By Dan Beard
Fig. 18.
Fish Kite.
Cut two straight pine sticks; shave them down until they are thin enough to bend readily; see that they are exactly the same length and of about the same weight. Fasten the top ends together by driving a pin through them.
Fig. 17.
Frame of Fish Kite.
Bend each stick in the form of a bow, and hold them in this position until you have secured a third stick across them at right angles about one-third the way down from the top, or ends where they are joined together. The fish should be about half as broad as it is long.
Let the lower ends of the side or bow sticks cross each other far enough up to form a tail to the fish, and fasten the sticks together at their intersection. Before stringing the frame see that the cross-stick protrudes an equal distance from each side of the fish. To make the tail, tie a string across the bottom from the end of one cross-stick to the end of the other, and to this string midway between the two side-sticks tie another string, pass it up to the root of the tail, draw it taut and fasten it there at the intersection of the side-sticks; this will make a natural hooking-fork to the caudal fin (Fig. 17).
The remainder of the strings can be put on by referring to The diagram, care being taken that the dorsal or back-fin is made exactly the same size as the fin on the belly of the fish. Yellow, red, and green are all appropriate colors for the paper covering of this kite. After the paper is pasted and dry you may amuse yourself by painting the outlines of the gills and fins (Fig. 18).
The kite will look all the better for not having the scales painted upon it. Tie the strings of the breast-band to the side-sticks near the head and tail, and let them cross each other as in a common kite. Attach the tail-band to the tail of the fish.
