The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1909-06-22


poem by ]. 7. Trowbridge,
Darius Green and His
Flying Machine 2" The lanky. un-
graceful form as pictured by the poet.
working in the old barn at the wings
upon which he expected 10 soar about
the pasture; and the subsequent ex-
citement following his initial fight
from the barn door. Trowbridgc wrote
this famous poem in 1867. It delight-
ed the boys OF many generations ana
still delights them. The recent catas-
trophe of aeronauts in this country
and abroad would seem TO ocar out the
poetic contention that what goes up
must come down, and that man should
make no endeavors TO soar In tho air.
However true 1t is that wrights
aeroplsne did fly and did remain In
the air. II must be borne in mind that
people looked with scorn upon those
who predicted aerial flight In the day
OF Darius Green. and that Darius
wings made from buggy top. some
cord and tacks," would likely result
more disastrously than his famous
Night did result. II any other principle
had been carried out.
II has recently been pointed out
that the struggles to master tho air
are by no means new. and that as
early az the eleventh century the
model of a flying machine was DEM
onstrated before the Callph OF Cor
dova by seer of wide renown. -wh~
believed that man could. with the aid
Of wings, ny as do the birds How
successful this seer was in the realIza
tion of his dream we have no sub
stBntial evidence and must naturally
conclude that he fell under the re-
sistance of the law of gravitation and
with his contriyanco was buried in
oblivion.
In 1852 flying machine drca IN
was horalded across the civilized
world as a means of flying I'm tho air
and immense woodcuts of the ship
were published far and wide. II waa
cumbersome thing enough. nut NJ.
Petin. the inventor. appears to have
an Idea M TO what we were to have
In our day; and a close observation
will show that irs gearago seems ae
reasonable to the uninltlated as the
larger machines of today
Dariua Green was a country boy
who watched the bINs fly and who
wondered why he couldn't fly too. and
decided that II he couldn't fly It must
be conceded that he hadn't the brains
OF the birds, so he decided to make
pair of wings for himself The
success OF his enterprise Ia told
amusingiy In the poem
"Jf ever there lived a Yankee lad.
Wise or otherwise. good or bad.
Who. seeing the birds fly. didn't lump
With Mapping arms from stake o,
stump.
Or. spreading the tail
or his coat for a sail
Take a soaring leap from post or rail-
And wonder why
He couldn't fly.
And flap and nutter and wish ant
III You over knew country ounce
Who didn't try that aa often as once
All ! can say is, thst'a sign.
lie never would do for hero o
mine.
An aspiring genius was n Green.
JhF. son OF farmer. aged fourteen
iils body was long and lank and lean
Just right FOR dying, as will be seen
he mad two eyes as bright as a bean
AND freckled nose that grew be
tween
Agliitle awry--ipr 7 mist mention.
That he had riva,ed hs attention.
upcn his "9ndorinl invention.
TwiptinS his Il -gue as he twisted tn
~ strlnga.
And working his face as he worko
the wings, ,t
And with every turn Of gn.ler nm
screw.
Turning and screwIng his mor
round. too.
TIL his nose seemed hem
To catch the scent
Around the corner ~ new taxed pie
And hr wrinaled ctueks and h
squintilg rYos