Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1859-07-22


some ono aboard Of her very quantity cried
aloud TO us That is the lake ahead Of you.
Mt LaMountan cried back, lis it Lake
Erie ?" and the answer was. "Nes it is. and
you had better look out" Our good friend,
the propeller, finding that we discarded his
kindness, rounded off again, sounded us
cood-bve with his steam whistle, and went
his way up the river.
Here we mounted up until the balloon got
full. and the barometer fell to %. in order to
make along near the southern shore Of the
lake. but at Mr.. LaMourtains suggestion
that we could make tic city of Buffalo by
sailing but few hundred feet above the sur
face Of the water, / opened the valve until
we gradually sank to within five hundred feet
Of the water. Here we found gentle gale
Of about speed Of mile per minute. and
VIC resolved to float on it until we should
hcave in sight Of Buffalo. and then rise and
sail over It, This was a most interesting part
of our Voyuge We overlook seven steam
boats. passed mutual salutations. and would
soon leave them fitting on the horizon in our
rear. one Of these lonely travellers remark
cd as we passed him, "You arc going it like
thunder" At 1920 a. NJ. we were skirting
along the Canada shore, and passed near the
mouth Of the Welland canal. and soon began
TO mount for our most easterly current, as
TO take Buffalo in our track. but we circled
up into it between Buffalo and Niagara Falls,
crossing Grand Island, leaving Buffalo to the
righs and Lockport TO the left Of us in our
onward course. Finding ourselves in the
State Of New York, but too far north to make
the city Of New York, it was agreed that we
SHOULD make landing near Rochester. de-
zach the boat. leave out Mr.. Gager and Mr..
Tl,.,ln al NJ I M ,,ya.lf
sue the voyage to point at Boston or Port
land.
Accordingly we descended gradually, but
before we got within a thousand feet Of the
earth we found terrific gale sweeping along
below. The woods roared like host OF
Niagaras, the surface Of the earth was filled
with clouds Of dust. and / told my friends
certain destruction awaited us if we should
touch the earth in that tornado. The huge
Atlantic was making terrific sweep earth
ward already were we near the tops Of the
trees Of tall forest, and cried out, some
what excitedly, For Gods sake heave over
board anything you can lay your hands on.
La Mountain and in another moment he re-
sponded, all right, standing on the side of
the boat. with shaft and wheels, intended
for the working of the fan wheels, and ready
to heave it over should it become necessary.
Mr.. Hyde looked up to my car, and very
solcmnly said, This is an exciting time, Pro-
fessor. What shall we do" Trust to
Providence and all our energies, said l. We
were fast raining on to Lake Ontario, and
o! how terribly it was foaming. moaning and
bowling ] said, LA Mountain, have one
hundred and fifty pounds Of ballast in my
car yet, and heavy valise, an express bag.
(sent to the United States Express Compa-
ny's Office in Broadway, New York, and a
lot Of provisions"
well. if that won't do, | will cut up the
boat for ballast, and we can keep above wa
ter until We reach the opposite shore, which
was near hundred miles off in the direction
we were then going. Here handed my bal
last down to LaMountain. as we were rapidly
mounting above the terrific gale, believing
that by that course we should at least get out
of its main track.
Every thing now indicated that we should
perish in the water or the land and oul
only salvation was to keep afoat until we got
out of the gale, if we could. | said. .'You
must all get into the basket if you want to
be saved. should we ever reach the land. And
truly tell you that the perils of the
land are even more terrible than those
of the water with our machines ; and it woulc
pS tANlti w lucel htdtH ny uIOWHlllR Lndn u
have our bodies mangled by dashing agains
rocks and trees By this time Mr.. Gagel
and Mr.. Hyde had cambered into the bas
ket with me. Mr.. Hyde said very cooly
81 am prepared to die, but would rather di,
on land than in the water said, "Wha
do you say, Mr. eager y He replied, :"
would rather meet it on land but do as yo,
think best" Mr.. LaMountain was busil,
engaged in collecting what he could for bal
last. Every thing was now valuable to u
that had weight Our rpet-bags, our in
struments, the express bag, our provisions
were all ready to go, and go they did, on
after another, until we were reduced to tn
express bag that went overheard at last
We now deserted the shore, some fort
miles ahead, peering between a sombre banl
OF clouds and the water horizon but WI
were sweeping at fearful rate upon the tur
bulent water, and in another moment crasl
went the boat upon the water sidewise, stav
ing in two of the planks. and giving on
whole craft Two fearful jerks by two succeed
ing waves LaMountain stuck to the boa
like hero, but lost his hat and got dash c
the waves but soon recovered, and thre,
over the express bag and the last remanin
ballast, and cried out. BE easy, gentlemen
I'll have her ahoat once more In anothe
moment we were up few hundred feet agar
and the steam propeller Young America wa
lacking across our track.
now proposed to swamp the boat an
balloon in the lake. aud trust to being pickle
up by the Young America; but the desir
was that we should make the shore and TT
the land and. as we crossed the bow of tn
steamer, they gave us hearty hurrah.
Mountain had now cut out of the boat all b
could,and we were within fifteen miles of III
shore, the gale still raging below. La Noun
ain might have remained IN the boat below an
JUMBO at the first touching the earth, an
/ saw no improperly in that, as then we migl
have had another hour or two to wait the In
ling of the gale but he said he would shal
our fate, and he also clambered into the ba
ket just as we were reaching the land
! saw by the swaying 10 and fro of the loft
trees, into which we must inevitably dasl
that our worst perls were a; hand, but sti
had blind hope that we would be saved.
ordered two men upon the valve rope, and "
struck within a hundred yards of the waite
among some scattered trees, our hook, whic
was of inch and quarter iron, breaking lii