THE YOUNG SCIENTIST. 
159 
The following are the only phenomena of in- 
terest, transpiring at a seasonable hour, that 
are visible : 
Sat. D. H. M. Phenomena. 
I. 5 8 13 Transit, ingress. 
I. 6 8 43 Eclipse, reap. 
IV. 7 8 2 Occult., disap. ) 
IV. 7 9 45 Occult., reap, f 
II. 7 9 51 Transit, egress. 
II. 16 8 29 Eclipse, reap. 
III. 20 8 22 Occult, " 
HI. 20 8 22.1 Eclipse, disap. 
I. 21 9 1 Transit, egress. 
I. 28 8 45 " ingress. 
It will be interesting to see Sat. III. appear 
from an occulation on the 20th, at 8.22 eve., and 
six seconds later plunge into Jupiter's shadow- 
Saturn is too close to the Sun to be seen. 
Vemis and Mars approach within three- 
fourths of one degree of each other on the 10th, 
Venus being the most southern. They will be 
situated at that time exactly in the middle of the 
constellation Aquarius, with no stars brighter 
than of the fourth magnitude within 20° of 
them. The Moon passes about 4° north of them 
on the morning of the 4th. They rise as fol- 
lows : 
VENTJS. MAES. 
May 10—3.32 morn. May 10—3.29 morn. 
" 20—3.21 " " 20—3.8 
" 30—3.11 " " 30—2.56 " 
Uranus passes the meridian on the 5th at 8.28 
eve. ; 25th, 7.9 eve. 
EPHEMERIDES OF THE PEINCIPAL STARS AND 
CLUSTERS, MAY 22, 1883. 
H. M. 
Alpha Andromeda (Alpheratz) rises 0 13 mor. 
Omicron Ceti (Mira) variable, " 4 27 " 
Beta Persei (Algol) " " 1 53 " 
" " sets 8 8 eve. 
Eta Tauri (Alcyone or Light of 
Pleiades) rises 4 13 mor. 
Alpha Tauri (Aldebaran) rises 5 32 " 
" " sets 7 26 eve. 
Alpha AurigsB (Capella) rises 3 0 mor. 
" " sets 11 15 eve. 
Beta Orionis (Kigel) invisible. 
Alpha Orionis (Betelguese) sets 8 13 " 
Alpha Canis Majoris (Sirius or Dog 
Star) invisible. 
Alpha Canis Minoris (Procyon) sets 9 51 " 
Alpha Leonis (Regulus) sets 0 48 mor. 
Alpha Virgiuis (Spica) in merid. 9 18 eve. 
AZp/ia Bootis (Arcturus) " 10 9 " 
Alpha Scorpionis (Antares) in me- 
ridian 0 24 mor. 
Alpha Lyrae (Vega) in meridian 2 35 " 
^Zp/ia Aquillae (Altai r) rises 9 14 eve. 
Alpha Cygni (Deneb) in meridian 4 39 mor. 
Alpha Pisces Australis (Fomalhaut) 
rises 2 53 " 
Penn Yan, Yates Co., N. Y. 
A Tailless Kite. 
This is the time of kite- flying, and the boys 
are ready for any novelty that will add zest to 
the sport. A number of years ago some gentle- 
men of Eochester discovered in a book of de- 
signs printed in Holland a drawing of a kite 
which should float in the air without the neces- 
sity of a tail balance. One of the gentlemen 
constructed one, and when he displayed it to 
his incredulous friends they derided his assur- 
ances that there was go in it, and he would 
make it go. The first attempt was a failure^ 
Indeed, if the kite doesn't rise on the first suffi- 
cient gust of wind, it should be discarded and a 
second kite made. The second attempt was a 
decided success, so much so that as the erratic 
thing cavorted beneath the empyrean every- 
body wondered what strange creature of the 
air it might be. Recently another one of these 
singular-looking flyers was put up, and it would 
have done one good to have seen how delighted 
the boys of twenty or thiily ^^eai-s old were as 
the tailless kite soared away into the blue 
depths, now plunging eccentrically towards 
contiguous dwellings and again gracefully 
swimming up towards the zenith. It is inti- 
mated that tailless kite-flying will be the popu- 
lar amusement this season. For those who de- 
sire to try a hand at the novelty, we give brief 
directions as to construction. The shape of th^ 
kite is wliat the boys call " diamond." The 
cross-bar, which in a tail kite of the diamond 
pattern is straight, should be made of hickory 
and bowed by connecting the ends with a taut 
string. It should then be placed at right angles 
with the perpendicular stick and fastened se- 
curely, the bend of the bow being backward 
from the intersection of the sticks. Run a 
string around over the end of each stick, and 
cover the frame with light tissue-paper. For a 
four-foot kite, the perpendicular stick should 
extend three feet below the point of intersection 
with the bow, and one foot above it. The bow 
should be one and one-half feet long on each side 
of the point of intersection with the perpen- 
dicular stick. The belly cord should be united 
at the point of intersection, and at the same 
distance down the perpendicular stick as the 
arms of the bow extend on each side of the per- 
pendicular stick. The band is attached at only 
two points, the point of intersection and at a 
point below, in the four-foot kite mentioned^ 
one and one-half feet below the point of inter- 
section. Tie these two strings together, and 
attach the captive cord, balancing it so that the 
captive cord shall be exactly opposite the point 
of intersection, or at right angles with the per- 
pendicular stick frame. The face of the kite is 
then convex, and the back, of course, concave. 
