Connecticut western news., 1873-10-24
Professor Kings Ascension.

1IVAoSSOE AluS'S ASconS1Ons mouth, N. H.-Three Miles Above tn
 White MOuntains-The Upper Air Cur
 rents Tested-And ndnteresting Account O the Fri
 It will be remembered that Professo King, the aeronaut, made an ascension from the Pemigewasset Trotting Park the ascension being the closing even of the Grafton County Fair. The bal loon left the ground at 317 P. M., ant six minutes later was lost to the sigh
 of the assembled spectators, from tn,
 density of the clouds into which ii
 passed. Nothing was heard of the bal
 loon until three days after, although
 landing was made after trip of two
 hours and half. 1t was feared that
 the ballon had followed the course taker
 last year, upon the occasion of the as
 tension made frem the same locality
 when landing was made, after a series
 of dangerous experiences, in the woods
 of Canada.
 Mir. King reports that when he reach.
 ed the regions above the clouds every
 vestige of the earth was hidden from
 his view except long dark mountain,
 which appeared to be ten or fifteen
 miles north or northeast of him. This
 was, doubtless, Moosilauke. All the
 other mountains were covered by clouds,
 the upper surfaces of which seemed to
 conform to the mountains and valleys.
 For time he seemed to be drawing
 toward the mountain which he first
 saw, but as he ascended higher he
 probably took different direction, for
 the mountain faded from view or was
 lost in the clouds. It had been MT.
 Kings intention not to ascend above
 the clouds, but to avail himself of the
 surface current and thus journey to- ward the Passumpsic River Railroad.
 over which he might be enabled to take
 the night train, and reach Lowell early
 in the morning. This plan was frustra-
 ted by triaing circumstance. AS the
 balloon was only partly filled with gas
 at starting, the lower section was drawn up on one side. Upon attempting to pull the valve-cord he found that it was retained by the cloth or by entangle- ment with the collapsing cord, and as a disturbance of. the latter was not par ticularly desirable, he deemed it the better course to let the gas distend the balloon and thus free the cords.
 At 3t the barometer indicated only fifteen inches, or height of 18, ,022 feet above Plymouth, which has itself an elevation of 488 feet, making an altitude above the sea level of 1S,51O feet. Fifteen minutes later the barometer had sunk to 14.75, showing an altitude about Is, $50 feet, or nearly three and three-fourth miles. MT. King was at this time sailing high above the clouds, and not far south of the Franconia Mountains, although he had nothing to indicate the latter fact at the time. He began to realize that he had reached A cold region. An overcoat became de- slrable, and there were other indica- tions than, 8 cold temperature of great altitude. For example, he found that the pulsations of his heart were very rapid and very noticeable, and there were dlsagreeable sensations in the head. The thermometer at 3i was at twenty-six degrees, and it fell success. sively to twenty-three at o'clock, and twenty-one at 44, tho balloon having fallen to about 18,500 feet at the latter reading. The wet bulb was covered by | g. film of ice, and the mercury therein | condensed slower, marking successively | twenty-eight, twenty-four, and twenty, l while the dry bulb marked twenty-six, twenty-three and twenty-one respective | ly. It afterward sank to nineteen, while the dry bulb indicated twenty | four at APO, when the. balloon had | descended to within 16, 824 feet of the sea level. At 4.25 the balloon was at an elevation of 13, TAT feet, and the tenn perature was twenty-four, the wet bulb still indicating nineteen. While the balloon was at it's greatest elevation, the gas had expanded and distended the envelope to it's fullest capacity, al- starting. ..t-
 MT. King gradually began to see through rifts in the clouds, but napght but forests met his view. He could also see beyond the cloud banks in southerly direction. Not long after leaving. Plymouth, but after he get above the clouds, he heard several dis charges of cannon or rock blasting, but no other sound came up to him in his lofty quletude, the music of the noun tain rills and cascades, even. being hushed. As he descended toward the clouds, he heard @ railroad train be- the misty mantle. he was % broueht % di. rectly over it, though yet at @ consider able altitude. It was Q train on the Grand Trunk Railroad, which was pass. ing through West Bethel, Me-. on it's way from Portland to Montreal. As he sailed over the valley, MT. King saw he dark reflection of the balloon in the water of the Androscoggin river. As he balloon approached the ground the lrag-rope did good service, as the bal oon itself was brought beyond the TIT l lecided upon crossing the woods and anding in a valley he had previously een to the east and northeast, leading nto the Androscoggin Valley, and ac' ,ordingly did so, the journey taking Jim further distance of about ten niles, and directly over the top of Black Mountain in Bethel.
 At 5. .43 o'clock he landed the balloon D little cleared space beyond the 4 woods, and found himself on the land C # MT. Stillman Littlehale in Riley I Plantation. MT. Littlehale's place is T n the Bull Branch of Sunday River. | nd there is no other clearing beyond C his for long distance. After leaving s Vest Bethel, the balloon took the south U asterly surface current again, and drift s d northwesterly toward the township f Success, wooded section of country ust across the New Hampshire border, V which would prove anything but suc- T ess as a landing place for balloon ? raveler. A continuation of the north V asterly course which the balloon had D aken over the Franconia and White F fountains would have speedily brought c fir. King over the Maine wilderness, which he traversed in his memorable oyage from Plymouth last year, and a t orthwest course from Bethel was not y nuch more desirable, since it would f ave led into the wilds of the Upper loos After tha descent tha hal1nnn V