Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-05-09
FLYING REAL KITES


1.-The other day.. the man with the
grizzled chopped-off mustache, Il saw over
in the northeast section Of town the skele-
ton Of a kite hans1H6 from its tail over
telephone wire. and Fthat's the first time
I've seen anything of the sort around
Washington for a. long while. That kite
skeleton looked as II it might have been
hanging there for number Of years. any,
way. for the sticks were blackened with
exposure to the weather, and tho tail looked
as II 1t might fallcto pieces and let the kite
skeleton down most any minute. Fact is.
it's been long time since I've seen an old
fashioned stick kite Aging around WASH
ington. much less the wreck Of one hanging
from wire or tree. I don't believe the
boys make en- any more. I've never seen
any Of my boys make a kite, and that's
queer, too. seeing what great kite maker
I was when aetad-seems funny my boys
didn't inherit the kite enthusiasm and the
ALTERNATING knack from their dad. But
when the kite season gets around here In
Washington. stead Of pitching in and
making kites for themselves. my boys bone
their mother for the price Of one o. these
Chinese things without any tail-bird-
shaped affairs; don't call 'em kites at all
not really-and-truly, honest-Injun kites.
Nor DO call these box contraptions that
enough kites. They're scientifically bal
anced. highfalutin thingumbobs, of course,
but they are not kites
The kind Of a kite that I was brought
up on In the little western town that had
the nonor OF producing me was just the
tmng with three sticks tackled In the mid
die. where they met, to keep 'em together,
ana covered with either newspaper or tissue
paper. according to how strong the young
ster making the kite was financially
men used to get the kite bunch in
those DAYS d begin to make my kite early
IN the morning. before breakfast. The first
part of the business was to hustle for the
piece OF wood out Of which to cut the three
st1cks-the two long ones and the short
cross SUCK 1T was no SLOUGH of Job to
white out kite sticks. not getting 'em
oo"n TO TOO fragile thickness to bear
the push OF stin high breeze, and yet not
keeping EN- heavy and lumbery enough to
make II hard to send the kite aloft in mild
Weather. 1t would usually keep me busy
tour OF nve hours whiting out the sticks,
ana then, after passing the string to which
the paper was attached around in the hicks
IN the END or the sticks I'd have to do
little quiet work.ins the pantry In order to
manufacture the PASTE The paste was
nothlng but hour and water but my mother
uo Always nail me when I'd make my quiet
httie iope toward the flour barrel and talk
ABOUT the muss l was making around the
PACK OK the house with my whiting and
fooling, and all that sort of thing and T
used to have to wheedie her quite a lot to
get hold OF the flour to make the ma ste.
Then I'd paste the paper on. rig the at
tach1ng str1ngs-and my work was only
begun. For at that stage Of it I'd. have to
go oo"n TO my dads little store and drill
him for ball of twine Sometimes when
ne wasn't at the store, I'd Just get the
."lne' out when he was there I'd have to
DC pretty long -eared land devout kind o. to
get the ball of stout Irvine out of him.
Ihen there ube one more huge job In
i i,onl Oh me-tot 4, annex the rags for the
Kites tail. My kites were always four
hooters, and needed a whole lot Of tail to
steady them. andthe tail had to come from
my my rnotners rag Tepository-the place where
she saved up rags foFt the making of rag
carpet My. but how that good woman did
cherlsh those raglcarpet rags! I knew that
there De no use In my trying to wheedl,
enough rags out of her for kite tail, and
had to swipe the rags when she wasn't
looking. and then sneak the kite off to the
commons to put The tall on. SOS she would
not see the purloined rags
Inc tail attached, the kite would he
ready, and I'd get boy that could trust
10 hoid er while | did the sprint necessary
10 get her into the first upper stratum OF
ar. AT this stage of 1t there were always
around to throw at the kite. and many q
night I've had, and many a black eve i've
got IN trying to protect my kites In those
Gays there was an iron rule among the
kIus mat every Kite sent aloft had to have
the letters T. p pasted on the surface OF
the Kite The IT. P meant taxes Maid
and II those letters weren't pasted on the
Kite 1t was the unwritten rule that am
younsster SO disposed could throw rocks
through it or cut the string when the hold
er OF 1t wasn't looking. I always observed.
however. that they'd throw the rocks or
cut the string anyhow, IT. p or no TT p.
lowing the rule.
Generally. when the kite sailed into the
breezy current. 1t would begin to cut up
d1does, curving around like pinwheeI ana
uartlng hlther and yon like a swallow, and
that meant that the kite needed more fail
Shed have to be hauled down then. and
TWO or three more yards of rags-I always
had reserve supply for such emergencies
hitched onto the tail, and then up she'd go
again.
We used to send messengers I'D to the
kites In those days-bits of paper that
would travel up the string to the face of
the Kite. no matter how high 1t was, with
amazing speed.
My ALTERNATING during the season would
always wind up by getting my dad inter-
ested. and then some evening, he'd roll I'M
his sleeves and pitch In and make an eight
footer that would almost pull him Off his
feet when he got 'er up-and my dad wasn't
so dead easy to yaRk of his underpinning.
at that. I've seen him get one of his great
Kites up In the air. and then step into a
skfff. holding the string. The kites he made
would pull him and the skiff through the
water at quite fair pace when the cur
rent was right.
But the boys nowadays haven't got any
time to make things When they want
anything all they've got to do is to tra.pse
around to some shop and get it. The tacs
didn't do much shopping when was young
that's why we made. our own kites.
nickel looked as big as the bottom of a
well bucket to me when I was kid. but.
say, dye know that I'd be almost afraid
to hand one of my youngsters nickel.
burned If I wouldn't-'fraid. I mean, of
the stare of surprise and reproach that the
brat 'ud regard me with!
But that Is beside the point that I'd give
whole lot to have the time to make and
fly kite one o. these fine May days-blaln-
ed If 1 wouldn't"
AS Others See Us.
They had dinea we'll The cigars were
1terIt TOD - h. 3,vv1