a mile apart or thereabouts.... I was accused of doing
nothing but jumping with my machine, so I got a bit agitated and went to
fly.

I went out this morning with an easterly wind, and left the ground at
the bottom of the hill and struck the ground at the top, a distance of
74 yards. That proved beyond a doubt that the machine would fly--it
flew uphill. That was the most talented flight the machine did, in my
opinion. Now, I turned round at the top and started the machine and left
the ground--remember, a ten mile wind was blowing at the time. Then, 60
yards from where the men let go, the machine went off in this direction
(demonstrating)--I make a line now where I hoped to land--to cut these
trees off at that side and land right off in here. I got here somewhat
excited, and started down and saw these trees right in front of me. I
did not want to smash my head rudder to pieces, so I raised it again and
went up. I got one wing direct over that clump of trees, the right wing
over the trees, the left wing free; the wind, blowing with me, had to
lift over these trees. So I consequently got a false lift on the right
side and no lift on the left side. Being only about 8 feet from the
tree tops, that turned my machine up like that (demonstrating). This
end struck the ground shortly after I had passed the trees. I pulled the
steering handle over as far as I could. Then I faced another bunch of
trees right in front of me. Trying to avoid this second bunch of trees I
turned the rudder, and turned it rather sharp. That side of the machine
struck, and it crumpled up like so much tissue paper, and the machine
spun round and struck the ground that way on, and the framework was
considerably wrecked. Now, I want to advise all aviators not to try
to fly with the wind and to cross over any big clump of earth or any
obstacle of any description unless they go square over the top of it,
because the lift is enormous crossing over anything like that, and in
coming the other way against the wind it would be the same thing when
you arrive at the windward side of the obstacle. That is a point I did
not think of, and had I thought of it I would have been more cautious.'

This Cody machine was a biplane with about 40 foot span, the wings being
about 7 feet in depth with about 8 feet between upper and lower wing
surfaces. 'Attached to the extremities of the lower planes are two small
horizontal planes or rudders, while a third small vertical plane