The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1901-01-13
BROKE RECORDS
FLYING KITES
Experiments Conducted Along Scien-
tifc Lines.
GREAT HEIGHTS REACHED.
apparatus Especially Constructed So
As TO Withsta the
Tcrr fic
Strains.

s'ialtIFE 1 u lIitE4-N H.
BOSTON, January l2.-The Blue Hills,
zen ln.!es % me south OF Boston. com
prise the highest elevation OF land on tae
Atlantic caasi between Maine ana IgoT-
ila. the h:alest point in the range, tle
Great Blue HiiI, 50 called. Is GS5 feet
above the level OF The sea. The range IS
prominent in tae landscape for miles
a:CEnd. The Indians called IT Massati1u-
sets. -';he Great Hills. waeace came
the 1ame, originally given by Captain
JOIN Smith Gf Massachusetts, Bay Itself,
al!d afterwards OF The Colony, Province,
and State Of massachusetts. it is now
part Of the great metropolitan park sy'S-
i.1n OF Boston. IN which il forms the
largest and. i'll many respects. most
Interesting Ink. Including some 4,50o acres
OF picturesque, constantly varying wood
land and hill. matched only. if at all,
iyy the great seashore park at Revere
Beaca.
Here. on The summit Of the Great
Blue" Is the Blue Hill meteorological
Observatory. maintained BY Mr.. y. Law
renee Roica OF this city. as Il station of
sile Astronomical Observatory OF Harvard
University Il was founded privately IN
1883 by Mr.. Rotci. and since then ii
has been supported entirely from his pr!-
waite means III a total cost Of nearly $iGl-
oDg: bal in 1898 ii was transferred, by
a lease OF TIE land on which il stands,
TO he general care III Inc tldtAstIlI
Economical department. in the publications
-. which ;he records of its Investigations
since 1897 form 4 part or the whole ot four
large volumes. making an interesting
counterpart 10 the records of the. lofty
mountain meteorological stations main
tanned by The Harvard Observatory IN
Peru Mr. Rotch's work as director con-
1inueS, as before, with the continuance
also OF his own personal staf-includins
at the present time 1ir. H. Holm Clay
ION. neteoroluGiSr; Mr.. :. y. Ferguson.
lnisd4anisn tan Important position IN an
observatory where novel experiments call
constantly for new and specially devised
apIaratlssj and Air. A., e. Sweeuand, OBJ
server.
NOTABLE WORK
The work of the Blue It'll Observatory
slas been notable ana interesting in many
way WITH The exception o. the muni-
cipal observatory in New York, it was the
inst in the country to be equipped with
Instruments which recorded grdphlcaity
and continuously al! The meteorological
cler,1ents-except the form and motion Of
clCUds-usually observed at a station o.
me first order. Commencing with 1856
Il,-,,riy- values as indicated by these IN
:7trll1nerts We're printed for the year. The
secondary stations like the main obsery3-
tory equipped with self-c>ecordinE instru-
megtsh isaTe tlefu maintained almost
FRI II the beginning. lower down on the
Hill and in the valley at attitudes respec-
lively of 80 and 200 feet above sea-lerel.
And fo1. many years the Observatory mas
carried on a special study Of the various
forms of clouds. The first series of meas
lrements in America of the height and
velocity of clouds. Fly triSonomeGical and
other methods. was made here in 1896
sd and the measurements were repeatei
six years later as q part Of an lntcisEs
s'onal system.
But to the popular Imagination the
most interesting thing done at Blue tilli
IS the klte-flying-itle exploration OF the
free air. as it is more scientifically called,
Er,- means OF sGlf-recoTding Instruments at
4ached to kites In this the Blue Hill
observatory was the pioneer, and its
methods have been widely adopted for
meteorological observation. Kites have
5teen 7lsssd for many years. to be sure. Tor
scientific purposes. as every one who re-
calls benjamin FranBlin's famous expert
lueut Viii know. IN 1.4g. three years be
fore 5llat celebrated flight. however, two
Scottish scientists had raised tneTmome-
fers into The clouds by the same means.
During tde tirST part of t,1e- nineteenth
tr.4ttlIy ihe SAME SISe of, kites for aScer-
tanning the temperature an the free AR
1yzs made by various European inyeSil-
gators: and. in 1870, IGspy in ti1is coril-
Try. employed kites to verify his calcutta
/ gns of The helsht OF clouds.
Modern llite-hNins for scientific pur-
moses more properly dates perhaps. from
1881 when Douglas Archibald, in Eng
land fastened TO Jht kite wire anemone-
7+l's whlla registered total-as dlsiln-
auished from continuously recordei-
7,ird movements. and 80 obtained differ
tlgti.! measures OF the wind velocity at
aists M 10 ,2G0 feel ON Blue Hill IL
SELF in 49,, Mr. Alexander Meade. now
OF fae- Weather Bureau, repeated Prank
Inns electrical experiment, using. how
ever. The modern clcct-ameter instead Of
i'ianlliR's primitive key; and IN 1871
;tnd 1872 he measured simultaneously the
electric potential At Tie base Of Blue Hill.
GA the hiii. and. with kites a. collectors,
several hundred feet ABOVE the hill top.
-Ahaul the same Time German tNobert
made a more extensive use OF kites to
collect atmosphere electricity.
FDDAFS EXPERIMENT
But the man who is naturally thought
OF as the person who really popniaIiZed
The scientific use Of kites is Mr.. William
A Eddy. of Bayonue. y He introduced
tie novel form waia took the place. Tor
scientists. cf The common kite OF ctliia-
hoGl and was perhaps tle first to Sug-
gNSt the use Of kites 10 obtain data for
fo1'ecaSting the weather. Ia August, 1884,
Mr. Eddy, at the invitation Of Mr.. Rptcs1,
brought nis kites-WtllCh he VAS then
1iN!fl tandem laf tllt sake oil @E-si Ky
steaa,ness- ana power-te Bale Hill, and
with them Fitted a lhe:TnoeraEh, which
Was partly reconstructed Of aluminium, 50
fha; ii weighed oGiy two and quarter
pounds TO ttae Illegal of I5oo feet, where
The earliest automatic record of temper
AZURE Was obtained by means Of a kite.
le&l summer Mr. Eddy MIS- back again
IN Boston 20 assist in further experiments
=; dle Blue 1iil! Observatory. and at this
Time secured from his hiIes number Of
the 'birdseye photographs which have
stnCe become so weE known
By ieiis time The p8zs 'bGity of real
scientific results from kite flying was
proved. but AIT Rotch and his assistants
ilave Had many diIiculiies 10 overcome
before attaining tl3e present comparative
perfection OF the kite and the instru
,nents attached to it. AR. Eddy has used
q taiIless kite. presenting. aside from is
pockets. convex surface To the wind.
Al Blue l4lIi The kite now used. in tan
def1e o! iUp 10 six, Is commonly ttse Haf-
siaye sox kite, rs modified by Mr. Clay
ton. which had originally been devised
far aeroRaatical experiment ~ Australia.
Steadiness. power. and, for a kiie, q sal
isfacto:y degree OF reliability are its use
fui characteristics. A simple form Of this
kite has been introduced on The market