The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1897-01-19

The Aeropaut Tells Story Out of His
Experience in the Profession.


Something or other suggested the subject,
and the tall man, who sat at Tho hotel table
whore he couldn't see the man opposite owing
to the caster which stood between, stuck his
fork into potato and began talking.
~ SUPPOSE" he said, that when Elijah
went to heaven in a hand basket he liked 1t
and it was all right, but os for me. I'd
rather go by land"
The man at the foot OF the table looked up
questioningly.
''By the grave yard of course, / mean" F"
hastily oxplined the talkcr. You see, this
aerial navigation business int any good after
you've had a 'ras'e' with it that pulls all Of
n mans nerves out by the roots, twists them
around stump and then begips to yank and
saw on them. Y'understand what meang /
used TO be an aerOnaut, did | guess must
have made thousand ascensions. out in my
state for long time no county fair was com
plete without me, and got the topography OF
the State down 80 fine from my pirds-eye
view of Il that ! could draw "A map OF the
whole layout with my eyes shut. Great thing
ii was TO De sailing through the air I'm them
days, and thought never would get enough
of il, until one fine afternoon "A rope broke in
ticlSlish place, snd IL gave me a kind of ner-
vous ft just as it does railroad engineer
when he has an accident and isn't hurt ;hat
anybody can see. just .he same he is hurt
and so was !, but kept on 80 dos the engi
neer.
After that. though, didn't 60 mp feeling
quite as sassy as / used TO feel, and some
times as / would 90 shooting upward I'd won
der how hard the ground was in case man
had 20 light sudden. always done trapeze
act in connection with my performance, and
IL do say 1T myself il wasn't any slouch of'a
trapeze show. And didn't like that halt as
well after the rope broke as | did before
either. Indeed l begun TO think the whole
darn balloon business wasn't what il was
cracked up 70 be. Twas thinking about tying
"a rope around my waist to catch hold OF
things IL fell, but ii didn't like to do that
though there was about "A hundred feet of rope
had hung out as an anchor, or z, ab, with a
hook on the end TO help me TO land when the
show was over.
THE day / retired from the business
there was a State fair going on THAI week,
and went up every day. 1t was fine day
with just enough wind to move the balloon
along majestic, the papers said, ami when /
shot up was 80 nervous that / actually
said my prayers as | saw the ground dropping
away under me. But took brace on my
self, and begun my trapeze act. the balloon
going up faster than ever felt IT, BY this
time was mp half mile, and my turn was
TO swing with my knees round the bar, which
looked mighty dangerous, but il really wasn't
any worse than If ] had been in a theater with
out n net Well, give mvself the swing and
never did know why, but l lost my grip,
and with a swish l felt myself hy out into
space The Lord knows what thought
about, but it wasn't for long, for didn't
know any more until came to in the room
at the hotel whore was stopping"
Come of, )" interrupted the man at the
foot of the table. "You can't tell this crowd
you fell half "a mile and didn't get killed. You
are plain, unyarnished liar, that's what you
are"
You're another If you say said fell half
a mile" !" responded the retired aeronaut, and
1t looked rs if there might be scrap.
what l did do, 4" he continued, when peace
was restored, ''wHs to strike that anchor line
within ten feet of the end as 1t trailed under
me, and by soms act of mercful Providence
the anchor flew around my body and caught
the.rope above, thus looping me in. There
hung until the balloon came down. and as
everybody below saw the accident you may
imagine that | had big reception when
faHtItt, though tifTrf't know Ur1y ytf1ing about
II. did know though, chat J couldn't tempt
Providence twice, ald so / quit and went &c
editing country newspaper, which is more
lingering than falling out of balloon"