The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1898-11-13
A NIGHT TRIP
IN A BALLOON.
A MoonIit Landscape as 1t Appears
from AIOt.
SOME ECHOES FROM THE EARTH.
Experiences of English Aeronauts I'D
an Ascension.b by Night-rhe Draw
backs of Travelling by Balloon.
How the Moon Looks

A correspondent formed one OF MT
Spencers party in a balloon ascent rom
, ~. ly'.,,,',,a,,as ore interesting. AT
o,o feet high" he writes, I'VE were over
some suburban railway station, ana the
sight of train rushing along curved
cutting was one not TO be forgotten. II
was like a comet with a fiery gold head
and a silver tail. The moonlight on the
trail of smoke made 1t look like the
rapids Of a river in moonlight, rushing
mass of silver water; the engine was
glow of fiery red. You saw no train. Al
9.53 the smell of gas told US we were rs
ing and we commenced the work OF test
ing echoes. / may here remark that
there are two grave objections 10 bal
loon travelling-the one is that you can
not smoke. and the other that you per
petually smell gas.
In testing acoustically, l am afraid we
did not succeed I'm gaining any air ccho'
though one at 1000 feet-we went up IN
all to nearly 5000 feet-was suspected.
Echoes distinct we had in plenty put
they undoubtedly came from the balloon
above US, and none-eXcept. perhaps the
one dubious one / have referred to-irom
the empyrean. Echoes from the earth
showed the air to be very variable IN It's
carving power For Il long distance,
travelling at a height of 1909 feet the
air remained singularly Opaque acoIsti-
cally. and not a trace Of echoes couid
be caught; but later, at 400 feet they
became and remained very loud. Again,
twenty-five minutes later and 900 feet
lower they had become distinctly feeble.
The resonator, which Mr.. Bacon. "A mem
her OF the party, has constantly used
showed the same striking acoustic var
iation. and the murmur OF earth carried
m To us on the night breeze proved 10
be principally Of grave tones.
TESTING THE TEMPERATURES
..NIr Racon had with him an eNquisi-
tely sensitive air thermometer, which
showed remarkably the variations In
temperature during the steady ascent OF
the balloon. The temperature rose rap
idly up to about 900 feet. at which eleva-
ton we encountered "A colder stratum
Soaring through this. We rose announcer
1oo feet again into warmer ar. Then
through a second ana third shalio"
cold stratum: but at 1000 feet we had
entered an equabie region, ioF an ascent
NJ s0D feet or 100 feet higher gave us
M nractical change in the conditions.
and as acoustic experiments we're 10 be
a nrin,.inal part Of the rights work, We
kent below an altitude Of 5000 feet. AZ
the higher attitudes there Was no water
vapor noticeable in the spectrum, and
he conspicuous tenuric lines Mr.. Bacon
had detected in his previous nights ex-
periments had disappeared.
1.-The brilliancy OF the moon was very
markedly increased as we new nlgher, ana
lunar details easily seen with field-glasses
from earth became difficult to gaze at.
Seen through good glasses, indeed, the
moon was simply dazzlingly and tryingly
MILITANT As i bent 10 the Davy lamp we
carried 10 read the aneroid to Mr.. Bacon
MIR. spencer could read IT by the moon
light-it recorded ~" ,eei anu s,rttjo',
no At 1000 feet IL was marvellous 10
note the clean-cut shadow OF the balloon
which the moon gave, AS we threw out
sand It's shadow could be seen dropping
from the balloon. first In a broad stream,
then as II disintegrated and the particles
separated widening into nebulous shade