Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1881-10-24
BALLOON EXPERIENCE.

BALLOON EAPEKlENCE.
Some Of the Episodes of Prof. King
Career-Mishaps on Former Trips-Th,
Abuse of the Minneapolis Papers Caus
ing the Last Voyage.
The Philadelphia Times of Friday morning
the very day Prof King put in an appearance
at Chippewa Falls. contained the following
interesting chapter on Prof. King balloon ex
perience:
All last night the lights were kept burning
in the house of Professor King, the missing
this time sat Mrs. King, the aerOnaut's wife
sleepless, watchful, anxious, hope alternating
with fear over the probable nature of expect
ed tidings. Before leaving Chicago on Mon
day last she made arrangements with several
newspaper men there to send her any infor.
nation that might be gained without an in
stant's delay. 1t is in expectation of this
that she keeps her house open all night and
sits impatiently listening for the steps of the
given her husband up and clings to the hope
that he has landed in some of the
great lumber regions of the North
west, where it will take him some
days to reach a postoffice or tele.
graph office. Hope is derived from the fact
that this is not the only time Professor King
has been lost. In 1916, on voyage from the
| interior of New Hampshire, he landed in q
| wilderness in the northern part of Maine,
| where it took him about week to get out,
| although his luck in landing at point where
| a railroad was being constructed he was ell.
abled to find telegraphic facilities to make
known his safe descent two days after his
start. Again, in 1874, in a voyage from
Cleveland in his famous balloon Buffalo, &C.
| companied by Frank II. Taylor, the Philadel-
phia artist, he land in the Allegheny Noun
| tains, SO remote from railroads and telegraph
stations, that it was three days before anything
| was heard from him.
PERILOUs ADVENTURES.
Speaking of this and other trips made with
him, Mr.. Taylor yesterday related some inter-
esting experiences. There is hardly section
of country, from Maine to Florida or from
Massachusetts, to the Pacific, which Prof.
King has not been over and which is not in
dellibly impressed on his mind by some re-.
markable adventure eliminating in some al
most miraculous escape. On one occasion he
was making trip from the northeastern part
of Michigan in the spring of the year when
the balloon bore him over a great forest fire.
covering an area of nearly forty square miles,
to the imminent peril of his life the balloon
being near the earth and threatening many
times to descend. Again, he was making voy-
age from the southern part of New York
when the balloon, taking its course over Long
Island sound, SCARED SO near the water that
the drag rope finally caught on the mast of
slOop and the aerOnaut and his air craft had
to be tOwed ashore, where the former finally
made a safe descent. Another time, in a trip
made from point near Boston, the balloon
was carried down into Boston harbor and got
entangled in ferry boat, which rescued
King, who came near breaking his neck in
the shock. On still another occasion he was
making voyage from the interior of New
York when his balloon became becalmed di-
rectly over lake, which, being perceived by
the captain of small steam craft, he put off
to the rescue, and, getting his boat under the
balloon, it was landed fairly in the vessels
stern. On another occasion, on Long Island
sound, the balloon descended so low
that the basket in which King and several
companions sat struck the water and
went scraping the surface for several miles,
the experience being varied at short intervals
by the striking of huge wave, which del
uged them every time and might have finally
drowned them had they not been pursued by
several yachts, which finally succeeded in
rescuing them and in towing the balloon to
land.
MISHAPS IN THE WILDERNESS.
King has had many adventures in the
White mountains and In the wilds of Maine.
One, which he always regarded as his most
peculiar, was on an occasion when he had
started from fair grounds in the interior of
New Hampshire and was carried over the
White mountains into Maine, and after trav-
cling all night and part of the next day
| landed in the Wi1dS nf Erapoh Of
tlement and made his way to a village.
Again, late in the fall of 1872, he started on
voyage from point near Boston and was car
ried directly over the highest peak of the
White mountains and landed on the other side
in snow storm, in which he was almost fro
zen before he reached place of habitation.
These are but part of his experiences. He
has been accustomed to tell how on one occa-
sion, while making voyage from Charleston,
South Carolina, he was carried into a sparseiy
settled district, where an excited countryman,
seeing a, balloon for the first time IN his life,
rushed into his house and brought out his
gun and shot at him. This frequently hap,
pened to Prof. King. Country people often
shoot at balloon from sheer fright. In this
connection alone King has had many inter-
esting anecdotes. In some parts of the coun-
try, where railroads and telegraph wires and
newspapers have never pe9et trated, balloon
ID AuOWn do AOiCiuuuCiS IuC UtulSuGeu
| inhabitants having superstition that it de-
| notes the near approach of the end of the
world. In such localities, when cast among
| them, King has often encountered
serious difficulty in getting food and &C.
| commodations, the people looking upon
him with a superstitious awe. Once in
a series of voyages in South Carolina he land
| ed in pine forest near log cabin. AS he
came near the earth he saw the affrighted
head of the house take to his heels, followed
| by his wife and children, and rush into the
| house, where they closed and barred the doors
| and refused to come out or to let him come in
until he had spent several hours in elaborate
persuasion by conciliatory words and motions.
When the man of the family finally did
pluck up courage enough to come out and
enter into conversation he told King he
thought he was "fying DEVIL" and that he
| had come for mischief.
STILL HOPEFUL OF KINGS SAFETY.
Like Mrs. King, Mr.. Taylor believes the
missing balloonist has got into the lumber
| regions of Michigan or Wisconsin and that
he is all right. "King," said he yesterday
I" is undoubtedly The most scientific balloon
ist we ever had in this country. I've been
with him number. of times
and my knowledge of jhe man is founded upor
experience. He is the most careful aeronaut
| l ever knew, and I've been with Donaldson
| and Wise on different occasions. He makes
fewer mistakes than any other aeronaut. HI
1 does nothing rashly. This latest VOYAGE dr.