Mineral Point weekly tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1859-1868, 1863-07-15
Balloon Ascension In Mnw,nI..

The balloon ascension of Prof. Srx1rpp
accompanied by Mr.. STRICKLAND. Book.
seller, and Mr. E D. CoLE, ticket agent of
the Detroit aud Milwaukee Railway Com.
pany, was complete success. The bal.
| loon was one of the largest ever seussup
| in this country, and was capable Of hold
| ing As, 600 cubic feet of gas. Thew ascend.
ed about 1900 teet, in a most baa,,ifn,
style. The balloon landed in the laka hn1re
was taken ashore all in safety. Mr.. SrR:oK(
LAND furnished an account of his ssnsa.
tions during the trip for the Wicconstn.
which we copy as follows:
NOVICE IN A MISREPRESENTATION.
Who can describe the sensations of a
novice during his first experience in bal
| looniDgs
| Does the pen exist which can do justice
| TO the tunultous and conflicting sensa-
tons OF the aerial voyager, when he first
| realizes that all the ties which connect
| him with the earth are positively SANDER
| ed that henceiorth his own voiition
must be surrendered, and he must DRIFT.
| DRIFT, DRIFT, at the will OF power in which
so strangely yet so cOuhdlugly he Is will
| Jag TO repose.
In The first few seconds during which
the buildings and other objects around
| him are apparently Tetredting, the novice
Will feel some little trepidatIon; all, Is 20
new, untried and strange. This reehug,
however will last but II few seconds the
grandeur OF the Gene below, soon dissi--
pates ali thought OF self; and his whole
soul is entirely absorbed, III drinking In
Its beauty and subnmlty /; and IN aDaiyZ-
| ing the immense variety OF objects 50 sud-
| denly opened to his TI4w.
| That sea of ten thousand upturned faces,
/ the variegatsd raimenJ OF the spectators,
| those streets which look like narrow paths
IN a garden, those patches OF green verdure
| amongst brownlsh roofs OF buildings, that
streak of Furnished silver which he knows
| to be the Milwaukee rlver, that immense
mirror, Lake Michigan, that looking glass,
Lake Pewaukee, that piece OF rope laid
across the marsh, which he knows Is the
Chicago railway track, tLst bed Quilt, off
to the southwest, known as fields and
farms, that brown spot called the city of
Racine, and many, many other objects can
never be erased from the memory of the
novice who sees them hut once.
All these soon become diumer aud dim
mer fainter and fsinter as lie drifts over
the lake and ascends some seven thousand
|
dim, hazy and obscure. Oppressive, anfuk
stiffness reigns supreme, awe Is the best
word he can select to define bis feelings
n0W. He will want to sit in perfect ST.
leEce; to do SO Is rapture. Ii he speak,
his voice does not sound as If il came from
his lips, but as though 1t were buried IN
his chest a strange voice, deep base, not
his own In any sense. Tue sound OF hi5
comrades voice does not come from the
customary place, but is located above
about twenty or thirty fest distant.
As the balloon goes higher and higher,
that bur- buz, buz in his ear, accompanied
by dull pressure on the interior of that
organ, Is very disagreeabe. His wish
now, will be to descend and thus rid him.
self OF the annoyance. The balloon,
which though some what faccid when be
started on the trip, Is new tall. taut round
and symmetrical.
The line is pulled which leads to the
valve at the top of the balloon, ard a por-
ton of the gas is permitted to escape
Soon that buz and disagreeable pressure
| of which he has complained ceases the
atmosphere appears less hszy; the shore
line OF the lake, which had almost been
| lost, becomes palmer and palmer, and he
Is soon conscious that he is descending.
though none of his senses have given the
| slightest indication that there has been any
motion, however small, except the fact
! that he breathes more freely aud does not
Low feel that buz in his car.
! In this Instance the decent was quite
rapid, as the @ronaut Steiner was deelrous
| t. attest certain principles In 9roStatiop,
| which have been the subjects OF his study
and research /; and which be now wished
to illustrate by positive experiment.
| m good 1o
made public, and his companions IN this
trip, will be called on to verify as witness
IS the success Of his practical application
OF d new principle discovered by himself.
The balloon was permitted To descend,
| until the Car suspended beneath, struck
tie surface OF the lake with considerable
| violence, causing a decided reOound.-
| The current OF air now acting on the BAL
loon drove it at the rate OF some thirty
miles ali hour towards she shore OF the
lake, the car in which we were seated
barely skim.n ming above tie water, and &C.
caslonally dip, dipping on the surface.
Talk OF Pegasus, Bonner teams and
other old togy notions Of spe, ID Give me
the good balloon Hercules with thirty
mile an hour breeze, and Professor Steiner
holding the ribbons.
Talk of elIxersi Is there, can there be
any other elixer equal to that which
| coursed thro these veins when seated in
the Car of the Hercules" Swimming along
the surface of old Lake Michigan exhIi-
aratl0g to degree that you must shout,
| you must cut up antics which under other
/ circumstances would lead to the conclu-
sion that you were tit subject for a lu-
matte asylum. STRICKLAND.
| Relative Rank Of Majcr Generals.
| Washington, July 1.-The question of
rank between tie Major Generals OF the
army has been decided by the board of Of