210 THE LANGLEY AERODROME. 



later by an improved one, of which a drawing is given on page 213, hut 

 it was the first outcome of the series of experiments which had occupied 

 three years, though the disposition of its supporting surfaces, which 

 should cause it to be properly balanced in the air and neither ^y up 

 nor down, had yet to be ascertained by trial. 



What must still precede this trial was the provision of the apparatus 

 for launching it into the air. It is a difficult thing to launch a ship, 

 although gravity keeps it down upon the ways, but the problem here 

 is that of launching a kind of ship whieh is as ready to go up into the 

 air like a balloon as to go off sideways, and readier to do either than 

 to go straight forward, as it is wanted to do, for though there is no 

 gas in the fl.ying machine, its great extent of wing surface renders it 

 something like an albatross on a ship's deck — the most unmanageable 

 and helpless of creatures until it is in its proper element. 



If there were an absolute calm, which never really happens, it would 

 still be impracticable to launch it as a ship is launched, because the 

 wind made by running it along would get under the wings and turn 

 it over. But there is always more or less wind, and even the gentlest 

 breeze was afterwards found to make the air ship unmanageable 

 unless it was absolutely clamped down to whatever served to launch it, 

 and when it was thus firmly clamped, as it must be at several distinct 

 points, it was necessary that it should be released simultaneously at 

 all these at the one critical instant that it was leaping into the air. 

 This is another difficult condition, but that it is an indispensable one 

 may be inferred from what has been said. In the first form of launch- 

 ing piece this initial velocitj^ was sought to be attained by a spring, 

 which threw forward the supporting frame on which the aerodrome 

 rested; but at this time the extreme susceptibility of the whole con- 

 struction to injury from the wind and the need of protecting it from 

 even the gentlest breeze had not been appreciated by experience. On 

 November 18, 1893, the aerodrome had been taken down the river, 

 and the whole day was spent in waiting for a calm, as the machine 

 could not be held in position for launching for two seconds in the 

 lightest breeze. The party returned to Washington and came down 

 again on the 20th, and although it seemed that there was scarcely any 

 movement in the air, what little remained was enough to make it 

 impossible to maintain the aerodrome in position. It was let go, not- 

 withstanding, and a portion struck against the edge of the launching 

 piece, and all fell into the water before it had an opportunity to fly. 



On the 24th another trip was made and another day spent inefl'ect- 

 ively on account of the wind. On the 27th there was a similar expe- 

 rience, and here four days and four (round-trip) journeys of 60 miles 

 each had been spent without a single result. This may seem to be a 

 trial of patience, but it was repeated in December, when five fruitless 

 trips were made, and thus nine sucli trips were made in these two 



