF LATE BY IN
DIANAPOLIs MEN.
AItitudinOus Photography OF the Ri
dicuIOus CIub-New Varieties of
These Aerial Travellers.

has added 'altitudinous" photography to
its unique list of outdoor interest. Scien-
tidc kites are used for taking views. The
club has a houseboat at Broad Ripple and
many experiments with kites have been
made this summer. If the weather is fair,
kites will be flown and photographs taken
week from next Sunday. Quite an in
teresting set of bird s-eye views of White
river, Broad Ripple Park and vicinity have
already been made. A member of the club,
who is an enthusiast in the new sport,
spoke interestingly of the development of
the new photography.
'That the kite would ever be put to
practical use,' said he, was, up to year
or so ago, as unlocked for as the utility of
the bicycle in the days of the 'bone-shaker.'
The Chinese are generally credited with
the origin of the kite. In that country the
kte-flying is done by men, boys taking no
part in the pastime of their elders except
that of spectators. 1t was the reverse in
this country until recent years and Ameri-
cans were wont to smile broadly at pictures
of grown Cinnamon flying kites Now it
is different. Kite-f1ying is a science. They
are no longer made of old newspapers
stretched on crossed sticks with tail of
coln-cobs attached, as they were when you
and were boys and INDUCED in this
sport
Speaking of the history of kite making,
the Ridiculous enthusiast said: 1.-THE earli-
est on record is that of Archytas, who is
said to have flown a kite about 400 B. G.
During the second century Han Sin, found
er Of the Han dynasty, planned a large kite
to send up and measure the distance to the
palace in order to retaliate on Kas Tsu,
commandant of the armies of Lin Pang,
for Furnishing Chin He. In the sixteenth
century that renowned rObber IShikaWa
Gormon launched o. huge kite one dark
night and nearly succeeded in stealing one
of the gold scales from the great fish sur
mounting the Nagoya castle. For this
sacrilege he was thrown into a caldron of
boiling oil. Another kite famed in Javan-
csc lore was that which VI Shoesetsu used
in surveying the castle OF edo when ne
plotted for the overthrow of the Tokugawa
government in the seventeenth century
The Koreans have a legend describing the
plan adopted four hundred years ago by
one of their famous generals who, when
his soldiers were almost routed on account
of falling stars that happened to follow
defeat, sent up a lantern at night by
means of a kite. AS the light assembled he
pointed it out to them as an omen OF vic
tory, thus restoring courage to his army.
In Korea kite flying might be termed
KITE nying, the silk flying strings being
dipped in glue, then covered with crushed
glass. The fiierS endeavor by skillful ma
neuvering to cross strings and by pulling
taut sever their oppoennt's flying string
The MalayS nave long been noted IOf Juelf
ability in designing kites, the steady winds
of that peninsula being remarkably well
adapted. for that pursuit. The Sultan of
fair fifteen varieties of Malay kites.
Coming down toTthe present time 1t will
surprise the average reader to know that
until kites were tried scientists were un-
able to obtain accurate records from the
air above us. Even the captive balloon was
q. failure compared with kites, to say moth
ing of the advantage of the kite owing to
its being inexpensive.
'The United States Weather Bureau at
Washington has been experimenting about
two years with kites of various form, some
old, many new, to determine MIle
successful kite must work well up to-
wards the zenith, the nearest approach to
the perpendicular so far being. an ascent
of 50 degrees at the Blue Hill observatory
near Boston. 1t must fly steadily in var
liable winds in order to get accurate records
by the instruments sent up. These consist
of a hygrometer, barometer, thermometer
and thermal indicator, giving a record of
the humidity, altitude, velocity of the wind
and the temperature. A small aluminium
box contains the Instruments Up to the
present year the greatest height to which
the 'meteorograph was sent was $40 feet.
To attain this altitude nine kites were sent
up attached at intervals to the flying cable
which was Of No. IA piano wire and paid
ascent the pull on the reel registered from
sixty to one hundred pounds.
RIDICULOUS CLUBS KITES.
"In their experiments at Broad Ripple
the Ridiculous Club use several varieties
of kites. In brisk wind their box, or eel
lular, kites attain the greatest heights, fly
steadier and have far more lifting power
than the single plane type. They use two
form of cellular kites, one called the Har-
grave kite, invented by Mr.. Lawrence Har-
grave, OF New South Wales, in his search
for soaring machine. This kite resem-
bles two shallow boxes. or cells, held in a
horizon tai plane by two light wooden rods
in the form of a truss, the cells being
placed about as far apart as they are wide
lin order to give the air currents free ac-
cess to both front and rear cells. Thin
strips of spruce are used to make the cells,
the frame then being covered with silk
stretched tightly over the tops, bottoms
and sides, leaving the ends of each cell
open for the wind to pass through. by the
action of the wind the tops and bottoms,
being nearly horizontal when IN the ar,
are converted into lifting planes Ihe SIDES
being perpendicular act as Keel, lnsurlng
steadinesS as the structure Hoats through
space. Another form of box kite USED IN
winged kite, invented by Chadwick Hun
ter OF Washington, who has taken consld-
cradle interest in the weatner a Dure EAU. >
of the HargTave kite, the cells being dla-
mond-shaped, with cross rib EXTENDING
cell Supporting and at the same time ex-
tending the side planes to form wings. rms
kite. in q recent trlal, curing WAlci IL
was poised at q height of 2,eOO 1eet ABOVE
White river, produced quite sensation
among the sightseers on the Broad ripple
boats. some arguing that it was the miss
ing air ship that was being hedro OF IN uiI-
ferent parts Of the country Few months
ago while others contended just as strong
" it was. some enormous Dlrd OF prey. II
Stands five feet high by eight 1eet Wlue
from tip to tip, and presents nearly 1ofty
snnare feet Of floating surface 1t can be
set UP or taken dawn in q lew minutes d4lu
when rolled up is easily carried on a wheel
making a roll but four 1nches IN diameter
and five feet long; weight, TWO anu one
fourth pounds. -, ,,, e5
easily sent up than their DoX Kites, lhough
not quite so good filters. Ihese Kites are
patterned after the Malay form ana pear
fha name of their designer, w. A Euuy, Oh
Bavonne n. j., who is noted Tor ms success
in aerial photography In detall TINS pat
tern consists of a straight strip, or upIlsht
SHINE in the CENTER with cross piece OF
e6ual length a short distance from the top
and bent like a bow, forming q slshliy
convex surface that inSureS SteadlneSS IN
sudden gusts. On neither the ooX KITE nor
the Eddy or Malay form are talls USED,
though at times an unruly Malay can De
steadied by means of cone or cup TAIL
mis- Is a stiff paper cone some six or eight
inches in diameter and so hung on e. string
attached at the lower end of the kite as TO
present its open or large end 10 the wind.
This acts as a drag and to q great extent
will prevent lodging in poorly balanced
kites A cone tail has the advantage of
Ii is the invention of T.. Douglass Archi-
bald the celebrated English meteorologist.
A ten-foot double Malay Is also used by
the club. This consists of two hve-foot