The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1873-07-17
DEATH FROM a BALLOON

DEATH FROM A BALLOON.
Professor La Msntain's Terrible Descent
and Horrible Death
| [Ionia (Nich.) correspondent of n. Y. World ]
The great excitement of the Fourth
of July in this town was the ascent of
Professor La Montaine, the famous
aeronaut, in his balloon or mammoth
air-ship." The people had focked
from all the surrounding country to
see so unusual an exhibition, and there
were at least ten thousand people in
and about the public square, laughing
and talking, eating nuts and fruit, and
! firing off their crackers, and enjoying
themselves after the fashion of coun-
try people who are waiting for an ex-
hibition. The balloon-not one of
! the ordinary silken sort, but of that
| foolhardY pattern which originating
with Montgolfier, should have ceased
with him-was a paper globe, the ele-
vatory power of which was simply
heated air. Yet the Professor, with
his wonted GOODNESS, was bustling
about attending to preparations for
the initiation, occasionally chatting
with one OF two of his acquaintances
about the prospects of the voyage, of
| the faYorable termination of which he
apparently had not the slightest
| doubt. He had sailed in the air often
enough to have no fears, and remem-
bered not the proverb about the pitch
er that went once too often to the
well. For some time the boisterous
wind delayed the ascent, but half an
hour before starting the balloon
swelIed bigger and bigger, and tug
ged at the ropes which held it TO the
earth. There were eight of these,
badly arranged, and there was no net
work over the canvas bulge. The
Professor was here, there, everywhere,
attending to and guiding all details of
the management, while all the people
were looking at him with wonder and
admiration. At half-past three in the
afternoon he stepped into the car,
leaning over to shake hands with some
of the people who were near BY
Again he examined all the apparatus
v-ithin his reach, and five minutes la
ter gave the word to let go the fasten-
ings, and the balloon shot up bravely.
The spectators shouted and waved
their handkerchiefs and caps, and the
Professor answered the salute, Wav-
ing his hat in return. Hardly, how
ever, had the swelling paper globe. as
|
/ feet from the position which it first
held, the spectators saw by its actions
and the agitation of The aeronaut that
something serious was the matter. 1t
| did not rise symetricaily but bupg-
lingly. and there seemed to be some
breakage in the substance of which
| the bag was composed. Yet still it
rose, and people at some distance
could see that the Professor was very
much agitated, rushing about in his
car, tugging at the ropes, which he
was evidently attempting to arrange.
The mouth of the canvas tapped Vio-
! lently. It was moment of the most
intense anxiety, and the crowd stood
! breathless while the balloon went
higher and higher, until it attained an
altitude of at least half mile, when
| it paused for an instant; there was a
struggle, and the body slipped from
between the ropes that bound it to the
car, which instantly began to fall,
while the balloon, loosened from its
burden, bounded up higher. The car
| upset, and the Professor fell, at first
head foremost, and then turning with
legs and arms outstretched, wheeling
like lightning, toward the EARTH
Then his body assumed a position di-
rectly the reverse of its frst-he
struck the ground feet first. His
struggles in the air were fearful to
see. He tried to Chamber into the
| basket, and then seeing that this was
| futile, tried to use the car as para
chute by turning it upside down.
But he finally let go, and, as has been
said, struck the ground with his feet
| first, and was mashed to pulp of
CORY flesh. Blood spurted from his
mouth and ears, and in falling he
made hole in the earth five or six
inches deep. The dreadful accident
put stop to the celebration of the
day. The corpse was placed in the
square, where it was viewed by thou
sands, and is to be sent to his home in
Brooklyn, Mich.
Professor La Mountain, although
| well known for his balloon ascensions
previous to this event, first came
prominently into public notice in
famous ascent at st. Louis July |, '59,
in company with Professor John Wise
and two others, upon a Journey to the
town of Henderson, Jefferson county,
in this State, q distance of 1I50 miles.
The OBJECT of the aerial voyage was
to verify Prof. Wise's theory that an
upper eastwarGly current of wind ex-
listed whereby balloon could be i'm
PEELED upon long journey from west
to east. The trip was made in nine
hours and fifty minutes, or nearly
mile a minute. Upon the 22d Of
September, 1859, La Mountain and
John A. Haddock ascended from Wa
tertown, New Y ork, and in four hours
time made distance of nearly 300
miles, chiefly after nightfall, landing
at q point in the great Canadian will
derness $50 north of Ottowa. City, and
almost to the due north of Water
town. Professor La Mountain fur
ther distinguished himself during the
war by his balloon ascents in connec-
tion with the Union armies operating
in Virginia against the Confederate
forces. On August 10, 1861, he as
cended in a balloon from the deck of
the tugboat Adriatic, anchored in
Newport News, and successfully OBJ
served the position of the Confeder-
ate beyond that place and Sewell's |
Point. On this occasion he attained |
hight of 5000 feet. Still more re-
markable was the ascent that he made |
on October 4th ensuing. He ascended |
from the camp of the Union army,
then lying upon the Potomac. upon a |
reconuoitering expedition. His bal
loon was attached to the ground by a
cord, but after having been up for
some time, he severed this cord and
rose to the hight of mile and half.
The wind then carried him over the
Confederate lines, which enabled him
to take still better observations
Tightening his balloon, he rose to the
extraordinary altitude of three miles.
passed over Washington at this ele-
vation, and finally descended to the
earth in the State of Maryland.
Tux cholera has pretty much disan.