The Savannah morning news., 1902-10-14
THE FATAL BALLOON
AERONAUT AND HIS HELPER KILL
ED IN FRANCE.
BAD ROPES HOLDING BASKET.
IN SOME MANNER THE CABLES
PARTED CAUSING FALL.

DeBradsI<y Had, He Thought, Dem
Onstrated the PracticabiIity of the
DirigibIe acknowledgements Had
Evidently Lost Control of the Air
ship Long Before the Time of the
FRtaIity-Rudder Did Not Work
Successfully and Balloon Drifted
Back Over Point of Departure.
Paris, Oct. 13.-DeBradsky the aero
naut, and his engineer NORM, were
killed by falling from a dirigible bal
loon to-day.
The balloon started from the Aeros-
tatic station at Vanguard, a suburb Of
this city, at 7:55 a. m, on a trial trip
After preliminary maneuvers. with a
rope attached, DeBradsky released the
balloon and proceeded southwark at a
height of 300 or 400 feet. The ptopellers
of the machine appeared to work WELL
The rudder, however, was not quite
successful.
About 800 the balloon had returned
to above the point of departure and
then it gradually mounted higher and
higher until it disappeared in the
clouds. The project of police later re-
ceived d dispatch announcing the fall
of the balloon car near st. Denis, five
and half miles from the center Of
Paris and adding that it's two occu-
pants were killed.
The accident occurred about $3.50
o'clock. When the balloon was above
nk
taching the car to the balloon broke
from some unknown cause, and the car.
with it's occupants, DeBradsky and
NORM, was dashed to the ground and
the aeronauts met instantaneous death
The balloon itself disappeared in the
clouds.
When the balloon arrived over
Stains, the aeronauts called to some
workmen in the fields, asking the direc-
ton of Pantin. DeBradsky and NORM
were seen moving about the car. Sud-
denly one of the wire ropes broke and
then another gave way and the car,
weighing $50 pounds, crashed to the
ground, burying the aeronauts beneath
it. They were crushed, their legs were
broken and their faces were bloody,
but they were not disfigured. The
bodies were taken to st. Denis.
The catastrophe sent a thrill of hor-
ror through Paris, following the disas-
ter to the Brazilian aeronaut, Severe,
who was killed May II, last, and whose
balloon started from the same shed in
a southern part OF PegFs~-ssa Efid De-
| Bradsky's balloon to-day. The princi-
pie of the latter'S ship had been warm
ly discussed, and its ascent was await
ed with the keenest interest.
A number of aeronauts. friends of
| DeBradsky, and the latters wife, were
present at the start. His wife, though
anxious that her husband should DEM
onstrate the success of his invention
witnessed his departure with considera-
BILE emotion, especially as the CONVEX
sation of the spectators turned
on the fatal ending of Severos
experiment. DeBradsky first tried
the ascensional screw situated below
the car, and the airship, held by ropes,
rose easily and maintained its equili
briurn. DeBradsky was satisfied and
said he would maneuver over the
drilling ground. A whistle was blown,
the men released the ropes. the pro-
pelling screw behind was set in mo-
tion and the airship was pointed in
the proper direction, when suddenly a
southwest wind sprang up and the
airship swerved to the northeast in
stead of to the northwest. Crossing the
main boulevards. the aerial craft exc
Culeu a NUMBER Oh eVOluIlOnS, Dut con-
tinued northward with the wind, even
tually disappearing over the great
white basilica of the Church of the
Sacred Heart on top of the hill of
Mont Martre. The aeronaut's wife
and their friends waited at the shed
from s until 10 O'Clock and grew anx-
ious at his prolonged absence.
When the balloon was perceived at
an immense hight this increased the
anxiety, as it was known the airship
was never intended to rise to such
point. 1t was, however, merely the
inflated envelope which drifted back
across Paris after the accident had re-
lieved it of the weight of the car. A
few minutes later a telegram arrived
with the news of the disaster.
DeBradsky was a Hungarian baron
&c years of age, rich and clever, and
had been in the diplomatic service He
made his first ascension in 1901. NORM
was his engineer. He leaves a widow
and three children.
La Chambre, the constructor of the
airship, says he had no confidence in
the mechanical part Of the airship,
but says the balloon had perfect sta
bility and constituted real progress. in
asmuch as there was no pitching or
sudden shocks. The defects were that
the car was too light and that the mo-
ter and guiding screws were too weak
-S-~-s-
MACEDONIAN DISTURBANCE.