The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-09-25
M B N w o M E N
 A N D T H IN c s

room to my desk in the rear of the annext, said to one of the local staff, Do you know who was the first man to take flight through the air?"
 
 Now, the minute the words had left my mouth, saw by the merry twinkle in the eye of the bright young man on the desk that he was laying for me. and he was, for he fired back at me. DOC, I'm surprised to find that you are insinuating that I never attended Sunday school in my boyhood."
 He had me guessing, for I had no idea what was revolving in his mind, only that when there was an ignition of his gray matter that he would hand me one, and he did, for he said that Elijah was the first air passenger" It gratfied me to know that he was familiar with the Old Testament, yet I was shocked at his irrevcrence.
 The mind of man is curious thing and works in devious ways. I had been digging away in histories, enclycople- dias and mythology to get a line on the man to whom the honor of first mAk- ing an aerial ascent belonged and without moments thought one of the of the boys on the paper bestowed it on the prophet of old with a non- chalance that was most engaging.
 Of course Elijah and the incident of his translation is in class by itself and by no stretch of the imagination can be included either under the head of aerostation Or aviation in aeronau- ties, the "art of navigating the air for it comes under the head of the niracu- lous, and. therefore the chariot of fire, and the whirlwind must be left to sacred history.
 Brushing aside the incident, I refer red to in my first article on balloon ing in which mention was made in the minister's history of Lyons, as not well authenticated; and calling into ques- ton the ascent purported to have been made in China, as both have weak spots in their claims. and the names of the aeronauts are not given. think it can be safely said that the honor goes to a Frenchman, Pilatre des Rosters, for under his direction the experiment plished.
 
 17S3 was a great year in the history of aeronautics. The success of the Montgolfier brothers in their home town of Annonay soon reached Paris, where it naturally produced a great sensation. It was such an unusual per- formance that a commission was ap- pointed by the academy of sciences to report upon it. Public curiosity, how ever could not wait the tardy deci- sion of the learned body and therefore public subscription raised the neces- sary money needed for a trial in the capital of France.
 The construction Of the balloon was entrusted to the brothers, Roberts, fa- nous philosophical instrument makers young but experienced physicist. He didn't wait for detailed account of the mode of making the Montgolfier gas. ct will be recalled the paper makers used ten pounds of chopped straw with wooD; but he fixed upon hydrogen as the most likely to insure success. It was some job to get suf- ficient quantity, for at that time only small quantities were used in the lec- ture room. I'll not give in detail how after much ingenuity and perserver- ance small silk balloon was sent up from the Champs de Mars, half the population of the city being on hand to see it rise.
 When the first hydrogen balloon present. and when one of the specta- tors said Very fine! but what's the use of it" the diplomat and author of Poor Richards Almanac, with sly humor and American common sense, gave vent to that idealism which some how seems to be part of our country men in spite of their practicality by retorting. Whats the use of a baby?" and left a wondering Frenchman pux- zling his brain in an effort to get the meaning of the rude citizen from the United States. People said the bal loon was toy. the bicycle was a toy, the automobile was toy. A most H. luminating and helpful volume might be written on how toys have changed the mode of transportation.
 Then the Montgolfiers of Annonay at the instance of the members of the commission who finally acted came to Paris, ana stephen Montgolfier con- structed a fire balloon. seventy-two feet high and forty feet in diame- ter, 1t asoended before the commis- sion on the 12th of September. 17S3, but being it was much injured by a violent wind. and after coming down. it was finally broken up by heavy rains. Another about the same size was made and a little while later ascended from Versailles the royal family "as- sisting' at the spectacle as one chroni- cler puts it. In plain English it simply means they were present and looking on the ascension. But what is of more interest to me than the presence of the king and queen was the fact that a sheep, q cock and duck were placed in the ozier-basket attached to the lower part of the balloon, and these first aerial voyagers reached the ground again in safety.