Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1873-07-23
Trnu.-AtlAntic RnIIooninx.

There Is a singular fascination about the idea
o. travelling through the air with bird-like free
dom, and despite the numerous frightfui acct
dents and general ill-success of Efforts at erial
navigation, new projects in this direction are
continually being made.
The latest Is the undertaking of Mr. Wise, the
veteran aronsut, aided by the publishers of
tie New York Graphic, to build balloon of the
capacity to carry two more persons across
The Atlantic. The theory of Mr.. Wise Is that
nj a certain height above the earth there exists
constant air current, or tide moving from the
southwest to the northeast. Prof. Henry, who
has been appealed to for an opinion, gives q
Certain amount of weight to the theory of the
Air current from west TO east, but doubts the
Sustaining power of balloon to travel that
distance, and advises that the experiment
be first made overland for the same distance.
The main difficulty will, no doubt, be in keep
Ing the balloon up long enough to make a trip
OF three or four thousand miles. To keep IN the
asserted easterly current it will be requisite to
elevate or lower the balloon very often, and no
means Of doing this has been discovered, other
than by throwing out ballast to rise, and per-
uniting gas TO escape to fall, and there is there
lore constant waste of the sustaining power.
To be added to this direct waste, is the steady
loss of gas by PeTcOlstion from the bag. As this
easterly current Is supposed TO exist only at a
considerable height, II will readily be seen that
any appreciable loss Of gas would soon put 1t out
of the power Of the arOnaut to rise to it, and
then he must settle to the lower stratum of air,
where he would meet all the vicissitudes of ad-
verse winds that sailing vessels encounter, with
out the ability that the latter have of utilizing
unfavorable winds by lacking. A balloon can
DOttack, but must DRIFT hopelessly with the
current.
Another disco1rsging consideration is the
probability that hail storms furries of snow
will be encountered in the upper region
here mentioned, serving TO load the balloon
down with snow hail, and thus cause its
speedy descent. III the air current named travels
IN a nortbesstly direction, as maintained, the
balloon must not only run these risks from snow
and hail in the upper region, but also in the
lower stratum of air; and would also, as has
been pointed out, be likely To land, If it reached
land, in some inhospitsble region like Spitzber-
gen. The possibilities of danger from snow are
illustrated by the perilous experience of Mr..
Frank King, who made a balloon excursion
from Morristown, Vermont, on the Fourth of
July When about two and a half miles up he
encountered q snow storm, which covered the
balloon nearly an inch thick, and sent it down
rapidly. 1t landed in dense forest, away from
human babitatiOn, and the aronaut was finally
rescued by searching party, after being forty
eight hours without food.
Tie @ronauts in the proposed Atlantic trip
have in their favor the facts that Prof. Wise,
An balloon trip some years ago, travelled nearly
i $50 miles in a northessterly direction from
St Louis to jefferson county, n. Y; and that,
In 1856, balloon voyage was m ade from vaux-
hall Gardens, Londen, to Weilburg, in the
Duchy of Nassau. With exceptionally favoring
Circumstances, the trip across the ocean may
perhaps be made, but most voyagers, we
doubt not, would prefer the risks of steamer
line.