How to Build a 20-Foot Bi-plane Glider A practical handbook on the construction of a Bi-plane Gliding Machine, enabling an intelligent reader to make his first steps in the field of aviation...
New York: Spon & Chamberlain, 1909. Small octavo, original yellow cloth, 60 pp, diagrams throughout; with a comprehensive catalogue of technical books published by Spon bound in the rear. The cloth is dust-stained and internally a bit foxed and thumbed, but a sound and respectable copy nonetheless. A remarkable handbook, notable for the breadth of instruction offered and also the rugged optimism of the author. It provides complete detailed instructions on how to build a glider, including frame and fabric, trussing and glueing, through to launching and flight. The principles of aeronautical flight are provided for more abstract musings.
However, it is the intention of the author - as revealed in his short preface - that makes this book so remarkable. He stresses that the Wright brothers spent no less than three whole years testing gliders on the sand dune of North Carolina. Only then did they attach a motor, and in December 17 of 1903 'the machine flew for a few seconds'. This little book, published only five years later, is for those who hold similar aspirations. As such, building a glider is only the first step to creating your very own aeroplane, and Mr. Morgan the author states this in no uncertain terms: 'it is sincerely hoped that it may interest and lead many to experiment first and build their aeroplane afterward, so that when their machine is complete it may be practical...'
Surprisingly, this book is not recorded in the New York Public Library catalogue of aviation by William Gamble (1938); or in the 1931 Bibliography issued by the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics in Washington. Item #4167
Price (AUD): $250.00