taining the speed of the machine
through the air, and so preserving his command over its controls. A
beautifully-timed, fine glide, the machine stealing down gracefully,
and touching the aerodrome light as a feather, at a precise spot the
airman has decided on even when he was several thousand feet high, is
a delightful spectacle for the onlooker, and a keen pleasure
also--from the point of view of his manipulative skill--to the aviator
himself. But a pupil, at any rate in his first attempts, must not
concern himself too much with any idea of a fine or graceful glide. It
is his business to get to the ground safely, and not trouble too much
whether his method is accomplished, or merely effective. Once with the
bow of his machine down, and his motor switched off, it must be his
concern to maintain the forward speed of his machine, which can be
done only by holding it well on its dive. For the novice, if he
attempts any fine or fancy gliding, there is the very real danger that,
in his inexperience, he may lose forward speed to such an extent that
his controls become inoperative, and his machine threatens to
side-slip. One's ear should, apart from the inclination of the machine,
and the sensation of the descent, help one materially in judging the
speed of a glide. There is a "swish" that comes to the ear, now the
engine is no longer making its clamour, which gives a guide to the
pace of one's downward movement. Aviators who are skilled, and have
done a large amount of flying, are able to judge with accuracy, by the
ear alone and without the aid of a mechanical indicator, what their
speed is as they pass through the air.

[Illustration: PUPIL AND INSTRUCTOR IN FLIGHT (3). _Photo by Topical
Press Agency._

Here the pupil is descending in a glide with his engine stopped, the
cylinders of the rotary motor being clearly visible.]

Having held his machine firmly on its glide, till it is quite near the
surface of the aerodrome, the pupil has next to think of making a neat
contact with the ground. The art here is, at a moment which must be
gauged accurately, to check the descent of the machine by a movement
of the elevator--to "flatten out," as the expression goes. If the
movement is made neatly the craft should, when only a few feet from
the ground, change from a descent into horizontal flight, and continue
on this horizontal flight for a short distance, losing speed naturally
each moment--seeing that there is no drivin