As to the effect of the wave on the air, we will suppose the water to be quite flat and the air motionless, a heavy undulation comes on the scene, it has to pass, so it pushes the air up with its face, letting it fall again as its back glides onwards.

He accepted a place on the Ellesmere and circumnavigated Australia. Work on the rotary engine which powered many early aircraft up until about 1920. His development of the rotary engine was frustrated by the weight of materials and quality of machining available at the time and he was unable to get sufficient lift from his engines to build an independent flying machine.