Year: 1871

Our reporter was yesterday nOtlneQ tnab
an item of no small consequence would
await him at the corner of Fort and
Beaubien streets at noon, and appeared
there to find select party of half dozen
gentlemen, who were about to witness a
trial Of what might have been "Fulgers
patent wings" but which may never be,
owing to circumstances related further on.
About five years ago, man named Full
ger, employed in a machine shop at Buff
falo, conceived the idea that he had solved
the question of human being navigat-
ing the air like bird. He had read and
pondered, drafted and experimental, and
at length brought out pair of flyers"
which were intended to assist him in soar
ing to the clouds, but which didn't. The
wings were in the shape of fans, COM
posed of whalebone and oiled-silk, and
fastened to the shoulders. By means OF q
large spring, which held the two together,
and sort Of handle falling over the head
and clasped by the hands, the wings
could be worked fast or slow, and with
ease. As they would not raise the inventor
from the ground, he suspected that cur
rent of air was first necessary, and climbed
upon a shed to take his flight. His select
audience shouted "time," the wings COM
menced to flop, and Fulger went on his
head, getting bump which made him see
stars for an hour. He tried his invention
twice afterward, but the result was the
same each time, and then, as his life was
not insured, he concluded to preserve it
by walking the earth with the gifts which
nature gave him. But his bumps had
hardly ceased to ache when Fulger's ideas
began to return to the old channel, and
he hss wasted months of time and con-
siderable amount of money in pursuing
the delusive vision Six months ago, on
coming to Detroit, he was taken SICK,
and not being able to do heavy WORK,
and having several hundred dollars oy
him, he has spent the last four months In
perfecting another pair of wings, and these
he had with him Yesterday. He was very
enthusiastic. and promised our reporter he
would telegraph him from Grand
Rapids before sundown, having no doubt
that he would arise on the MONDAY
breeze and sail the air like a buzzard. 1t
was at first proposed to go up the alley
and let him try the experiment by jumping
off a barn, but q crowd began to gather,
and his modesty obliged the invited guests
to follow him nearly mile up Beaublen
street to the commons, close on which
stands a tumble down story and half
house. The audience made halt here,
and Fulger carefully unrOlled twenty or
thirty newspapers and brought out the
wings. Each one measured exactly seven
feet in length, and the broadest part was
three feet and eight inches, looking IN
shape like the wings of an eagle. At the
butt of the wing was piece OF cork, say
six inches square ; from this eight strips OF
rattan, not quite as large around as lead
mcneil. ran the whole length. being bound
together at certain places with light wires.
At the butt each rattan was fastened with
the cork with 8 small screw. The wings
were made to fasten directly under the
arms, stout cords running up over the
shoulders to hold them The covering
was oil skin, being the same material as
that which used to be worn to protect Ia
dies bonnets from injury. The weight OF
the two was Just two pounds and nan.
On the upper side of each wing, just Wnere
the hands could handily grasp them, astrlp
of stout rubber was fastened, and the ny
ing was to be done by the man grasplng
these handles and working the wings up
and down, the hands first pushing and
then pulling.


At last, after everybody had admired,
doubted and congratulated, Mr. Fulger
shook hands all around and announced
that he was about to pay visit TO the sun,
having changed his mind in regard to
going to Grand Rapids. With the wings
hanging down behind, he mounted to the
roof a distance of about fourteen feet, and
then warned his audience not to jar ms
nerves by any remarks. Standing on the
extreme end of the ridge, just over bed
of rank grass and tall weeds, the . bird


seized the wings firmly, threw out quld
of fine cut and took the leap. Exactly
what took place cannot be described, as
every one was laughing so that his eyes
refused to see but this much our reporter
will swear to, there was jump, hop, two
or three keel-overs, rustling of silk, and
the audience saw Mr.. Fulger lying on aus
stomach on the ground, the spreading
wings making him figure comic beyond
DESCRIPTION. He was raised up, turned
over, and soon opened his eyes and wanted
To know what had occurred, and was soon
leaning against the house and breathing


hard He claimed that he lost his balance
at the critical moment, or else he would
have sailed away like Muscovy duck, but
declined to repeat the experiment again,
saving that he didn't feel well. Sympathy
for his failure kept the gentlemen from
laughing all they wanted to, but Mr.. Full


ger left them with the assertion that ne


Should soon have the pleasure OF calling


on the same audience to witness nm taK-


ing a moonlight excursion above tner


heads.-DstrO Free FFess.