Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-02-07
BRADY,s ADVENTURES.
Thrilling Experiences Of Young Aero.
naut.


more perilous adventures in the past five years
than Owen Brady-now "Prof. Brady"-the
well-known aeronaut, who is spending q week
or two at his old home, and meeting with
hearty greeting from his boyhood friends.
In the summer Of 'ss Owen, then Lad of
nineteen, started out with stock Of toy
switches and cheap "fakr" whips to sell at the
| fairs in the middle and western states. Being
lad to keep his eyes open, he quickly saw
that at most Of the fairs the balloon ascension
| was a chief attraction, and soon he struck up
| an acquaintance with a man who managed a
couple OF gas bags, and hired experienced
aeronauts to make ascensions for him. It
| didn't take long for Brady to discover that
while the man who went up in the balloon got
LOTS OF GLORY,
! the manager pocketed the major share of the
| shekels; SO he got in as sort of corresponding
| clerk for the manager, and while doing the lat
ter's letter-writing for a very meager salary,
eked out by selling whips and canes and toy
switches, he familiarized himself with balloons,
the men who went up in them, and how the
business was conducted. He formed par tper-
ship during the following winter with ''Pro-
lessor" Vandergrift, who had made his first
balloon trip some dozen years before at the
age OF twelve, and before his last fatal trip,
scarcely month ago, had made over $50 as
censions. Together they raised enough money
to secure couple of stanch hot-air balloons
| and early next season began business, meeting
member of the firm to do the ascensions. He
was
A DARING ACROBAT
and performed trapeze feats while the balloon
was going up. But the time came when Brady
had to take his turn, owing to the breaking OF
his partners leg and other injuries received
by the collapse of his balloon when nearing
the earth. He did not at first attempt any
| acrobatic feats, but simply sat or stood on the
the multitude. Brady soon became known as
'Prof. Brady" and with his fellow-balloonist
for four years made ascensions at principal
places from Canada to Mexico. Last spring
the parachute jump was introduced as new
and startling feature of their ascensions, and
every ascension made during the season in
cluded the daring
JUMP FROM THE CLOUDS"
Brady and Vandergrit before venturing it
made scores Of experiments with weights and
various styles of parachutes from the tops of
high buildings, and finally satisfied themselves
that the venture could be made with reasona-
BILE safety. Vandegrift was the first to try it,
and Brady says it was the most anxious moment
OF his life, not even exceeded by those when he
was diving few weeks since into the river at
Columbus, Ga, in hopes of disentangling the
body of his partner and friend from the net
work OF rope which prevented his rising to the
surface and escaping death. When he saw
Nandegrift preparing to detach the parachute
from the balloon 5000 feet in the air and drop
with it to earth, his heart came into his mouth.
The descent was made in safety, and was then
adopted by both Rronauts as a special feature
of their ascensions. Both had several
NARROW ESCAPES
from serious accident, and Bradys life was
once saved by falling through the thick branches
of a tree into a swamp, when some of the cords
Of his parachute loosened, allowing the appa-
ratus to tip to one side, so that it did not fully
support his weight as he neared the earth. The
season of 1888 came suddenly to tragic end in
Georgia last month, and Brady has been so
badly broken up over the death of his partner
at that time that he has not the heart to make
any more ascensions at present, and has come
back here for the first time since his departure
five years ago to visit his relatives and brace
up his nerves. Vandegrift was the one to
make the trip on that occasion and both men
feared the wind was too strong to allow the
balloon to go up without danger, but rather
than dssapoint the great crowd of people the
attempt was made. As the balloon rose Van
degrift hung from the trapeze which was sus-
pended from the parachute, and as he mounted
higher into the clouds performed several dar-
ing acrobatic feats. Deafening cheers re-
warded his efforts, but, to the horror of the
multitude when the balloon was about half a
the top.
FIGHT FOR LIFE. r
Every one expected to see the aeronaut
dashed to atoms. Women tainted and thous-
ands of eyes were turned away. But vande-
grift. with rare presence of mind. cut loose his
parachute from the collapsed air-ship, and after
a swift fall of about 500 feet it opened, and he
began to descend steadily, the wind carrying
him toward the Chattahoochee river Thous-
ands ran to the river bank, among them his
partner. Two men who were in boat rowed
as near as they dared to about where he would
| strike. They heard the aeronaut call as he
approached the water, For Gods sake come
quickn' He sank, but Immediately came to
the surface, and the men tried to draw him
into the boat, but he was entanged into the
trapeze cords and his body was inside the hoop
of the parachute. Then the men attempted to
pull the parachute into their boat, but it
slipped from their hand, and its weight car
ried Vandegrift to the bottom of the river.
THE CROWD STOOD AGHAsr
and paralyzed with horror at the fearful scene,
but Brady plunged into the stream.and quick
ly swan to the spot. Again andlagain he Owed
in hopes to save his partners life, but without
success. reward of 300 was at once offered
by the authorities for the recovery of the body,
and at nearly midnight it was found some dis
lance down the river fastened in the jetties
the arms, legs and wrists being intricately en-
tangled in the cords of the parachute and ira
peze. His neck was broken and everything in
dicated fearful struggle under water to re-
lease himself from the ropes and hoop. Brady
had the body embalmed and took it to Vande-
grift's home at Clinton, Miss, for burial.
THOUGH BADLY BROKEN UP
at his friends death, our young fellow towns
man has no thought of retiring from the
perilous business as he says there is "big
money in it." In the four years he has fol-
lowed the profession he has managed to lay by
a good sum, as well as to build him home at
Cleveland, Ohio, and take there his two
younger brothers. one of whom will in future
act as his business manager. He is strictly
temperate in all things and says that no one in
the business he is engaged in can afford to in
dulge in alcoholic drinks. Brady thinks he was
born under lucky star, for though he has had
many narrow escapes in his daring jumps from
an altitude of from 1000 to 5000 feet he never
yet has been seriously hurt. He says the SEN
sation is fearful when the parachute is first cut
loose from the balloon for the descent is rapid
as shot for four or five seconds and then. too,
there is always the awful possibility that the
parachute will not open and that he will be
dashed to atoms.
1t is calculated that the rapidity of the fall
is Is feet in the first second, As the next so the
third, 112 the fourth. and IA the fifth, when
the parachute opens and makes the rest of the
fall easy. The balloon when loosened from the
parachute usually floats only a few miles, as
the hot air with which it is filed cools and the
canvas falls to the earth, and being watched is
aaailu