Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1908-08-14
A FRIGHT IN MADAIR.
Going Up In a Balloon and Coming
Down In a Parachute.


1 once went up in balloon and
came down in a parachute. Some
thing went wrong, and all the money
In the world doubled would not in
duce me to make the experiment
again.
One grows strangely accustomed to
dangers as an acrobat, and when it
was suggested that l should earn $25
in as many minutes by taking the
place of a parachutist VINO had fall
en- i'll at the last minute 1 jumped at
the chance.
1t was at a large country fair. The
laughing crowd had probably never
seen a balloon go up. AS the great
silk bag gradually swelled a silence
fell upon the Onlookers.
The sick parachutist's manager
patted me on the back and said it
was money easily earned. I agreed
then.
keep COOL" he said, land, what
ever you do, don't look down except
to judge your distance from the earth.
You see that tower? 1t is about a
thousand yards away. When you are
that distance up pull the check string
and shut your eyes"
A dull murmur rose as the ropes
were cast off and l felt my feet leave
the ground. The upward movement
was gentle, and a great cheer came
up to me until the band drowned it.
1 hardly heard the cheering or the
band The involuntary murmur still
rang in my ears. Perhaps my nerves
were upset, possibly it was intuition,
but from the moment 1 was drawn
up from the ground felt the convic-
ton that grim trouble lay ahead.
ignoring the oft repeated instruc-
tions, 1 looked down. How slowly
the balloon went up! Could it be pos
sible that 1 had not gone more than
a hundred yards? The giant over
head became a living thing, intent on
torturing the puny mortal who had
trusted his life to it. I knew I dared
not leap before I was high enough,
for the parachute takes 100 feet
sometimes to open.
I shut my eyes and tried to count
to kill time. but the figures became
jumbled, and I looked down again.
A swallow skinned past underneath.
Far below there was a sea of upturn-
ed faces, and the music floated up
distinctly The balloon seemed to
have stopped rising, and for an eter-
nifty tried to gauge the height.
Again the band stopped, and I was
in a silent world. The crowd Of
breathless specks far beneath was
getting full value for it's money. The
only noise I heard was the beating Of
the blood through my head. 1 was
afraid. 1t was the first real fear
had ever felt in my work.
When the supreme moment came
pulled the string without realizing
what 1 was doing.
What years I lived in those next
le" SeCoiluS All dppdlllnB nausea
and a wild desire to live came with
the first terrible rush. and my heart
stood still as l looked eagerly aloft
The ropes Of the parachute had twist
ed, and was falling to instant death
Grasping the ropes in a clutch Of
steel, 1 shook them frantically. Half
the huge parachute bellied out with
a noise like a pistol shot, and the
speed Of the fall was lessened with a
jar.
Again l shook the death trap The
ropes were sliding at a snail's pace.
and bit by bit the parachute was open
ing. Still fell far too fast. I could
not breathe, and my hands seemed
to be refusing to hold on.
Bang! The last fold had opened
out, and was saved. Dizzy and numb
with fear, 1 held on tightly wonder
ing whether I should faint before
touched the ground. That and that
only, was my thought as l sailed
through the space. I had almost lost
consciousness when my feet touched
the ground gently. And then I col
apsed.-Buffaio Times.