Southern Argus. [volume] (Columbus, Miss.) 1834-1842, 1842-04-26
TO THE CITIZENS OF MOBILE


Ladies' and gentlemen:-
| cannot but suppose, from the feel
ing manifested by you | had surmoun
ted, and the periIs | had encountered,
that a description Of my arial excursion
and adventures would be required by
you. Aoated away from you, it wan
Ting few minutes Of - o'clock with
feelings of such delight as new
err mortal felt. 1t was my pride, my
old celebrity at stake-,twas all | ask
ed, the wish to make yon see that |
knew my business; and had no intent,
in my late unfortunate attempt TO de-
ceive you. Ny ecstacy was without
bounds; it had wiped away the stg
OF being pointed at, as one whose wish
was to deceive the public. | had fell
filed M promise, aud as pure in mind
as the ETHEREAL air hoated in, scared
in the air and laved in the mi list of the
cloud. At - o'clock, wishing to pass
into the clouds, | threw out a bag OF
ballast, weighing Is lbs. Immediate
| y on doing which, and noticing that
was approaching the river, was com
PEELED also to send off the parachute
with my last companion, the quadru
ped. | saw it floating onward toward
the earth, and have learned since tina
it reached in safety its mother earth
AT about 10 o'clock, still having grea
ascensive power,I found the wind hau
ling to the northward, at 1.30 wide
n. w. had then crossed tn river
; tributary to the Alabama, and founC
myself bound towards Florida; at thi
time endeavored to ascertain the di
? , recton from compass, was pursuing
= but found it no avail; my balloon haC
a very great rotary motion, and as
. turned so did my compass, without it
I. magnetic influence tending northward
. | had always desired to soar to as grea
an elevation as it is possible to arriv
Z at, and having upwards of 90 lbs, as
, censive power, determined TO gratif
= my wish. Away l sped-continuall
ascending--leavlng the clouds as "a
. beneath me as they were above m
when | started. now began to fee
" cold, large drops. of perspiration oozin
from my skin, and tingling sound i
, my ears, as if something cracking i
:, my head, a vacant feeling and Difficult
= = ty of respiration-now very cold.-
,, The water in my bottle freezing,
!, took hold ofit,in order to try if a drin
q would calm my nauseating feeling; til
% neck stuck to my hand, and drew tn
T skin off as if blistered by fire. SG
e uneasy, the drops of persplration liza
turned to liquid matter resembling ye
j. - low oiI-my tongue became swolleI
u my nails aud teeth were loosened, an
: every joint in me and all my energit
appeared relaxed. | looked up, an
" saw the gas rushing fom the neck
:, my balloon, and endeavoring to ope
W. W. my valve to effect its escape, but ha
~ had not strength to accomplish it.
=; feared the result, and was not kept lor
i in suspense. l judged myself. at til
~ time six miles high when the balloC
was rent on the top. Away went Il
;; gas! Can describe my feelings at tn
Ir moment! No, no! as whirling down
~ came, with feeling as if the who
y system was driving to my head, | e
9'' tered dense cloud, the substance
~ - which rushed past me with whizzir
a. sound, like steam from the escape pi
,, OF an engine. The clouds were som
:" what warmer than the air above, whi
=. considerably terminated me. Loo
- ing, saw the balloon was forced ha
!. against the netting from atmospher