Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1871-10-18
HORROR IN TIE CLOUDS.

HORROR IN TIE CLOUDS.
The Awful Death OF Prof. Wilbur
Falling a Mile from Dali0On-
The Particularly OF the sh0ekin =
Disaster in PaOIi, Indiana.
Paoli Qnd.l Correspondence of the World.l
1t was the gayest day of the week at
the fair; everybody was in holiday dress,
the girls looked their prettiest, the far
mers their most Aorid, and the country
beaus were benecktied and invested in
colors vying not only with the rainbow,
but with the utmost powers Of aniline.
The center of attraction was, Of course,
| the inelosed space where the balloon was
to be inflated, about which gathered an
eager crowd, looking at everything con
nected with the event, studying the
ropes, peering about to find where the
gas was to come from, and pestering the
amiable professor with questions as to
how the gas was made, what made the
balloon 90 up, and other things of the
sort. The professor laughed good
naturedly, explained as much as posi-
BILE, and everybody was jolly in the an
ticipation of witnessing that to them
most unusual of things-a balloon as
I
eension.
At about four clock in the afternoon
| the imitation of the ballon was com
menced, and as the bag swelled out al
most to bursting and struggled to be
free, everybody was on the qui pire-
those remote from the spot strained their
necks, climbing into the carriages, and
even upon the fences, to see the car. 1t
had been announced that the editor OF
the Orange County Union would accom-
pany Prof. Wilbur in his ascent, and
great things were expected from the re-
port which his well-known ability as q
descriptive writer gave every reason to
believe would be forthcoming in the next
issue Of h;s newspaper. | was standing
beside the Professor, laughing and hold
ing necessarily disjointed conversation
with him, for he was busy with prepaTa-
iiops for his flight. He had just nodded
his head, and said laughingly, well,
good-by, old fellow III SEQ you again
soon" Then Mr.. Knapp stepped into
the car, and the Professor, who had hold
of the rope fastening the car to the body
of the ballpop. shouted Let go" HJ .
But he had spoken 70 soon and was
unable to reach the car, but still IN
wisely kept the rope in his hand and
enaeayored to climb to his place, sue
ceeding only 50 for as to get one arm
over the rim of the basket, yhcre he
bni,o dangling and struggling His mo
tions a,,d the fact that the basket, came
in contact wi.th rope which had fasten-
ed the balloon to the earth while il was
being inflated, upset the car when II
was about twenty-five feet from the
ground and Mr. Knapp fell stunned to
The ground. But there was no time for
caring for him, for terror held every
body suetI-bound. A shout of admira-
ton went up from those who were too
far distant from tho seene to know that
an accident had beta'isp the adyen-
turers, and who supposed that ne 9s-
cent was being made sans coHte temps.
But to those in the immediate vicinity
of the car the sight vas an awtul one,
and for a moment everybody seemed
paralyzed with terror and stood rooted
TO the spot without uttefing o cry or
word. The balloon, lightened by thS fall
of Mr.. Knapp, shot upward with dread
fully increased velocity, aud a scream OF
terUor which chilled the blood OF the
hearers came down from the upper air,
where tlle doomed arouaut hung utterly
hopeless 0f escaping death. Az my
side stoodla woman who, as ] aiterward
heard, was the Professors vile. Her
eyes were bursting from their sockets.
and her face pallid and ghastly with fear
She clutched the air as IL for support. |
and with one hand she grasped my arm,
still looking upward at the balloon,
which, swifter than an arrow, shot !
through the air. Up, up it went, grow
ing smaller and smaller in ita flight, and
then with increased velocity it gave
sudden start aud shot yet faster toward |
the clouds.
Then a speck was seen far up in the !
air, growing larger and larger as II fell. |
'Dh, my Godp cried the woman, who |
clung to me with an iron grasp, "he will |
die--he will be killed." Yet her eyes I
fixed upon that falling body. |
At first it seemed like the stick of a
rocket coming down with the speed Of
light; then twas doubled up like ball;
then seemed to unfold; then whirling
about with a gyratory motion, with /
hands and legs spread out. 1t seemed
an age while the man was falling, for |
before he loosened his hold the balloon
must have been at least d mile from the
earth--and what an age TO that poor I
wife who watched her husband rushing
toward her and death with the speed Of
light. The descent was made in sixty
seconds.
When about half q mile from the
ground his body ceased its gyratory mo-
ton, assumed a perpendicular position,
and came down head first. It struck
the earth some distance from us, and
then rebounded, falling again within a
few feet Of where it struck. Then, from
paralyzed fear, the crowd broke forth
into shrieks Of terror, women ran wildly
about screaming and actually tearing
their hair, and rush was made for the
spot where the man had struck the
ground. There was an indentation not
less than eight or ten inches deep, and
filled with blood and brains which had
burst from the skull when, Ike a cannon
hall let drop from an immense hight, il
crushed into the earth. The concussion
Is said to have been heard BY residents
Of Paoh half q mile distsai. The Pro
fessors hat, which came Of few