Weekly Calaveras chronicle., 1866-03-10
A Thrilling Tale Of an Involuntary
Aeronaut.

In 1852 famous @ronauti advertised
that he would make an ascension from
Oakland, California. 1t was a total
novelty to nineteen twentieths of those
he addressed, and the public rushed to
see him in crowds. In the centre of
the space from which the ascent was to
be made the huge sphere foated, held
down to vulgar earth by dozen ropes
grasped by as many persons elected
from among the bystanders. The navi-
gator Of the heavens had not yet made
his appearance and the audience wers
growing impatient, as manifested by
their shouts and curses. He was prob
ably playing freeze-out poker with some
flush miner, in some adjoining tavern,
a la Artemus Ward, and could not be
choked off In few minutes more the
machine" would have torn into
threads, when gust of wind arising,
the balloon was suddenly wrenched from
the hands of those that held it, and
rushed like rocket raight toward the
clouds. Did we say wrenched from all ?
No, not from all A cry of horror rose
from the late turbulent crowd ). for there
clinging to slight wooden cross-piece
attached to one of the cords, was
small dark object, which every one pro-
nounce1 to be a human being. A lad
who had been selling papers among the
crowd was one of those who volunteered
to hold the guys, and not being sufi-
GENTLY alert had been carried off by the
balloon. The spectators were appalled,,
and every observer momentarily expect
ed to see him drop. But the young
adventurer had no such idea, and those
who had glasses saw him Chamber up
the cord and seat himself astride the
cross-piece The balloon ascended up
ward until in the glowing rays of the
sun it seemed like speck, then D.
ished altogether.
1t would have been difficult just then
to have ensured the life of that boy at
any premium. AS for the involuntary
@ronaut, what must have been his feel
ing as he found himself thus severed
from the firm earth to which he had
been accustomed. At first his little
heart was iE his throat, and he seemed
to have suddenly fallen from some vast
light into an abyss of fathomless air
The world vanished instantaneously
from sight. The boy had unfortunately
wound the cord about his hand In such
manner that it was impossible to let
go at once. Yet knowing the fate that
awaited him should he fall, he had, by
the exertion of an amount of strength
wonderful in one so young, contrived to
assume Imposition of comparative safe
Fly already noted. There he saw the
wind driven clouds of different strata
rush past him with frightful velocity,
and looking down, could dimly discern
the landscape, and the ocean with its
ships, spread out as on map During
the afternoon the people Of Benicia
saw the car dash by, and little thought
of the throbbing heart that from that
awful eminence awaited in cold and
anxiety the coming night. The blood
began to CONCEAL in the veins of the lit
tie traveller; the act of breathing grew
difficult; his muscles increased to such
fearful tension, were beginning to re-
lax ; numbness was seizing on the fin
gers that grasped the cord. A few
minutes more must evidently terminate
the ride through space. All at once the
rope attached to the valve was thrown
against the boy. He clutched it in his
despair as an additional hold upon life
JOY! The valve opens! the gas rapid
ly escapes The balloon is once more
nearing the earth! It rushes into the
leafy embrace of grove of trees, and,
after a violent struggle, rests. When
some ranchmen, who had been watching
the descent, reached the spot, they
found the young adventurer seated on
the ground at the foot of an oak, look
ing the very picture of astonishment,
bus none the worse for his journey, ex-
cept few scratches.
We have heard of persons whose
hair from terror turned gray in single
night The hair of the lad on coming
down was a bright red but as it was
red before he went up, we do not know
that this was anything remarkable.-I
We meet him-the boy then, the man
Dow-daily; he looks like another NOR
tai, and seems to have forgotten all the
circumstances to which be was indebt-
al for hio oIavatIon -G1I. Nfn1nu
Mercury.