Page:Kitecraft and kite tournaments (1914).djvu/148



Kite making and kite flying have been enjoyed for centuries in the orient and for a good many years in this country, and will continue as a seasonal sport for perhaps all time. It can be made more interesting and useful by a little cooperation on the part of the grown-ups. It may be only expression of appreciation of the effort put forth by some otherwise idle fellow, or it may be in the form of a request of teacher to pupil for a nice kite as a gift for a third party, or it may be the arousing of school spirit for the best showing at a tournament, it might be assistance rendered in planning a beautiful kite, and it might be a great many other things that have not been mentioned. Kite making will not catch and make good every boy, even with the best efforts of the best teachers, but it will go farther than any other enticement toward bringing about good comradeship between teacher and scholar, which is half the battle with uncertain temperaments in some boys. We need to come shoulder to shoulder with the boys to help them most.

But the merits of kite making go farther than the social relationship, it arouses the inventive spirit in the boy, fills in many otherwise idle hours with good healthy sport that occupies the children out of doors. It is not wasted time unless indulged in to too great excess, but new developments bring about new studies of the kite problems that are as good for the boys as problems of other subjects like arithmetic and geometry for we must remember that boys have subject of study not found in text-books.

Someone told me not long ago that "no one could think an evil thought while looking up". Some one else has written, "If the outlook is not good, try the uplook". This latter has a greater significance than would be generally applied to boys flying kites, but who knows what boys are really thinking about; maybe we underestimate their abilities and inclinations. Our boys often need more persistency of effort, and must be held to their jobs by much attention on the part of overseers. Most boys will stick to kite making against great discouragement and some will continue, for long periods, working patiently and carefully until they succeed. The string is often a source of great annoyance, it