Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1859-07-14

multitude.
The weather was in every respectA
and an admirable start was made.
As has been stated by telegraph, the balloon
landed near the village of Adams, in Jefferson
county N. T., on Saturday afternoon, July ID,
at twenty minutes past two O'Clock.
Mr. Wise has furnished u very interesting re-
port of the voyage, from which we make some
extracts MIR. Wise says the charge Of the bal
loon for the night was given to MIR. La Noun
tain and be coled himself up in blankets and
went to sleep lie was unconscious until III. 80
P. NJ, when Mr., La Mountain wishing Mr..
Wise assistance, he WAS found nearly smother
ed by the escaping gas. Says Mr. Wise:
j." At midnigh felt quite well, with an in
vigorated spirit of observation and interest in
our experiment. The whole dome Of heaven
was lit up with mellow phosphorescent light,
the stars shonc with u chrystaline brilliancy,
and the milky way looked like an Illuminated
stratum of cumulus clouds. Whenever we
crossed water the heaven-lit dome was as visible
below by reflection us above. So remarkable
was this phosphorescent light of the atmosphere
that the balloon looked translucent, and looked
like light shining through oiled paper We
could also tell prairie from forest, and by keep
ing the eye for moment downward we could
see the roads, fences, fields, and even houses
quite distinctly at any elevation not over mile,
and even at the greatest elevation we could dis
Germ prairie from woodland, and from water.
Whenever we halloed it was followed by a
distinct echo, and even this served as a dlfferen-
tial index to hight. We always found re-
Spouse in numerous bowwow-wows, and these,
too, were always Indicative of the fullness and
sparseness of the habitations below, as we could
hear them for many miles around us
Of the conclusion Of the voyage, Mr.. Wise
gives the following account
At A. M. Saturday, we came to a general
conclusion that we were somewhere over the
State of Indiana or Ohio. At A. M. we
passed a city, but could not make it out, but
at A. M. we discovered Lake Erie ahead of us,
and then concluded that the city we left little
south Of our track must have been Fort Wayne.
At 5 A. NJ. we passed Toledo, and about an
hour afterward we lowered on the margin of
the lake, a little north Of Sandusky. After a
few moments consultation, and review If our
ballast, we determined to risk the length of
Lake Erie, and to test the notion that balloons
cannot be kept long over water, because of some
peculiar affinity of the two-a notion thatnever
had any belief with me. Just as we merged
upon the lake, a little steam screw that was
propelling up river or bay headed for our
track, and some one aboard of her very quaint
ly cried aloud to us: g That is the lake ahead
Of you Mr.. La Mountain cried back, is
it Lake Erie? " and the answer was, 6 Yes, it
is, and you had better look out" Our good
friend the propeller, finding that we discarded
his kindness, rounded off again, sounded US a
good bye 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.. La Mountain suggestion, that we
could make the city of Buffalo by sailing but a
few hundred feet above the surface of the water
opened the valve until we gradually sank to
within 500 feet of the water. Here we found "a
gentle gale OF about speed of mile per min
ute, and we resolved to float on until we should
hcave in sight of Buffalo, and then rise and
sail over it. This was the most interesting part
Of OF voyage. We overlook seven steamboats,,
passed mutual salutations, and would soon leave
them fitting on the horizon in our rear. One
of these lonely travellers remarked, as we passed
him, - You are going 1t like thunder At 10
20 A. NJ, we were skirting along the Canada
SHOEc, uuu ptSScu utui liIC luOuVh Vi phO w vi
land Canal, and soon began to mount for our
more easterly current, so as to take Buffalo in
our track but we circled up into it between
Buffalo and Niagara Falls, crossing Grand Is
land, leaving Buffalo to the right and Lockport
to the left OF us in our onward course. Find
ing ourselves in the State of New York, but too
far north to make the city Of New York it was
agreed that we would make a landingN =
ester, dctach the boat, aeays "a W.
MIR. Hyde, and MgSSI
land.
Accordingly we - *
fore we got within a thousand feet 0fTN4
We found most terrific gale sweeping along be-
low. The woods roared like a host OF Niagaras
the surface of the earth was filled with clouds Of
dust, and told my friends that certain destruc-
ton awaited us if we should touch the earth in
that torn do. The huge" Atlantic was MAX
ing terrific sweep earthward already were We
near the tops of the trees OF II tall forest, and
cried out somewhat excitedly, 8 For God S sake
heaye oveaboard anything you can lay your
hands on, La Mountain ana in another mo-
ment he responded " All right, standing on
the side of the boat with shaft and wheels, in
tended for the working of the fan wheels, and
ready to heavc it over should it become nee
essary.
Mr.. Hyde looked up to my car, and very sol
emily said, " This is an exciting time, Profess
or. What shall we do? . " Trust to Provi-
dence and all our energies" said |. We were
fast running on to Lake Ontario, and }! how
terribly it was ioaming, moaning and bowling.
| said, " LII Mountain, have one hundred and
fifty pounds of ballast i'll my car yet, and a
heavy valiSe, an express bag, (sent to the U. s.
Express Companys Oilich, in Broadway, New
York y and lot of provisions.
"Well, if that won't do, will cut up the
the boat for ballast, and we can keep above
water until We reach the opposite shore, y which
was near II hundred miles off IN the direction we
were then going.
Here handed my ballast down to La Noun
tain, as We were rapidly mounting above the
terrific gale, believing that by that course we
should at least get out of its main track.
Everything now indicated that we should
perish in the water or on the land; and our
only salvation was to keep aaoat until VIC got
out of the gale, if we could. | said, p" You
must all get into the basket if you want to be
saved, should we ever reach the land. And |