Rollo's Philosophy. [Air]. Abbott Jacob
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in that case, it is divided into millions of small particles, by which it is spread out over a great deal of air, and cannot descend without bringing a large portion of the air with it. Men have contrived, on this principle, to make an apparatus to prevent being hurt by falling from great heights."
"What is it?" said Rollo.
"Why, it is called a parachute. It is a sort of umbrella; in fact, it is an umbrella, only made very large. It is folded up, and fastened under a balloon, just over the car, which the man is in. Then, if the balloon bursts, or any other accident happens to it, and the man begins to fall, the parachute opens and spreads, and then the man falls very slowly. The reason is, that the parachute takes hold of a large mass of air, and brings it down with it; and so it cannot descend very fast."
A few days after this, Nathan said to Rollo, as they were playing in the yard, that he wished that he had a parachute.
"I know where there is one," said Rollo.
"A parachute," said Nathan; "a real parachute?"
"Yes," said Rollo, "or, what is the same thing, a great umbrella."
"Is that just the same?" said Nathan.
"Yes," said Rollo; "for father said that a parachute was in fact only a large umbrella; and father has got a large umbrella in the closet, and I have a great mind to go and get it for a parachute."
"But you haven't got any balloon," said Nathan.
"O, no matter for that," said Rollo.
"Then how are you going to get up into the air?" asked Nathan.
"Why, I can climb up on the shed, and jump off that, and hold the umbrella over my head."
Just at this moment, Rollo's cousin James came into the yard, and Rollo ran to him, to explain to him about the parachute. After describing to him the construction of it, and its use by men who go up in balloons, he said he was going to get his father's umbrella, which would make an excellent parachute.
"And then," continued he, "I am going to get upon some high place, and jump off, and hold the parachute over my head, and then I shall come down as light as a feather."
"O Rollo," said James, "I don't believe you will."
"Yes I shall," said Rollo: "you see the parachute is expanded, and so brings down a great deal of air with it, and this makes it come very slowly. Air is a real thing, James, and it keeps the parachute back a great deal."
"James and Nathan both ran towards him, thinking that he must be hurt."—Page 37.
So Rollo ran off after the umbrella, very much interested in proving to James, by actual experiment, that the air was a real thing. When he came with it, he was himself inclined to make the first experiment from the low side of the shed. He could climb up, by means of a fence at the corner. James advised him, however, to try it first from the end of a woodpile, which was pretty high, but yet not so high as the shed. James was not quite sure that the experiment would succeed, and he was afraid that Rollo might get hurt.
Rollo said that he was not afraid to jump off the shed. He knew the parachute would bear him up. He did not believe but that he could jump off the house with it; and, at any rate, he could jump off the shed, he knew. He accordingly clambered up, and, taking his station upon the eaves, he spread the umbrella over his head, and then jumped off.
Down he came with great violence; his cap flew off in one direction, and his umbrella rolled away in another, as he had to put out both his hands, to save himself, when he reached the ground. As it was, he came down upon all fours, and in such a way, that James and Nathan both ran towards him, thinking that he must be hurt.
"Did you hurt yourself, Rollo?" said James.
"No," said Rollo, "not much."
"I don't think the umbrella did you much good."
"No," said Rollo, as he got up rubbing his elbows, "it didn't, and I don't see what the reason is."
"You came down just as hard as you would without it."
"Yes," said Nathan, "and he almost broke his back; I don't believe the air is any real thing at all."
The fact was, that the umbrella did do some good. Rollo did not come down quite so hard as he would have done without it. It retarded his descent a little. But it was not large enough to enable him to descend in safety. When his father said that a parachute was in fact only a large umbrella, he meant a great deal larger than Rollo had supposed. A parachute, such as is used with balloons, is a great deal larger than any umbrella that ever was made.
QUESTIONS
What was Nathan's wish, after he had read his father something out of his book? Did he think that he could fly if he had wings? Did his father think so? What deficiency did his father think was even more important than that of wings? Did Nathan think that a boy was stronger than a bird? Is a boy absolutely stronger than a bird? Is he relatively stronger? What is the meaning of relatively stronger? Would a man be strong enough to work wings that were sufficiently large to bear him up into the air? Would there be any great difficulty in constructing wings for him if he were strong enough?
Is any visible substance lighter than air? What would be the consequence if any of the loose substances about the earth's surface were light enough? What are clouds composed of? What difficulty did Rollo's father point out, in regard to their floating in the air? What is a parachute? Describe Rollo's experiment with the umbrella.
CHAPTER III.
VALVE MAKING
One morning, when Rollo awaked, he heard a sharp clicking against the window.
"Nathan," said he, "Nathan, I believe there is a snow-storm."
But Nathan was too sleepy to hear or understand.
Rollo looked up, but there was a curtain against the window, and he could not see very well. He listened. He heard a low, moaning sound made by the wind, and a continuance of the sharp clicking which he had heard at first.
When he had got up, and dressed himself, he found that there was a violent snow-storm. At first he was glad of it, for he liked snow-storms. But then, pretty soon, he was sorry, for it had been winter a long time, and he was impatient for the spring.
After breakfast, he and Nathan read and studied for two hours, under their mother's direction. When they were released from these duties, Rollo proposed to Nathan that they should go out into the shed, and see how the storm came on. There was a large door in the shed, opening towards the street, where they could stand, protected from the wind, and see the drifts of snow.
They accordingly put on their caps, and went. They found that the snow was pretty deep. It was heaped up upon the fence and against the windows; and there was a curious-shaped drift, with the top curled over in a singular manner, running along from the corner of the shed towards the garden gate.
"Ah," says Rollo, "when it clears up, I mean to go and wade through it."
"And I too," said Nathan.
"O Nathan," said Rollo, "it is over your head."
"Hark!" said Nathan; "who is that pounding in the barn?"
"It is Jonas, I suppose," said Rollo. "I mean to go out and see what he is doing."
"How are you going to get there?" said Nathan.
"O, I can put on my boots," said Rollo, "and go right out through the snow."
"I wish I could go," said Nathan.
"Well," said Rollo, "I can carry you on my back."
Nathan clapped his hands at this proposal, being doubly pleased at the prospect of both getting into the barn to see what Jonas was doing, and also of having a ride, on the way.
So Rollo put on his boots, while Nathan went and got Rollo his straps, to fasten his pantaloons around them. When all was ready, Rollo sat down upon the step of the door, in order that Nathan might get on