actually on a higher level than the
operator's head; the centre of gravity was, consequently, very low, a
fact which, according to Pilcher's own account, made the glider very
difficult to handle. Moreover, the weight of the 'Beetle,' 80 lbs., was
considerable; the body had been very solidly built to enable it to carry
the engine which Pilcher was then contemplating; so that the glider
carried some 225 lbs. with its area of 170 square feet--too great a mass
for a single man to handle with comfort.

It was in the spring of 1896 that Pilcher built his third glider, the
'Gull,' with 300 square feet of area and a weight of 55 lbs. The size of
this machine rendered it unsuitable for experiment in any but very calm
weather, and it incurred such damage when experiments were made in a
breeze that Pilcher found it necessary to build a fourth, which he named
the 'Hawk.' This machine was very soundly built, being constructed of
bamboo, with the exception of the two main transverse beams. The wings
were attached to two vertical masts, 7 feet high, and 8 feet apart,
joined at their summits and their centres by two wooden beams. Each wing
had nine bamboo ribs, radiating from its mast, which was situated at a
distance of 2 feet 6 inches from the forward edge of the wing. Each rib
was rigidly stayed at the top of the mast by three tie-wires, and by a
similar number to the bottom of the mast, by which means the curve of
each wing was maintained uniformly. The tail was formed of a triangular
horizontal surface to which was affixed a triangular vertical surface,
and was carried from the body on a high bamboo mast, which was also
stayed from the masts by means of steel wires, but only on its upper
surface, and it was the snapping of one of these guy wires which caused
the collapse of the tail support and brought about the fatal end of
Pilcher's experiments. In flight, Pilcher's head, shoulders, and the
greater part of his chest projected above the wings. He took up his
position by passing his head and shoulders through the top aperture
formed between the two wings, and resting his forearms on the
longitudinal body members. A very simple form of undercarriage, which
took the weight off the glider on the ground, was fitted, consisting of
two bamboo rods with wheels suspended on steel springs.

Balance and steering were effected, apart from the high degree of
inherent stability afforded by the tail, as in the case of Lilienthal's
glider, by a