Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1886-11-04
In a Balloon u, a storm.

correspondence mar tiofu HEns1-
One Of the Winsted people--and
the least notable one, perhaus Z
Captain A. E. Moore, anenthusiszl
ballooning. Captain Moore -
made a more dangerous journey s.
that OF which now tell you H.
with the veteran Prof. S. N. Iroa 9
who has made more ascensions f
any other aeronaut.. and the tim.
vertised to start was l O'Clock 4
but, owing to the appearance a s
we're thunderstorm coming up s.
the west, they decided to 90 earIIa,
order to keep ahead of The shos
But, unfortunately for the voyss
their calculations for keeping afj
of the storm failed. Within flt
minutes they found themselyes
mile above the earth, IN the nj;
OF thick clouds and ten,
hurricane. Tho account of their
perience is certainly thrilling. Al
entering the cloud they could not
ten feet in any direction. Therainv
pouring in torrents, the wind biov
gale, and constant flashes OF IA
ming all about them, were accompe
led by tremendous crashes of cIoss =
hand thunder. The binding flash ID
by them was all one with the crasi
no interval between the flash and
report. They were in the home &
path of the lightning itself. At tin
the balloon and car with its OF
pants were whirled around ike q
then, suddenly the monster air vesu
would be blown ever on its I'd
throwing its passengers on to the IA
er side of the car, where the netwo
covering alone kept them from sei7
dashed to the invisible earth n
below. In a moment more the weie]
of the car and its occupants woi1
drop it suddenly down tine length
the ropes with force that seemed
if they must break and let then
to the ground. Even q
veteran cloud veyager, Brood
was for once as pale
death-as the constant flashes show
and so, it was afterward leane
was Moore. No void was spoken:
deed talking, even if they were inclrx
to talk, would have been diffculs
that situation. with the deafeniu
crashes of thunder following eas
other so constantly. To double &
danger, the heavy fall of rain 81
thoroughly saturated the baileo
which, OF course, increased it's weld
and put them in danger oil being dasf
ed to the earth. Occasionally tho
were obliged to open, by pulling dox
the valve at the top, in order to d
down the water which had coliecte
there so heavily as to sag down 4
balloons top. This, of course, wouI
empty the water down through Il
balloon and into the basket-not oE
ly drenching the aeronauts, but neax
ly strangling them with the gas
brought down with it. In this wan
amidst frightful tempest, and feelin
the imminent peril of the lehf
ming, to say nothing of tn
gale, they were swept on theil
trackless path through darknesl
Illuminated only by the constant
lightning flashes, at terrible rate d
speed and at height unknown. but
believed to be mile above the earth
Sometimes the balloon eanght in con-
fiicting currents, would be whirled
around in large circle; then it woul1
dash straight ahead. After wha3
seemed an eternity in this howlina
Phlegethon Of the Inferno transported
to a still blacker than its native reein<
but above, instead of beneath, The
earth where mankind dwelt-a period
of probably about forty minutes. dur
ing which they both expected every
moment to be wrecked and lost-they]
noticed by the barometer that they|
were descending, and at tremendoue|
rate. One sandbag after another We
hastily thrown out, until all then
ballast was expended, without mate
rally diminishing the speed OF Their
frightful descent. The weight OF the
water-soaked balloon still took then
down. They threw out everything
portable, even to part OF their va
ter-soaked clothing. Still they fell. te
use Captain Moore's own Language,
almost as swift as the drops of rain {
Suddenly. when they wereat aheght
of only 500 feet, the earth came u
sight-a revelation through the open'
ing of the storm. Instantly the an
Choir was thrown out. But it did NOT
catch, and they were carried along e
tearing rate over fences, stonewala
and bushes, sometimes striking the
ground, then bounding up forty q
fifty feet in the air. In this way they
went almost hall a mile, expecting
every moment TO be annihilated. a
soon as an opportunity occurred =
their bounding and knocking abous
they pulled the ripeord, which instant
~ parted the balloon from topic bot
tom, letting them drop to the ground
They were badly bruised and scratch
ed, but fortunately not seriously hurt.
The balloon was total wreck. Prof.
Brooks says in all of his ITO ascel'
sions he never has witnessed sucn
a storm, and hopes never to be y
such one again,