The Corvallis times. (Corvallis, Or.) 1888-1909, 1902-02-19
s CORVALLIS OREGON, FEBRUARY

ship emerged at 2:5s. 4 number
of steam yachts and launches, in
Guiding the prince of Monaco's
yacht, Prince Alice, with several
parties on board, were cruising a.
bout the bay, with the intention OF
/ following the balloon. Cheers greet
ed Santos-Dumont as his si-shin
rose and it's head pointed for .Le .Lee
middle Of the bay. It wassoon no.
ticed, however, that instead of
maintaining its usual equilibrium
| the balloon rose and acted in a way
that caused anxiety among the spec
| tators. The aeronaut, however, kept
on his fight, and pointing his ship
to the left, continued to ascend ut1-
til the long guide rope was quite 20
J feet out of the water.
In turning the balloon the guide
!, rope. caught in the screw, and this,
| with the cratic working of the
/ airship, created a situation of great
danger. At the same time squall
| burst, and Santos-Dumont tilted
the head of his balloon upward, in
order to disengage the guide rope.
But in so doing the ballast shifted,
and the oil used to run the motor
began to spread. Fearing an ex-
plosion, the inventor pulled the e.
mergency cord. This ripped the
envelope of the balloon, which at
once began rapidly to desceud.
Santos-Dumont did not lose his
head. He could easily be seen
from the shore, watching the vari-
Gus parts of the airahip. At this
i time the balloon had slightly right
ed itself, and the lower part, having
become empty, the airship dropped
slantingly toward the pigeon-shoot-
ing ground, which borders the bay.
In the mean time the steam
launches in the bay were making
toward the spot where it was sup
posed the balloon would fall. The
first to approach was the Princess
Alice, belonging to the prince OF
Monaco, and those on board seized
the balloons guide rope, which
somehow had become disentangled.
At the moment this was done a
sharp cracking sound, made by the
motor, could be heard, and the
screw was seen to revolve. The
balloon, which was then almost in
the sea, rose slowly for few me-
rnents. But the motor stopped a.
gain, and the airship descended a
second time, until Santos-Dumont
was immersed up to his armpits in
water.
The sceene was witnessed with
intense excitement by onlookers a.
shore and afoat. The aeronaut,
with the pluck that has character
lied him throughout his dangerous
experiments, could, be seen stand
ing up in his car, gesticulating and
shouting directions to those on the
launch, which was towing him to-
ward the Princess Alice. AT 3:5
the end of the balloon burst and
the prince of Monaco, who was on
board the launch, then gave orders
to rescue Sautos-Dumont from his
perilouz position. The launch
came along side the half-defated
balloon of the airship, which threat
ened at any moment to smother
Santo -Dumont. The latter was
half pulled and half clambered over
the gunwale into the boat. The
prince of Monaco took him by the
hand and urged him to allow him.
self to be taken on board the yacht,
to dry himself and change his
clothes. But the aeronaut refused
to do this until the rhemnants ofite
airship had been saved.
rs With the sea water dripping from
his clothes and looking like water
rat, the inventor stood in the bows
of the launch, shouting directions
for the salvage of his airship. It
was impossible to save more than
the silk envelope. The motor had
to be left to its fate, and it sank.
The launch, with the inventor, then
made for the shore. AS Santos Du-
mont landed, the great assemblage
which had gathered on the shore
acclaimed with extreme enthusiasm.
His first words of hurried inter-
view, obtained as he made his way
toward his residence, were:
81 am notdiscouraged. My trip
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