The Somerset reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1868-1909, 1909-04-29
A Balloon Ascension.

The following account of very ex-
citing episode in aeronautics, will
have added interest for Skowhegan
people because of the author, Mrs.
Emily P. Webb, formerly resident
of Skowhegan. The incident has
been made the subject of extensive
news dispatches in the daily papers.
Mrs. Webb's narrative is in the nature
of special account, exclusively for
the REPORTER, and may be relied up
on as accurate in every detail.
Saturday afternoon, the twentieth
of March was the close of a week of
sports at Tournament Park in Pasa-
dena, Calf. Every day had witness
ed exciting games, and races of all
kinds, polo, football, base ball, and
2the racing of thoronghO5 y borses,
each competing in turn for the en-
thusiastic cheers of the, happy crowds
who thronged the grounds, and mede
The Park was decorated with hun
dreds of gay remnants and floating
flags, and the very spirit of sport
seemed to float in the air.
The merry Tournament closed with
balloon ascension, in charge of Cap
tain Mueller, an experienced aero
naut, who took with him, five of our
well known citizens. His plan WAS,
to go north and land in Altadena,
about five miles from Pasadena.
They started under unpropitious Cir
cumstances, the clouds hung low and
threatening, and cold bleak
wind was blowing, which by dark,
was accompanied by a driving rain.
From the time they left on Saturday
afternoon at three O'Clock, until the
following Tuesday at the same hour,
nothing was heard from them, and
their fate was shrouded in mystery.
A heavy and driving rain poured
down upon Pasadena all day Sunday,
and we could see the mountains were
fast being covered with the falling
snow. The men took with them food
sufficient for only two meals, and
even the most sanguine, feared they
might have persisted IN the storm in
some inaccessible mountain fastness,
remote from any habitation of man.
| never knew such excitment and
anxiety in the city, since those dread
full days, when so many of our citizens
were in San Francisco at the time of
the earthquake.
Many parties were formed, hun
dreds of men in all, to go in search of
them, going north into the mountains
and canyons, in the face of the wind
and the storm to hunt for the missing
men. 1t was arranged that two long
whistles should be blown to inform
the people, if the searching party
should find the men alive, and un-
harmed, and five short ones if they
had persisted. The very air seemed
tense with anxiety, and almost vi
brant with feeling, as hour after hour
we listened for the shrill voice of the
whistle, and listened in vain. The
man in his office, the teamster on the
street, the woman abroad and at
home thought of nothing else,-sper-
haps these men are perishingl" At
length the tension of feeling was
broken on Tuesday afternoon, by two
prolonged exultant whistles, and
everyone took long breath, and re-
joiced with thankful heart.
cannot give you the story of the
thrilling adventures of these aero
nauts as l would like to, but will tell
you little of their perils, and hair
breadth escapes. After leaving the
Park, strong wind bore them north
until they sailed high over Altadena,
and looking down they saw fire and
smoke arising from a large tract be-
low them. They had no desire to
descend into that, and even if they
had, the power to do 80 was taken
from their hands, for they were in the
clutches of mighty wind which took