River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1880-01-15
A FORCED FLIGHT.
An Aerial Inventor Takes an UnwelcOme
Voyage Over City.

BATTLE CREEK, Mich, Dec. 31.-A
few days ago the announcement was
made in the local papers here OF the
wonderful invention of Amos ATking,
a wealthy but eccentric individual of
this city, who had manufactured an ar
ticle Tor aerial navigation which beat
Darius Green's flying machine all hol-
low. The invention was of the nature
of balloon, and was of simple con-
struction, consisting merely OF two large
bags of chin oiled silk, made alright,
and attached 20 cross-bar. When in
fated with gas they have a lifting pow
er of about 100 pounds. Stout cords
lead from the cross-bar, and are attach
ed to a broad belt under the arms and
around the body of the inventor, and
the purpose is not to lift the body clear
off from the ground, but merely to
tighten the inventors weight, which is
about 10 pounds. AT its first trial in
the new driving park, Mr.. Arking, with
the wind in his favor, from a slightly
raised platform, made q running jump
of thirty.tw feet, alighting with only g
slight conclusion, and runningdown the
home-stretch OF the track. He is said
astonishing short time of forty-five sec
onds, his strides measuring on the av-
erage about twelve feet: this. however,
with brisk wind in his favor. At
more recent trial, Mr.. Arking was not
SO successful. Wishing to get the full
Roadway of the wind, he assembled a
high hill on the suburbs of the city. Elk
temporizing furnace, he proceeded to
fill his bags or balloons with gas. Not
having tried the experiment many
times, before he was aware of it there
was too much gas in the bags, and, ere
he could speak to his assistant the APP
paratus broke loose from its fastenings
and bore its unlucky inventor up with
it in the air. This was not what he de-
sired, and his predicament was not to
be envied; fully 200 feet above the
ground, and held fast by his harness, he
was fast drifting across the city. He
could hear his frightened assistant
screaming for help. Fortunately 1t was
scarcely dark, and, as he slowly driited
over the city, he could see excited indi-
viduals in the street below pointing to-
ward him, but help him they could not.
From the nature of his apparatus there
was no valve, and, unless he could re-
ceiye assistance from below, or drift
against some church steeple, the chan
ces were in favor Of his floating over
the great lakes. Evidently, the people
below took him for Gabriel, OF some
other unearthly visitant, for they SEEM
ed to gaze at him with wonderment.
Suddenly Arking remembered that he
had a small nocket revolver and the
thought flashed into his mind that, II he
could perforate the balloon with several
small holes, sufficient gas might escape
to allow him to reach the earth, or pos
sibly grasp some passing tree-top, and
thus arrest his flight to sure death II
he reached the lakes. He fired; again
and again he repeated the charge. He
could see that the gas which had es-
capped had already lowered him per
ceptibly. He looked below at the in
habltants. They were fleeing in every
direction. The echoing vibrations from
the pistol discharge had evidently con-
firIned their impression that he was
supernatural visitor. But what cared
he7 JOY was already taking the place
of despair in his bosom. The appara-
tus still continued to lower until at last
he reached terra firma about mile
from the city. Pressing the gas from
his machine, which had so near been
the cause of his death, he picked 1t up
and walked hOmeward, inwardly regis
tering vow never to again NEEDLE
with a domain which he was unused to,
and hereafter to keep close TO mother
earth