By STEVE HATHCOCK
During the spring and summer, the skies above South Padre Island become dotted with the kites of vacationers and kite-boarding enthusiasts.
Historians argue about who actually invented the kite. The concept seems to have floated up (pun intended) in several societies almost simultaneously, but the Chinese were first to use the kite for more than ceremonial occasions.
In 200 B.C., General Han Hsin commanded an army of rebels attempting to dethrone a tyrannical emperor. They faced a despot and an army that appeared invulnerable behind the towering ramparts and stone walls surrounding the capital. Outnumbered and only lightly armed, the rebels needed a decisive victory.
Hsin built a kite and flew it over the city until it hung directly above the palace. After measuring the string, Hsin was able to determine exactly how long a tunnel would be needed to bring the rebel forces within the walls of the palace. Digging by night to escape detection, the rebels finally broke into the undefended courtyard. The surprise was complete and the evil emperor was overthrown.
The Chinese were also the first to send men into the sky. During the Mongol invasion, large kites carried warriors aloft where they would pepper the invaders with arrows.
Marco Polo introduced the concept of the kite to Europe when he described how the shipping merchants would tie a man to a huge kite and launch it before the fleet set sail. If the kite went high and straight, it meant a quick and prosperous voyage but if it crashed or did not fly well, it was a bad omen. Interestingly though, no mention was made of the fate of the airborne sailor.
In 1847, the people of Niagara Falls decided that a bridge spanning the great gorge would be a big boost to the local economy. The technology to build the bridge existed, but the engineers were at a loss as to how to get the first line across the gorge. The steep cliffs, mighty rapids and frigid swirling winds hindered any conventional methods such as rockets or mountain climbers. Then someone had a brilliant idea. The string of a kite flown to the far side of the river could be used to pull that important first line across.
A contest was duly announced. Dozens and then hundreds of kite-toting people showed up on the given day, including 16 year old Homan Walsh. The prevailing winds were from the Canadian side, so Walsh had to first travel downriver and cross over on a ferry. He hiked to the site chosen by the engineer which of course, was the narrowest part of the gorge, where he quickly launched his kite, aptly named “the Union,” into the air.
Deftly maneuvering his wrists, Walsh sent the kite high into the sky. He practically danced as he dipped and pulled on the string, maneuvering the “Union” across the river where it merrily headed towards the southern banks of the raging river. He released more and more line and as the kite ascended, he steered it toward the distant shore. With his kite flying high over the cliffs, Walsh assumed that all he had to do was wait until sunset when the winds would subside and his kite would begin to drop. Unfortunately, sunset came but the kite remained aloft.
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