Iron County register., 1882-08-17
SMITHS BALLOON JOURNEY.

1t would be an injustice to Josiah to
suppose that he. limited his quest in
the field of knowledge to that particular
portion indicated by his honored asso-
citation with distinguished society. He
was proud in his modest way, if the
paradox be permitted, when he pro-
duced his card, on which was engraved
s'Josiaff Smith, F. r. S. A" Also, it
was known among his friends that
casuafreferences to his great work on
Underground England were not dis
pleasing to him. But, as he was wont
to say ssThe surest way of finding
either mental or bodily recreation is to
seek it in the fresh fields of labor.
Thus it came to pass one evening in
the spring of this year that Josiah. hav-
ing shut himself in all day with the de-
termination to make up for lost time,
found he had, with the aid of cold tea
and wet bandages, added as much as
half a page to his great work. Feeling
the need of a little change of thought
and association, he had availed himself
of an invitation kindly sent TO him to
join the meeting of an aeronautic socie
ty. Josiah had listened with profound
attention to the various speeches made.
and had thought, really, when he had
little more time he would devote it to
the fascinating science of aeronautics.
Among the guests of the society, and,
indeed, the hero of the evening, was
Capt. Mulberry, the famous guards
man, who devoted much natural talent
and considerable portion of his life to
the endeavor either to kill or hopelessly
MAIN himself. Having tried most
things, heshad taken to ballooning, as
offering the largest amount of risk in
the least possible space. of time. He
had been up in all kinds of balloons, in
all possible circumstances, ,and had come
down in various ways. He had just now
achieved a great feat, making voyage
from the Grampian Hills to the Orkney
Islands. The society, desiring to do
meeting, and Josiah had heard him de-
scribe his perilous voyage. Many NOV
ing stories of his escapes were detailed.
Josiah listened with enthralled attention
to an adventure which, it seems, the
. Captain had had in Spain, and which
Josiah's companion "a baldheaded gen.
tlemen with spectacles) narrated with
great effect. Mulberry, in one of the
marches of the Carlists, to whom he
had attached himself, was surprised and
taken prisoner by the enemy. They
locked him in the kitchen of q farm.
house near, mentioning incidentally that
in the morning they would shoot him.
They took away his sword and pistols,
and would have taken his umbrella, but
the Captain pleaded hard for its society,
declaring that from early boyhood he
had never been able to sleep without an
umbrella under his pillow. The Span
iards had heard much of the eccentricity
of Englishmen, and, not being inclined
to refuse the request of doomed man,
they left him the umbrella.
The next morning, when they came
to take him out for shooting purposes,
To-! the Captain and the umbrella were
both gone. There was a good deal of
SCOT about the place, and regarding this
and other signs of hasty flight, the truth
flashed upon the Spaniards. There had
been fire in the CRATE. i, The Captain
had opened the umbrella inside the
chimuey, waited until it had been in
fia,ed with the warm air, and then,
hanging on to the handle, had been
drawn up clear to the top, and, descend
ing in. q neighboring field, had shut up
his umbrella and walked off.
"Dear mel" said Josiah; show very
interesting. suppose the chiInneys are
wide in Spain?''
..Very wide, indeed" said the bald
headed gentleman in spectacles.
When the meeting came to an end
Josiah. walked along Pail Mall meditat-
inr outhese things and on the compare
tive obscurity Of the work he had as
sioned to himself. While others were
soaring in high places, he was burrow
ing underground. Both were in search