Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1858-10-16
BALLOON FATALITIES.


The recent unfortunate and probably fatal bal
loon ascension of Mr.. Thurston, which has Great
ed such a painful interest throughout the country,
has also brought out. through the columns OF the
Newspaper press, many scraps of history connec,
ted with balloon travelling. The Providence Jour
nat complies quite n list of fatalities, and adds
that 1t does not know of one distinguished aero,
naut that has not met with a violent death by
means of n balloon
Among the first who commenced these voyages
were Nj. Pilatre and M. Roman, of France
They made an ascent from Boulogne, June IS,
1885, with q Montgolfcr Balloon. a fire being
kindled underneath, and the balloon ascending
by means of rarifed air. At an amazing height
the balloon took fire, burned the cords by which
the car was suspended, and the unhappy oc.
cupants were precipitated to the earth, dashing
them to pieces in a mlnaer too shocking TO men.
ton.
M, Zambeccarri, accompanied by a friend,
made IN ascent from the same place. Sep. 9, 1872.
On his descent, che balloon became entangled in
the branches Of a high tree, and ere it could be
disengaged, caught fire. The eronauts leaped
out. Zambeccari was killed on the spot, ard M.
' u IL " llLIt.
About the sam time a mechanician. named
Blttorf, assembled from Marheim. AT a consider,
able height, he perceived too late that his vehicle
was damaged. He opened the valve, decenaed
with great velocity, and was dashed in pieces
against o house.
Madame Blancharde assembled from Tivoll, JULY
9Th, 1873, during the progress of a .fae there.
AT the height of four hundred feet. her balloon
caught fire. She was precipitated upon the pave.
ment and instantly killed.
MIR. Harris a very experienced aronaut, was
killed May Oath 1894. lie went up from CITY
road, London. AT the height of two miles, he
commenced to descend very rapidly, was precipi.
tated to the earth and dashed to pieces.
A Mr.. Green assembled from Cardiff, July 18th
l849. His body was found some time after, on
the Flat.House shoals, in the centre of Bristol
Channel.
NJ. Arban, a celebrated French aronaut ascen-
ded from Barcelona, in Sep, 1913, Nothing was
heard of him till the middle Of November,
when his body was found near Rosas.
Lieut.. Gale assembled from the IIippodrome OF
Vincennes, on Sunday, Sep. Sth, 1850. Some DAYS
subsequently,, the body was found in a clump of
hOiho us iIhuo III IHutlldtcu, the lace
completely eaten away by dogs and other wild an.
imals. lie had previously met with several mar
row escapes.
james Goulston made an ascent in the evening
from the Bellevue Gardens, June, Cd 1852. The
balloon was a new one, forty feet high, thirty.
three feet in diameter, holding twenty three thou.
sand cubic feet of gas. 1t being cloudy at the
time, the car was lost to view in two minutes.
He fell from his vshicle in attempting to descend
at the town OF Lees a considerable quantity of
blood and brains, s%pattered over a wall, marking
the spot where he struck the earth.
Mr.. Knight assembled from Bombay, December
18th, 1852, in the presence of a large concourse of
natives, amongst whom was the Rajah of Oar, who
promised the eronaut two hundred rupees, if he
went up and came down again, of which the Ra.
jah seemed to entertain great doubts. The balloon
travelled straight out to sea, and Mr.. knight has
not since been heard from.
10 September, 1851, NJ. Merle and a companion
were carried off by a balloon that broke from its
mornings. They assembled to such a height tina,
Merle was frozen to death, and the other descend.
ed in the greatest peril.
Mr.. Timothy Winchester made an ascent from
Norfolk, Ohio, in August, 1855, starting in good
spirits, and amid the cheers of a large concourse
of people since ahieh time he has aeper been heard
from. He may have gone on an excursion to the
North Star, as the last seen of him he was pas
sing rapidly over Lake Erie.