The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1874-10-01
COMING DOWN IN A PARACHUTE.
ceoyre Augustus saIa's Experience ns a"
| AcrOnRut.

c,or.e auru,tus SaIa's Experience ns an
AcrOnaut.
So many ladies and gentlemen nave
wade "captjve" and free balloon
ascents within the last few years, that
it would simply be an act OF lmper,l-
pence on my part to describe minl'ely
the phenomena OF an asceDt IRON tne
@neichborhood @ of London: how you 90
not at first appear to be rising, but
stationary. while the earth, on the other
hand seems to be sinking beneath you
how2if there are any clouds in yonrr
nort Of the sky-when you have passed
throngb the lowermost banks OF Vapor,
and look down on the fleecy, floating
masses beneath you. you experience
momentary feeling of prlde-sheer aSl-
nine pride; or how, beng iree IRON iron
clouds, you look down and see s'reIcn-
: inc around you the great green earth,
Q a and Immediately below, London, DIM
o @;nished @ to the size of a model IN a mn
snnm-St. Paul's seeming no bigger
:. than pea, and the monument looking
, nn ," Longer than q pin, while the smoke
=, nf London seems stationary over lt-a
y him sleazy blue blanket in two STRIPS
>, ono @ for tbe Middesex and one for the
Surrey side, and cut precisely 10 tne
& shape of the city and Suburbs throusl'
u the % whole running the glInsing river,
m ike like n skein of quicksilver. l must
G. mention that my view OF the wondrous
10 nonoromo around and beneath wass some
is what impeded by the fact that we were
40 WIN wll''I Sampered ,n by quantity of toy-bal
Icons Iop mere inflated linen bags, fashion
nt od a. lions, dragons, fish, and othe
:. nrenosterous NV forms, and all emblazone'
ct with the cognizance OF the oym mPoslu;, u,
m These wretched little tribes were ,r III
ho directly the cause of our undolng. In In
n0 oer naut had instructions to cut tn
'"- wind bags adrift when he assembled
sbort distance, in order that they mlgh
as amnse the go5e mouches OF Brompto
IN. "nd | the Fnlbam road, and scatter at
lis nnrt;saments nn of the Symposium lar an
me vida Thus the little old man, durin
red tho f;rst FIVE minutes of his ascent, he
on been so busy with his pocket-knl,e ioo .n
Of inc these ridiculous imped..n'en'a, I'll
he had forgotten p ecantloh very Il
Mo cessary @ to our safety. While the b'
~. -n loon is on the ground it is customary
oeh oIose tbe neck of the machine by mea
'ula % Of handkerchief tied in slip-knot,,
ts' order to prevent the admixture OF I
ays, Ioauv lower stratum of atmospheric
'f n;u'j ,1;th tho % more buoyant carburetted \
That I.on Sr"asn S inside the balloon. Direct
are. tbe balloon ascends, the prudent aef m
ave nont sling off the handkerchief. "
naronant ~ busted with his trumpe
cial wind.bags, did no such thing. i,
the assistant may have been unaware u
,ute the thing ought to be done. ne or
can. ont pleefully that we had risen TO
,~ev I oit;tnde of one mile-that we were j
~; ouer Fnlham church, and that We we We
,n, IT, ohont TO cross the Thames. Just I'll
'na s T heard sharp. cracking report, ,p
anu a;aoIy like that of a musket-shot, abe
'eeh NV head The balloon had burst.
could scarcely, under the circumstanc !,
St. have done any thing but burst. ! i
II mas % in the machine had become rarefi'
=, of and had rapidly expanded. l. co.
that not escape from above, the valye =,
Cor closed; it could not escape from Deie
ated tbe neck was closed. So it went
many smash. lust as an inflated alright
same Of paper goes to smash between
IA to palms OF a school.boy's hands; =,
,his So We fell, as a stone falls, hall
'H'' mile When We assembled, it had
peared to me that the earth was SINK = 4,
beneath us. Now the globe-heii
dent houses, lamp posts, chimney pot
few seemed to be rushing up TO US NV "
literally inconceivable rapidity. I'm In
.r;ot was in particular one tall chnrch.s.eel
'rics which, by the celebrity of its appr19a
ng TO appeared to be horribly anxious tna m
es of shhonld be impaled on its apex. II co
;, has not have been the Fulham chnrch -
gov whatever and wherever was the edil
vcrn- Il was there rushing up at me an
ssucd declare that the grotesque,n1ess OF
thor position of impalement-ali legs
n for wings, like a cockchafer-distlnctly
,pect- yisibly occurred 10 me- ueo o
upon sans phrases, that there arose arose, ,iss be
1t had me no panorama" of my early iife g
, that Of nv by-gone acts and deeds, as $
nn,ed nanoramas are said to have arisen be
ap".. ap,eu ibe eyes Of persons rescued at the
'f' last instant from hanging or drown