The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1896-11-11
Went skyWard with Heels up.

ROME, GA, November 7.-Will Whit.
field, a brick lay Of this town, is g record
breaker when it comes to amateur bal
looming. He has made one of the most
thrilling and perilous trips skyward ever
made by mortal man.
It was bright and cloudless afternoon
in September when Professor McSheen's
balloon ascension and parachute leap
were to come Off and the affair had been
so extensively advertised thata vast crowd
had assem- bled in Birmingham to witness
the great event.
Young Whitfield rather awkward and
boyish, was among the sightseers and
helped to adjust and steady the ropes that
confined the airship to the earth, lie Is
about twenty-five years Of age and is
over six feet high, tall and gaunt, with a
fair share of wit in his makeup.
When the balloon wss sufficiently in
hated and the gearing of the parachute
properly arranged, the order came to let
90, and as it shot upward wild cry of
horror went out from the spectators:
Strong men groaned and women tainted
Dangling by three. eighths-inch rope at
tached to the balloon was the diminishing
form of Whitfield, whirling around as the
balloon swayed, head downward, hanging
By one foot between the balloon and the
appended parachute.
81 must have been standing with my
right foot in moose in the end OF the
rope" said Whitfield, in speaking of the
experience. "At any rate, as the balloon
shot up the loop caught around my an
kle, and so quickly was it done that I was
kerked clear of the ground and straight
up without my head striking as trjpped.
The balloon must have shot directly up
ward, as we were carried safely between
the wires of 9 network of telegraph poles
without touching them.
II must have been thousand feet from
the earth when recovered consciousness.
You see, the sudden jerk took my breath
away and the ascent was so rapid that I
was high in the air before realized what
had happened. could hear voice that
seemed indistinct and far away and it
took me some to locate the speaker.
'From my position l could catch
climpses of the houses and fields away
down below me and it made me deathly
sick as took in the situation. NY body
was twirling around and around and the
air rushed past me like q hurricane, while
the pain in my ankle was agonizing. At
last I observed the parachute about'ten
feet below me and recognized the voice
as that of Professor McSheen, in the para
chute.
"Graduslly I orercame the confused
feeling sufficiently to comprehend wha (
he was saying to me. He motioned to q
rope that hung down from the ballool
within my reach, and at last reachetE
out my hand ond grasped it. He told ~
to climb up and get in the nest of ropes
that formed q network below the car and
to fix myself firmly there, where woulde
be perfectly safe.
'iThen and there began the toughest
task of my life Professor McSheen KEEP
telling me over and oyer, without be:rayS
ing the least excitement in voice or gesf
ture, how to manage and his manner enS
couraged me. Slowly and painfully L!
pulled myself up, straining with all my
might to get my head above my heelsa
and, after what seemed to me hours and
hours, succeeded. Then with the smalA
grass cord cutting into the flesh of myf
hands and feeling like it was a red-hot1s
rod of iron, began to pull myself up lit-I
tie by little, as had no purchase until Is
reached the point where the ropes crossed. +
"It required all my strength to get myt
feet astraddle of the crossed ropes and II
was ready to faint with exhaustion whenA
I relaxed my hold on the rope and rest-s
ed nv weight in the network just unde1
the car. I did net know how high wei
were at the time, but Professor McsheenS
told me afterwards that we were at least
5000 feet above the earth.
"About the time got myself firmly
fixed in my airy seat I heard him calling}E
me again. He was telling me that he wa9
going to cut loose the parachute and fo1
me not to grow alarmed and lose my griH
on the ropes. In few minutes the balj
loon suddenly shot upward at fearfc
rate, and looking down I saw the para4$
chute sailing off and descending like d
big bird. clutched the ropes still mord
firmly and soon realized that the balloor5
was drawing near the earth. s.
professor McSheen had found that our