Wilbur and Orville Wright are men of thirty-nine and thirty-five years of age, respectively. Wilbur was born in Millville, Indiana, and his brother in Dayton, where the family has resided for years. While they were still young boys, their father, Bishop Milton Wright, brought home with him as presents to his sons a couple of specimens of Penaud's Helicoptere, or lifting screws, an an ingenious toy which, operated by rubber cords, is able to raise itself in the air. At once both the boys were fascinated. They took the toy carefully apart, built others like it, and even attempted to build larger models on the same plan. They found, however, that lifting screws materially larger than the original would not fly. And from that time on, the idea of some day solving the problem of flight has been in their minds.

After finishing their studies at the Dayton High School, the Wright brothers entered a printing office in that city and learned the trade of compositors. Later they were for some time employed in the office of The Conservator, a United Brethren church paper, at that time published by their father. With the coming of the bicycle craze, they opened a shop for the sale and repair of wheels, as be

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HELICOPTERE, A SELF-RAISING FLYING TOY.

It first suggested the aeroplane to the Wright brothers.

ing more in line with their natural taste for mechanics. All this time they were earnest students of aëronautics, and they have gathered a large and comprehensive collection of literature on the subject.

For the past four years they have devoted practically all of their time to the perfection of their airship. When it became evident that success was near, if not already accomplished, they received several offers of financial backing, but declined them all, preferring to depend entirely on their own resources.

They live in a modest home in Dayton, with their aged father and one sister,

HE destruction of the city of Naples by volcanic eruption was predicted by John Elfreth Watkins in THE TECHNICAL WORLD MAGAZINE for January, 1905. How nearly that grim prophecy came to fulfillment in April last, all the world knows. For more than a week, Vesuvius rocked and thundered, pouring out streams of lava which destroyed hundreds of lives and ruined property to the estimated value of $20,000,000. For a week the Neapolitan lived in terror,

while thick, sulphurous smoke from the crater turned their gay streets into dark and gloomy canyons, and a rain of brown ashes fell inches thick over all the city.

It is difficult to imagine a more striking and picturesque spectacle than that of the terrified poor of swarming Naples, following in processions through the black and gloomy streets the sacred relics of San Januariús, and calling, with fearstricken voices, upon their patron saint to save them from the death which imminently threatened them.

This last eruption of Vesuvius devel

and, by showing a fine, royal disregard of dangerous conditions, succeeded in quieting the fears of the people and bringing something like order out of the wild riot of dread. King Victor personally visited many of the ruined towns and villages in the zone about the base of the mountain, undergoing great personal risk in order to do what he could to relieve the suffering of his subjects. The Princess of Schleswig-Holstein was another royalty who showed great courage. On April 12 she set out from Naples in her automobile to carry supplies to the injured in the hospitals about the base of the mountain. Her machine finally became disabled, and she was

ster. At imminent and constant risk of his life, Professor Matteucci remained at his post through tens of terrific convulsions, taking observations and making. records, while the floor of the Observatory rocked under his feet and the air was filled with huge stones thrown up by the volcano.

When the eruptions had somewhat subsided, Professor Matteucci made the following statement to a correspondent of the Associated Press:

"I first observed Mount Vesuvius giving unusual signs about a month ago, when the lava began to overflow, taking a southwest direction. This gradually increased as several small lava streams formed into one great current.