the list of impossible things.

But, do you say, "the Creator never intended us to
fly--_therefore_, it is impossible."

For what did the Creator give us skill and boundless perseverance?
Was it designed that we should _swim_, more than that we should
furnish ourselves with wings and mount up as eagles? "We sink like
lead in the mighty waters," we only fall a little faster through the
air.

Still, I grant that the problem of aerial navigation will only be
solved when the principles of flight are clearly understood, and we
recognize precisely what are the obstacles which prevent us from
flying by artificial means.

Will these obstacles prove insuperable? It is at present believed by
the multitude that they will, but I entertain a different opinion,
most decidedly.

From my earliest youth this subject has occupied my thoughts. It
has been the study of my life, and I modestly trust that I have not
questioned nature and science in vain.

In the first place, I undertook to make myself familiar with the
obstacles to be overcome. I found the greatest of these to be gravity.
I found, however, that heavy fowls, who were unable to rise _from
the earth_, and only accomplished flight by taking advantage of an
eminence, sustained themselves without difficulty when once fairly
embarked. I also found that the best flyers were not equal to the feat