San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1883-07-12
AT SEA IN A BALLOON.
Details Of the ysysee o. y. pnsHs Across tbs
Rnskisk Channel.

OF engaging manners, FOUND to-day
looking very pale and fatigued from
the peril to which he had so recently
been exposed. He is suffering most
frsm giddiness, but hopes that days
rest will set him up again. As soon as
his health shall be quite restored. he
assured me with much earnestness
that he will make another attempt to
cross the channel, and expressed him
self confdant of ultimate success. NJ.
L'Hoste said that after various prelim-
mary trips last week, in company
with his friend M. Eloy, he determined
to make the attempt to reach England
on Friday evening, q prediction TO:
night trips. When the time for start
ing approached, however, his compar-
ion thought the weather looked too
threatening for aerial navigation, and
energetically endeavored to dissuade
him from his purpose, but without
success. Even Eloy's refusal to en-
courage his rashness by accompanying
him had NO effect upon his obstinate
resolution to make the trip. Accord
ingly at midnight on Friday the balloon
Pilastre de Roster cast off and rapidly
assembled.
INA FOG.
almost Immediately the weather,
which had been hazy all the evening,
set in very thick, the result being that
L'Hoste passed the night in the midst
of q fog, which not only chilled him to
the marrow but prevented him from
obtaining the least idea whittier he
was drifting or even if he were moving
at all. However, the weather cleared
on Saturday morning, when, to his no
small disgust, he found himself at sea
in the neighborhood of Cape Grisnez.
He at once threw out ballast in order,
if possible, to find favorable current,
and soon rose to height of 1000 me-
tres, at which altitude he suffered
severely, his face being half roasted
by the heat of the sun, while his feet
were nNmbed and almost frozen. Two
hours later he found himself over q
town of some sort, and, drawing the
valve line, descended rapidly, and, with
the assistance of passers-by, cast
anchor on the esplanade at Dunkirk.
Being determined to pers0vere, he
calmly took breakfast in his car, sur
rounded by gaping crowd, and after
ward increased his store of ballast.
Noticing favorable change of the
wind, he ungrappled and rose gradual
ly to height of 5000 meters.
IN A STORM.
"He must have travelled quickly, for
he soon found himself over the sea, off
the coast of Belgium. Far up among
the clouds he found a terrible difference
in the weather, for, almost without
warning he sailed into violent storm
wave. Here the beating of the rain,
the heavy gusts of wind and the loud
reverberations of the thunder put the
stability of the balloon to fearful and
unforeseen test. The whole fabric was
convulsed with continuous vibrations
and tossed and pitched in manner
which made it difficult for the giddy
and benumbed aeronaut to keep his
hold on the car. However, with some
difficulty he managed to open the valve
and descended at noon on Saturday to
within, as far as he could calculate,
800 meters of the sea. Unfortunately,
in the lower strata, there prevailed a
thick fog, which made it impossible
for him to ascertain his exact where
abouts. He made another ascent in
hopes Of finding the elements more
propitious, but the storm was still
raging up in the clouds, and he there
fore considered it prudent to keep
nearer the sea. As the afternoon wore
on he noticed with alarm that the gas
in his balloon was danderously decreas-
ing, and he began to realize his peril.
IN THE SEA.
cat o'clock the ropes dangling from
the car touched the sea, and he knew
that the critical time had come. The
whole of his ballast of which the car
could hold but a comparatively little
supply, had by this time become COM
peletely exhausted. He at once threw
out, one after another, instruments,
cases and, indeed, every movable arti-
Gle in the car. But the balloon re-
sponded languidly, and in very few
minutes the car itself touched water,
and the sea broke furiously almost
every minute clean over the car,
drenching its unhappy occupant to the
skin. The ropes and lines, too, were
dashed about in bewildering manner,
and these combined horrors had almost
made NJ. L'Hoste despair, when he
caught sight of the sails of fishing
lugger, which turned out to be the
Noemi. The captain of the Noemi al
most simultaneously caught sight of
the balloon, which he for some time
took to be a ship on fire, and maneu-
vered round and round accordingly.
When, however, he ascertained what
the strange craft really was he at once
launched boat and with immense diff
Guilty rescued the aeronaut from fate
which, but for his timely appearance,