flights as a passenger, and after he
has accustomed himself to the novelty of being in the air, the pupil
will be allowed by the instructor to lean forward and place his hand
on the control lever; and in this way, by actually following and
feeling for himself the control actions the pilot makes, he will gain
an idea of just the extent to which the lever must be moved, to gain
any specific result in the flight of the machine.

[Illustration: MOTOR AND OTHER GEAR--ANOTHER VIEW. _Photo by Topical
Press Agency._

This shows the constructional unit that is formed, on a suitably
strong framework of wood, by the engine, propeller, and fuel tank, and
also by the seats for the pilot and passenger.]

The next stage of tuition is that in which a pupil is allowed to
handle a biplane alone, not in flight though but only in "rolling"
practice on the ground--driving the machine to and fro across the
aerodrome. The motor is adjusted so that, while it gives sufficient
power to drive the machine on the ground and render the control
surfaces effective, it will not permit the craft to rise into the air.
This stage, a very necessary one, teaches the pupil, from his own
unaided experience just what movements he must make with his levers to
influence the control surface of the machine, and to maintain it, say,
on a straight path while it runs across the ground. One of the
discoveries he will make is that the biplane, if left to itself, shows
a tendency to swerve a little to the left--the way the propeller is
turning; but this inclination may be corrected, easily, by a movement
of the rudder.

The pupil learns also to accustom himself, while in this stage, to the
engine controls which have been explained already; and he is not
likely to be guilty of the error of one excitable novice who, while
driving his machine back on the ground towards the sheds at an
aerodrome, after his first experience in "rolling" became so confused,
as he saw the buildings looming before him, that he lost his head
completely and forgot to switch off his motor. The result was that the
aeroplane, unchecked in its course, crashed into some railings in
front of the sheds and stood on its head. Not much damage was done
however, and the novice was unhurt. He seemed as surprised as anyone
at what had happened, and confessed that, for the moment, his mind had
been an utter blank.

A pupil continues his practice in "rolling" till he can drive his
machine to a