The Bird Soaring Against the Wind
Wings arched hollow to the sky, the tail balancing it to prevent overturning
The note describes a bird rising against the wind without beating its wings: it stretches and raises its wings into an arch with the hollow toward the sky, always taking the wind under the wings as it wheels. This would tip it over were it not that the tail, its corner turned to the wind, opposes with equal and contrary power, so that the tail lowers and the bird lifts in front. A pen sketch of a bird gliding upward on outstretched wings, with streaming hatch-lines of wind, sits at the upper right.
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Soaring without beating the wings
Rising by favour of the wind and without wing-beats, the bird spreads and raises its wings into an arch, hollow turned to the sky, and in wheeling always takes the wind beneath the wings.
The tail balances the wing against overturning
Taking wind under the wings would overturn the bird, but the tail, its corner turned to the wind beneath it, acts with a contrary power. Tempered so that wing and tail have equal powers, the tail partly lowers while the bird lifts somewhat in front.
Sketch of a bird climbing on the wind
At the upper right a bird is drawn gliding upward on outstretched wings, with hatched lines streaming behind it to indicate the wind it rides.