The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1915-01-08
WHY We CAN'T FLY
The Reason Man Is Unable to Rise
In the Air Like a Bird.
HE LACKS THE BREAsTB0NE.

In the Bird It Is Very Massive and
Developed Like the Keel of Yacht,
and Therein Lies the Secret of Its
Enormous Wing Power.
Man has always longed to fly like
bird, and all the ancient attempts at
fight were based upon the tapping OF
wings attached to human arms.
These efforts were given up long ago
when it was realized that man was
not and could not be strong enough to
sustain himself in the air by the use OF
his arms. 4 man can only just lift
himself with his arms-chinning the
bar. for example-but he finds himself
pretty heavy after be has done 1t
few times
The reason why no man will ever be
able to fly With self moved wings is
that his breaStbone is not big enough.
A birds breaStbone has along it's mid
die a deep keel. from which spring the
enormous muscles that draw down the
wings when tapping or hold them level
when soaring. the muscles. in other
words. that support the entire weight
of the bird.
The most powerful fliers have the
deepest breastbones. Look at the skel-
eton of an aibatroSs. a condor or
humming bird in a museum and you
will notice that the keel OF its breast.
bone projects like the keel Of racing
yacht.
You can see this keel. only much
smaller in proportion to the size of the
bird. on the carcass of any chicken or
turkey after the meat has been re-
moved. and the tender white flesh from
the breast is nothing but the muscles
with which the bird few when alive.
You notice that even on chicken.
which is one of the weakest Of hiers.
this flesh forms the greater part Of the
body. On humming bi5a there is lit
tie else but this mass of 3ying muscle
In other words. the humming bird is
nothing but a tiny flying machine.
An albatross has vast spread OF
wings, and it's small body is little else
but a pair of powerful pectoral mus
cles. These are attached by tendons
to the bone called the humerus. which
is the counterpart of the upper arm
bone of man. They spread out like a
solid fan and are fastened to the
breastbone with its deep keel. to the
clavicles, or "wishbone." and to the
ribs.
A mans breaStbone has no keei. His
humerus. or upper arm bone. is hinged
to the clavicle. or coilarbone. and
shoulder blade His pectoral muscles.
which move the arm forward. and del
told muscles. which lift it, are attach
ed to it by strong tendons and spread
fanlilke over his upper chest. being in
serted in the ribs and collarbone.
These are the muscles that do the
same work for man as the pectoral
muscles do for bird. These are the
muscles on which be would have to
relv if he were to fasten wings to his
arms and try to fly.
Compare these muscles with those OF
an albatrosS and you will see how. in.
adequate they are Though an alba
tross weighs only few pounds, it has
pectoral muscles that are actually lar
ger than those of the most powerful
athlete
In order to have muscles powerful
enough to lift his weight in the air by
tapping wings a mans breastbone
would have. to develop keel like a
birds and his collar bone would have
to be changed to giant "wishbone."
Some writer on aviation has calcu-
lated that this keel and "wishbone'
would have to project at least six feet
in order to furnish attachment for the
necessary muscles, for man il proper
ton to his size is far heavier than an
albatross. This bird has small and
very light legs. whereas mans legs are
solid and heavy. The albatross' long
wing bones are hollow tubes.
This makes it plain why experiment
ers in flying long ago gave up the idea
of self moved wings and flight like
that of a bird.-San Francisco Chroni
cle