bout three months later. In the flight he passed over hills,
valleys, rivers, villages, and woods on his journey from Chalons to
Rheims, which he accomplished in twenty minutes.

In the early models of the Voisin machine there were fitted between the
two main planes a number of vertical planes, as shown clearly in the
illustration facing p. 160. It was thought that these planes would
increase the stability of the machine, independent of the skill of the
operator, and in calm weather they were highly effective. Their great
drawback, however, was that when a strong side wind caught them the
machine was blown out of its course.

Subsequently Farman considerably modified the early-type Voisin biplane,
as shown by the illustration facing p. 160. The vertical planes were
dispensed with, and thus the idea of automatic stability was abandoned.

But an even greater distinction between the Farman biplane and that
designed by the Wrights was in the adoption of a system of small movable
planes, called AILERONS, fixed at extremities of the main planes,
instead of the warping controls which we have already described. The
ailerons, which are adapted to many of our modern aeroplanes, are really
balancing flaps, actuated by a control lever at the right side of the
pilot's seat, and the principle on which they are worked is very similar
to that employed in the warp system of lateral stability.

CHAPTER XXX. A Famous British Inventor

About the time that M. Bleriot was developing his monoplane, and Santos
Dumont was astonishing the world with his flying feats at Bagatelle,
a young army officer was at work far away in a secluded part of the
Scottish Highlands on the model of an aeroplane. This young man was
Lieutenant J. W. Dunne, and his name has since been on everyone's
lips wherever aviation is discussed. Much of Lieutenant Dunne's early
experimental work was done on the Duke of Atholl's estate, and the
story goes that such great secrecy was observed that "the tenants were
enrolled as a sort of bodyguard to prevent unauthorized persons from
entering". For some time the War Office helped the inventor with money,
for the numerous tests and trials necessary in almost every invention
before satisfactory results are achieved are very costly.

Probably the inventor did not make sufficiently rapid progress with
his novel craft, for he lost the financial help and goodwill of the
Government for a time; but he plodded on, and at length h