The Hawaiian gazette., 1868-12-16

4
The LARGEST BALLOON EVER MApE.-A
gigantic balloon has been constructed at Ash
burnham, near Chelsea, and Is intended to
| afford the public some 9ronautical experience
under circumstances which will insure safety.
The balloon Is four times the size Of that
used by Mr.. Glashier, and contains $4,000
cubic feet Of gas. II is nearly spherical In
shape, and Is capable Of raising load Of
eleven tons No less than G2S,O Is said to
have been dishursed upon bringing Il to its
present complete state. II Is filed with pure
hydrogen, and is worked BY steam-engine
of 200 horse power. The gas Is made In the
private grounds Of the balloon, and on a scale
which has, perhaps, never been attempted
in the history Of chemistry, Some 200, 600 OF
sulphrric acid and 10000 pounds Of iron
filings have been consumed. The balloon Is
held fast by a cable when 1t ascends. The
weight of the cable is ~ tons, and its length
is ., 900 feet. The balloon, car, netting, ropes
and paraphernalia weigh 21S tons, which,
with Its cable, make 6 tons OF permanent
weight, leaving n balance Of five tons as Its
available lining power. Thirty persons are
the complement the car Is intended TO hold,
and assuming these to average $50 pounds
each, balance Of some 5 tons lining power
is left in favor Of the balloon. The personal
experience Of those who went up on Thurs
day Is decidedly favorable to this latest addi-
tion to metropolitan entertainments. Be
tween three and four In the afternoon, West
London saw large brown globe-for the
new balloon is nearly spherical in shape
mount slowly in the air. the cable attached
to ii recalling the inflated balls and string
which have been latterly ehild's toy. This
was a blank ascent, and purely experimental.
A quarter of an hours waiting, during which
the balloon remained above at q distance OF
from |, 500 to 1900 feet, and the word was
given to the engine men to pull down. Grad
ually and surely, and with no perceptible
strain, the brown bali was brought nearer
and nearer until the circular car beneath II
assumed shape and size, and the stout strings
and iron rings were caught by the drilled
men In waiting, and run into the stout iron
hooks waiting to receive them. This done
and the balloon Is secure--the ease with
which this desideratum is arrived at being
not the least interesting OF the experiences
of the afternoon. The experienced French
aronaut under whose personal care all as
cents are made, and the manager of the under
taking go up together now amid the cheers
of all present, and when these have been
brought down, and the balloon fixed with
the same regularity and certainty as before,
a gangway Is placed and party of thirty,
including two French ladies and little boy,
are passed into the car. The sailing or flying
motion through the air is described as In
spiritiug and delightful. The earth and its
dwelling places, its trees, Its roads, Ms rivers,
drop slowly down, and resolve themselves
into clearly defined, widely spreading map
The steamers plying on the Thames, recalled
the toy boats at the Polytechnic; the black
ants rushing bnsily to and fro In the barren
space Immediately below were schoolboys in
a playground few minutes since; the strips
Of drab tape stretching their devious courses
to right and left are roads; the squares and
oblong green patches with dark borders,
fields; and that large table upon which
game of dominoes Is apparently being played
Is Brompton Cemetery, and 1t is its profu
sion of white tombstones, some fiat, some
upright which are recalling the old game.
There seems a mighty stir among the pigmies
below, and huzzahs which become faint in
the distance, but are never quite lost, come
up to us cheerily. The small boxes drawn
by ants, into which cabs and omnibuses have
resolved themselves, twine their way along
the strips of drap tape and almost arouse
wonder By never deviating from their path
A schoolboy gives shrill whistle, and we
hear 1t as if it were close by. The gratings
and checks Of the ropes were, however, very
slight, both in ascending aud descending, and
the return was made and the party landed
without hitch. The trip occupied exactly
seventeen minutes, and the extreme height
gained was from 1 800 to 1900 feet. London
Daily Nelcs.