The Newport miner. [volume] (Newport, Wash.) 1899-current, 1910-07-28

AANSASoAe A. ~ Ac0ues 10 DA{0e x86
me pull the show OF for you"
Il know You sailors have the nerve
70 DO all sorts Of stunts, but you're up
against 1t hard when you tackle bal
loon"
That's all right" replied Pup. nm
rolling his clippings, ''but amt green
on balloons. Glance over them"
OKeane glanced, and when he read
Pups army papers he said: THAT'S 4
big temptation. Pup. You'd save the
day for u.s."
1t was agreed that Pup should make
the ascent then descend to within a
few hundred feet Of the earth with the
open valve before making the para
chute leap.
Pup hurried across to the station.
When he returned he was clad In q
brilliant red bathing suit, and he took
his place on the double bars Of the
trapeze, eager and confident.
OKeane grasped his hand. II ap-
preciate this, Pup" he said warmly.
Keep your nerve and be careful. All
ready?"
Pup nodded. The ropes were releas-
ed, and he sailed rapidly skyward.
Below. the pilotboat, which had
agreed to come after him In case he
went offshore, was heading in his d.
rect1on. 1t seemed down there as If
the world had fattened out, making a
great level map. Old Point Comfort,
Norfolk. Virginia Beach and Cape
Charles were all in view. and he I'M
slung his marine glasses. AS he ad-
justed them and turned them first on
the cape the red and black double
squares Of the United States hurricane
signal flashed back at him through the
lenses 1t had been hoisted since his
ascent. and he glanced skyward anx-
iously. Overhead there were long
mares tails and In the northeast q
rapidly gathering thickness. he had
been stationed on that coast long
enough to know its signs. and this one
had proved it's truth.
The westerly breeze had died out.
Seeing the pilotboat almost beneath
him, Pup grasped the valve rope to be-
gin his descent when a few isolated
bits Of scud came from out Of the
northeast. a puff Of air famed his
cheeks. and the balloon swung slowly
around. facing him eastward. At the
sight which met his astonished gaze
his eyes widened. and he exclaimed.
"Holy Nike"
Again he unslung his glasses. A
vessel lay far out at sea, miles beyond
the sea level limit Of vision from the
coast and even barely visible to his
naked eye. But with the magni6ed
view through the glasses he saw that
great clouds Of smoke were rolling not
only from her tunnels, but from fore
and aft. and an occasional bit OF fame
leaped through them. At her bows
there was no white foam. indicating
that the steamer was at standstill.
The few tiny dots to the east and
north proved to be small boats filled
to their capacity with humanity.
The parachute was the quickest
means of descent. and Pup chose it
without hesitation. But In his haste
to shake it out he let go the rope
which held 1t upright to the trapeze.
It ran out swiftly. the canvas toppled
over downward. and before he was
aware of it it had jerked itself loose
from his hands and. turning complete
~ over. shot downward through space
with the swiftness Of an arrow.
His brain whirled for a moment:
then. excited and eager to descend. he
grasped the valve rope and gave 1t a
violent pull In an instant, gasping
and choking. with the air roaring past
his ears and the blood rushing to his
head. he dropped toward the blue sea.
There he comesw
The cry came from scores Of lips as
the spectators saw the parachute start
in Its descent. But the cheer that
broke forth died away to tense 81
lence. They watched with bated breath
while the bit of canvas continued to
fall at the same high rate. Then
something like groan filed the air.
My God. what's the matter" ex-
claimed Shultz. turning to the profess
sor. cit doesn't spread out. He'll be
killed!'
The professor was already training
pair of glasses on the parachute.
He is not in there" he said. He
must have dropped it." J..
AS he spoke the big sphere dropped
suddenly and swiftly, watched In
frightened silence, until within about
200 feet Of the earth it slackened Its
pace and came to stop. By this time
it had drifted farther westward with
the shifting wind and was shaping q
course for the Chesapeake bay. But
they could easily see the red clad ag-
ure Of Pup on the trapeze.
"A few more pulls on the valve will
bring him down." said the professor.
"Can you signalw
Shultz stripped his big navy necker-
chief from the collar Of his blouse and
tied it to cane.
"He's signaling now" he said, wav-
ing an acknowledgment Then he re-
peated with a pause between each