The Coney Island Birdman

found this strange story from the new york times in 1880, wasnt sure wether to put it here or the jokes section. anyway i thought it was a fun read you might like.
query.nytimes.com...

(an easier to read version)
www.devilspenny.com...

Wow, when you read the article it makes you really believe its true,

the way the journalist goes on about how

a normal aeronaut would have behaved etc is mad, haha he paints the picture of a scientific

bad guy out of a bond film.

Ive heard of the cony island bird man before but I'd never seen this bit of history myself.


I was glad to see it.

reply to post by lacrimosa


My initial thought was the Jersey Devil was a wee bit off course then read on that it was seen over St Louis & Kentucky. What made me really chuckle was the reference to an "aerial criminal". If this did occur what was the crime, wearing a "cruel & determined expression" & how was he a "flying villain"?
Thanks for the amusing read, good find!!

oh no its mothman...!!!

second line

In no instance has it been known to alight, and no one has seen it at a lower elevation than a thousand feet above the surface of the earth. It is without a doubt the most extraordinary and wonderful object that has ever been seen, and there should be no time lost in ascertaining its precise nature, habits, and probable mission.

lmao!

Who is this adventurous flyer and what is his object?

Why has not the inventor patented his invention and had himself duly written up by the press? The reason is obvious. The flying man is engaged in some under taking which he cannot safely proclaim. In other words, he is an aerial criminal, a fact which explains the cruelty and determination visible on his countenance, and what can be the nefarious object which this probable wretch has in view? It cannot be simply theft and robbery, for it would manifestly be impossible for him, in his flying costume, to perpetrate burglary or highway robbery, or to pick pockets. It cannot be plumbing, for obvious reasons, neither can it be the sale of books published by subscription only. Yet the flying villain must have an object, and we have a right to assume that only a peculiarly nefarious object could induce a man to fly to New-Jersey or St. Louis in hot weather and without an umbrella or mosquito net.

(www.devilspenny.com...)

Thank you - that story was awesome

Now, if there is a man in this country whose arms and legs are fitted to endure the muscular strain inseparable from the act of flying, that man is Mr. Talmage. He has preached for years with those graceful limbs, and must have developed and hardened their muscles to an extent which would fill every other professional acrobat with envy. What is more probable than that Mr. Talmage has equipped himself with wings in order to ...

Comedy gold.

reply to post by lacrimosa
I remember reading about this in one of the very first paranormal books i ever bought,i think it was called "creatures of the outer edge" and its kind of similar to the "cornwall owl man" and the "bat lady of vietnam" who swooped down from the night sky and flew over soldiers during the vietnam war...

These things must be entering into our reality from another dimension,or they are purposefully placed into our reality by someones or somethings to test our reactions to them and their reactions to us and our enviornment...

These flying humanoids have always fascinated and frightened me and they have been seen a lot more than people might think...Flying Fiends > sites.google.com...