Year: 1877

travelling acquaintance, as the cars were
nearing Toledo. He had told me that lie
was a professional aeronaut. His ascen-
siOns, however, were not made for scientific
purposes, but as a means of livelihood.
For them he received five hundred dollars,
and sometimes a thousand dollars trip.


eyes, an odd and dangerous one," he
replied.


"No doubt, especially when balloon
takes fire in the air, or collapses. But"
asked, "with judicions management and in
favorable weather, is the peril really as great
as most people think it is ?"


Every whitr exclaimed the aeronaut.
Il am never in the air an hour that am
not made fully aware, in some way, that
my life is staked, and stalled, too, against
heavy odds. But the part of the venture
that | always dread is the coming down,
not the going up; especially coming to the
earth in a gale of wind, or even in stiff
breeze.


"You see, too, that I am not like a
scientist | must leave the ground on
advertised time. When l make an engage
mcnt on the Fourth of July, or with some
menagerie, | must leave at the hour an
nounced, whether the aspect of the sky is
favorable or not. 1t won't do to disappoint
spectators after they've paid money to
satisfy their curiosity. A crowd of people
of that sort has neither soul nor reason.
They expect you to make the flight, and
will hoot and sometimes use violence if it
is not made.


al shall never forget an ascension l made
from Detroit. | was hired for Vance's
Great Circus and Caravan. 1t was on the
23l of August. was to be paid five hun
dred dollars for the ascent.


g had with me young fellow named
Ned Estes. Poor Ned We came to De-
troit the evening before the balloon, the
Gipsy Queen, gay little air bubble of about
nineteen thousand cubic feet capacity


g 1t was a bright morning, and we took
the Gypsy to the grounds early. A vacant
space had been encircled by rope for us,
and the hose connected with the gas pipe
of some sort of factory about hundred
yards away. We began to initiate the bal
loon with coal gas. Common burning gas
is used in most Of the large towns for this
purpose. Pure hydrogen gas is much
more expensive and difficult to manufacture
and the coal gas answers almost as well,
though the odor is not agreeable.


4" 1t was past eleven o'clock when we
ceased to initiate the balloon. Then we
allowed her to ascend about thirty feet,
and there held her to the ground by cords.
This was done for an advertisement to
draw a crowd. | think not less than five
thousand persons were in that circus. The
performance lasted till little after five
pie streamed out and surrounded the
Gypsy.


Meantime the weather had changed. l
never saw a more ominous sky. The scuds
had begun to fly in the south, and every
five or ten minutes there would come one
of those dreary sighs of wind which to an
aerOnaught's ear are as significant as signal
guns.


"' Fred, said Ned to me, as we were
hauling the balloon down, so that we could
get into the car, what do you think the
public hog would say if we were to let out
the gas and postpone the thing?


81 replied that l should not care so
much for what might be said as for what
might be done. A coat of tar and feathers,
and general distribution of the Gypsy in
little pieces for mementoes, would follow
our refusal to 60 up. Go we must, if we
died for it, That was of no consequence to
the crowd.


"'All right said Ned. But we had
better come down at once, unless we want
to sail in a Southwestern


" / urged Ned not to go with me, the
prospect looked so threatening; but he
replied:


"Oh, Pm goingl But, Fred, think
we had better insert the words, I" if the
weather is clear" in our next advertise
ment.'


8" thought so, too.


" 1t was noisy crowd. Lots of liquor
had been drank, and there was not spark
of pity for us in the mind of a person
present.


sat quarter after five the gun was fired.
Ned leaned out of the basket.


"' Ladies and Gentlemen he shouted,
we are now about to bid you adieu. Good
night! guess you've sent us to our
DEATH he added, in lower tone of voice,
as he turned with a forced laugh to me.


"The line was cut. Gypsy, vaulting
from the ground, sailed up like great
white bird toward the darkening sky. A
shout followed u.s. Handkerchiefs were
waved. But we were soon high aloft out of
earshot.


81 had kept the hose on till the last
moment, SO as to have every inch OF the
canvas inflated, for, under the most favora-
ble circumstances, never like to hear a
balloon flap, and for the last hour or two
had been convinced that we should be
forced across Lake st. Clair before we


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