NO. 3 :.\\i;l.i;\ MEMOIR ON MEl 1 1 \ ri( \l FLIGHT 271 



and exceedingly gusty wind had sprung up, and i! seemed almost disasti 

 to attempt an experiment. 



However, the funds which had been appropriated bj the Board of Ord- 

 uance and Fortification had been exhausted uearly two years before, and all the 

 expense since thai time had been mel from a special fund of the Smithsonian 

 Institution. But, owing to the heavy drains winch the work had made upon 

 this fund, Mr. Langley fell unwilling to draw further upon it, and since there 

 were no other funds available from which to meet the expenses which would 

 be incurred by postponing the experiments until spring, i! was decided thai ii 

 was practically a case of " now or never," and although the river was full of 

 large blocks of floating ice several inches thick, which added enormously to the 

 danger involved in the experiment, the writer decided to make the lest imme 

 diately so that the long-hoped-for success, which seemed so certain, could be 

 finally achieved. 



After considerable delay, due to the great difficulty of properly assembling 

 the huge wings in the strong and gusty wind, into which the boat could not be 

 kept directly pointed, owing both to the strong tide which was running and to 

 the fact that the wind itself was rapidly varying through as great a range as 

 ninety degrees, and after many minor delays, due to causes too numerous to 

 mention, the aerodrome was finally ready for test. 



The wind was exceedingly gusty, varying in velocity from twelve to eight- 

 een miles per hour and shifting its direction most abruptly and disconcert 

 ingly, so that the aerodrome was at one moment pointed directly into it and at 

 the next moment side gusts striking under the port or starboard wings would 

 wrench the frame severely, thus tending to twist the whole machine from its 

 fastenings on the launching car. After starting up the engine and bringing 

 it to full speed, the writer gave the signal for the machine to be released, and 

 it started quietly, but at a rapidly accelerated pace, down the launching track. 

 Exactly what happened, either just before or just as the aerodrome reached 

 the end of the track, it has been impossible to determine, as all the workmen 

 and visitors had gone to their stations on the various auxiliary boats, except 

 the two workmen (Mr. Reed and Mr. McDonald) who had been retained on 

 top of the boat to assist in the launching, it had grown so dark that the cam 

 eras of Mr. Smillie, the official photographer, were unable to get any impres- 

 sion when he used them, owing to the extreme rapidity of the shutters with 

 which they were equipped. Fortunately, one photograph of the machine while 

 si ill in the air was secured, which shows the result of what had occurred in the 



launching and before an\ further damage bad been caused by its i ling down 



into the water, but the all-important question as to just what caused the acci 

 dent which did occur remains to a certain extent a mystery. 



