"It does not follow," said Mr. Gregg, "that all kites should have the same kind of a surface or plane, though the flat planes of the toys of our school days were all of the flat surface kind; these being of various shapes and sizes from the lozenge to the square, bow top, octagon, and many others, according to the whim or skill of the maker. One of the conditions of these planes or flat kites, was that each one must have at least one tail attached to the bottom of it. This tail was flexible, simply a piece of string having paper similar to 'curl papers' tied to it at intervals. The tail was a necessity, for without it the equipoise would be impossible. In China and Japan, where the natives have been kite-flying for more than twenty centuries, they make kites that fly and maintain the aerial equipoise without having tails hung to them, no matter whether the shape be that of a dragon, a lion, or an eagle.
Fig. 55. Box kite
"A kite is simply an aeroplane on a small scale, and should be considered as such, as it has a fixed fulcrum in the belly band, a constant pressure when flying, and an angle which is varied in proportion to the load it may have to carry. The common kite is easily made, but it does not always fly as desired; for it seems almost impossible to make two kites that will fly in the same manner under similar conditions. Box kites are the most reliable, and not so very difficult to make, as you will discover by examining Figs. [55], [56], and [57] and following the directions I give you. First, procure four straight strips of light wood, preferably spruce, 2 ft. 6 in. by 3⁄8 in. by 1⁄8 in.; these dimensions should be full (see [Fig. 55].) Obtain also four other pieces, each 1 ft. 71⁄2 in. long, but 1⁄16 in. wider and thicker than the foregoing, and halve their ends to a depth of 1⁄8 in. by 1⁄4 in., in order that when the false end A ([Fig. 56]) is tightly bound on, these cross sticks will firmly grip the long pieces edgewise, the sides of the cells being indicated by the dotted lines. The long sticks should be notched at a distance of 4 in. from their ends to receive the forks of the cross sticks.
Fig. 56. Making a kite
"The width of the cloth or paper cells should be 8 in., and they should be separated by a distance of 1 ft. 1 in. or 1 ft. 2 in., their edges being bound with fine twine. The easiest way to make the cells is to cut two strips of the material, 10 in. wide and 4 ft. 81⁄2 in. long. Turn over the edges 1⁄2 in. along each side, and insert fine strong twine! If paper is used, glue the fold; if cloth, stitch the hem. When completed, either glue or stitch the ends of the strip with a 3⁄4 in. lap, so as to form a continuous band. By folding, divide this accurately into four equal parts and at each of the creases glue one of the long sticks edgewise (see [Fig. 56]). When dry, the whole can be put together and the flying line attached, without a bridle, as in [Fig. 55]. For additional clearness an enlarged detail of one end of the kite is shown at [Fig. 57].