The Newark star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1909, 1909-11-05
FIVE NEAR DEATH
AS BIG BALLOON
IS HIT BY STORM
Gas Bag Lands III Tuckerton
After Thrilling Voyage from
Philadelphia.
ELECTRIC WIRE BROKEN BY
ANCHOR SHOCKS LINEMAN
Naval Officers and Aeronant Tell
of Perils in AIl-night
Air Trip.

TUCKERTON, Nov. 5.-The balloon
Philadelphia II. ended one of the most
perilous and exciting flights it or any
other balloon ever encountered when,
just outside of here, the occupants of
the flying basket were thrown about
the bottom of the basket and caroomed
against one another, completely at the
mercy of the wildly careening bag.
They were scraped across the tops of
TO the ropes to avoid being spilled from
the almost inverted basket. Two of
them-Qficers In the United States
marine corps, by the ~way-became so
seasick that they lay grooming In the
bottom OF. the basket. and finally they
We're spilled from their cage like dice
from a cup.
The ascension was made from the
grounds of the United Gas Improve
ment Athletic Association, at Thirty
first street and Passyunk avenue,
Philadelphia. A strong southeasterIy
vim tugged at the huge bag until the
attendants despaired of holding it to
the ground until DR.. Thomas E. Ed
ridge, president OF the Philadelphia
Aeronautic Recreation Society, under
whose auspices the ascension was
made, and his four guests could enter
the basket.
EnsignsAMorton Poole and L. c.. Far
ley, of the United States navy, and
Lieutenants Harold E. Wirgman and
w D. Smith, of the United States
marine corps, accompanied DR.. Ed
ridge.
One fatality may. result from the
wild flight, William Shoreacre, of HOP
Nevada street, a 1%inenan, who sought
10 repair a broken trolley wire whic
the balloon snapped in its start, is I'M
conscious in st. Agnes's Hospital. He
9rasped h dangling wire, thinking
that 1t had been wrenched from the
n snapped from the line. He
was thrown twenty feet away against
the iron fence at the entrance of the
He was. saved from being
slowly roasted to death by one of his
Fellow hnuemen, John C~avanaugh, who
tipped the wire and thereby. stopped
n current which was twisting Shore
acre into knots:
The rest of the story can only be de-
scribed by DR.. Eldridge and the officers.
Inc wind blew i'm a general south
eastsr1y direction. said DR.. E1dridre.
but we encountered cross Currents that
spun US about like marbles in a saucer.
It WA the most exciting, the most per-
iious trip / have ever taken. We
couldn't see the earth. The deep, black
clouds hung beneath. The earth was
only seen in short snatches, and then
we could not tell whether we we're
above the ocean or above a forest. 1
noticed the barometer. and noted that
we we're rising with a rapidity that wal
astounding.
THE wind above the clouds could not
be noticed. but we felt q whirling and a
leaping that I have never before expe-
rienced. Finally the clouds broke. I
saw far. far below, and almost under
meath. the ocean,. n called to Poole
and Farley, who were across holdingsto
h ropes as though they were bent on
breaking them. They staggered, or
rather tumbied, across the basket, and
saw, like ! did, the ocean. We were ris-
ing all the time, and always sweeping
southwardly. Farley and Poole at this
point became deathly sick. That was
h only humorous situation of the trip.
Fancy a marine becoming seasick, and
In a balloon n that.
EIQfi lit 4 6l0Ou L COulQ not
measure the distance from the pine
woods directly beneath and the ocean.
l took the only chance I could and
pulled the rip cord.
1--WE dropped Ike a shot. Down
toward the pine trees we sped and 1
ordered the boys to empty the sand
bags. We fell with such rapidity that
We a through the rain of flying
sand, 1t cut us like hail and filed our
eyes. We were compelled to fall back
from the edge of the basket. Our next
sensation was humping against the tree
tops. We looked out and saw that we
had a mile of tree tops to battle be-
fore reaching the sandy fields,
w hung to the ropes. The bag
careened in the thirty-five-mile breeze
and the basket tipped at every tree
top Then we threw over four bags
of a without opening the bags. One
crashed at the feet of Al. Rider, game
warden, of Tuckerton. He saw our
dragging anchor and called to his az
sistant, j.. H. Brown, to aid him in Sc
curing the dashing iron to a tree. The
anchor would catch, then release, and
we were jerked about accordingly.
I'VE finally reached the clearing and
the anchor was fastened to a dense
underground. We settled on our sides.
The bag hit the ground first inc the
basket landed IN its edge. We were
spilled on the ground somewhat
scratched and bruised and very much
scared.
'It takes some time to tell this. blu
the facts remain that we had fallen
6,580 feet in a fraction more than three
minutes. The basket is crushed and
the bag badly torn. Extensive repairs
will be needed for EACH
All the other passengers had recov-
cred from whatever shock they X
~perienced n laughingly declared that
they were ready to ascend again at
the next opportunity.