744 



Popular Science Monthly 



At left: A "peace" 

 kite, bearing the 

 inscription: "I 

 stand for peace. 

 I am neutral. I 

 fear none of them" 



At right: A Jap- 

 anese square kite. 

 No Oriental kite 

 is complete without 

 the Japanese sun 



Below: The most 

 artistic kite in the 

 air last season. Its 

 tails were from six 

 to eight feet long 



each school, so as to 

 plan the tournament 

 on the proper scale. 

 However, no one is 

 kept out for neglect of 

 registration. The last 

 tournament comprised 

 about seventy events. 

 The events were group- 

 ed under the following gen- 

 eral heads: Artistic, including 

 the best decorated kites; Form 

 kites, calling for bird, animal and flower 

 designs; Balloons, including parachutes and 

 banners; Dragon kites, including the tail- 

 less dragon, Chinese dragon and the Jap- 

 anese kites; Aeroplanes, including both 

 kites and gliders. A Construction prize 

 was also awarded for structural ingenuity. 

 These events were further subdivided. 

 For instance, the best decorated kite on 

 the ground was 

 not necessarily 

 the best deco- 

 rated kite in the 

 air. In the strong 

 pulling contest 

 there were kites 

 under and over 

 four feet high. 

 Then there were 

 contests for 

 strong-pulling 

 box-kites, com- 

 , pound kites, and 

 various other 



A square box kite with extended side wings 

 made on lines resembling the French war-kite 



free-for-all events. 

 ^ In the races, 

 prizes are awarded 

 for the highest flight 

 made in one minute, 

 three minutes, and 

 ten minutes. In such 

 events there is more 

 or less confusion. 

 Some kite takes a sudden 

 notion to go sideways and 

 collides with another kite. 

 Another kite goes up with a 

 swish and then darts as if 

 scared and whirls around and 

 around, playing havoc with two or three 

 kites near it. But some kites go up, up, up. 

 The boys get excited and play out the 

 string too quickly. Others fail to get the 

 kite up before the limit of time. It is 

 indeed an exciting contest for both kite- 

 flyers and spectators. 



Each boy has a helper to hold his kite. 

 When the starting signal is given the helper 



releases the kite, 

 and the boy runs 

 into the breeze 

 for a short dis- 

 tance until the 

 kite climbs fairly 

 high. Then he 

 stops and plays 

 out string as fast 

 as the kite will 

 take it. In the 

 short races it is 

 easy to stand at 

 a distance and 

 determine the 



