Year: 1873

TIom thshtoH Luut. III ~. L aidpilt.


While consulting as to the best
method of evading the mountain re-
gion and its changeable currents,
we were suddenly envcloped in q
thick cloud, and an instant later a
terrific sqrall of wind and rain
caught the balloon, twisting and
shaking it so violently that I own l
thought its almost instant destruc-
tion certain, and in another moment
we were whirled off, we knew not
whittier The great bag aboye us
tapped and doomed like the sails
OF a ship when too close hauled,
and every convulsion was echoed
from the interior and prolonged in
to an ominous roar. That the mo-
ment was one of extreme danger, |
could not for 4 moment doubt, but
the horrible noise above and the
Kissing below Of the wind over the
tops Of the still invisible trees rem
dered conversation almost inpos-
sible.


was standing in the bow Of the
boat at this time; Mr.. Ford was in
the. c.centcr,and Mr.. Donaldson in the
cock pit. Suddenly the latter shout
ed, "Look out! BE ready to jump
when | tell you," and the next in
slant the green tree tois swept
past the boat Oh either side. At
this moment we descended ont of
the cloud, and l saw that we were
falling-literally falling-into u
small open space between two
pieces of woodland. In an instant
l had dropped over the side of the
boat and was holding on to the gun
vale, and glance showed my com
panions also to be in readiness be
hind me. Down we came, the bal
loon driving furiously earthward by
the seemingly perpendicular gale,
and the boat spinning about like a
mere chip. Suddenly Donaldson
shouted, "Jump out, quick" and
suiting the action to the word, fol-
lowed in another second by Ford,
l heard the double thud with which
they struck the earth with horror,
and all that Donaldson had told me
me Of the difficulty of Judging the
distance after an ascent, flashed
through my mind, and l turned my
head to see the effect of their fall.


They were both rising from the
grass, but my readers may Judge
my sensation when l saw they were
hundred feet below me and the
balloon was shooting into the air
again. One second of indecision,
and / swung myself upon the boat
and shouted to Donaldson, "What
shall l do2" The fury of the storm,
however, drowned my voice and
his, and in another word | was
again up in the clouds, which were
so thick that the great bag above
me was invisible. The time from
Mr.. Donaldson's first warning until
now could not have exceeded thirty
seconds, yet there l was alone in the
largest balloon ever successfully in,
flafed, and perfectly ignorant, prac-
tically, of it's management. For a
short time stood absently clutch
ing the ropes and wondering what
was to become of me, but soon felt
that my safety depended upon my
prompt action, and began to think
what had better be done. Should /
cut off the great drag rope and
ascend above the storm, and trust
to luck to make another landing in a
southern country? l drew my knife
for that purpose, but remembered
that l had asked several sronauts
would be the effect of such sudden
lighting of balloon, and they had
each said that it would probably
burst. AS l had no desire to in
clude this performance in my i'm
promptu programme, tho knife was
returned to its sheath and the valve
resortcd to. The cord was tangled
by the neck of the balloon, and for
some time my entire weight was ap-
parently inadequate to open it.


1t appears, however, that there
was an error of judgment on my
part, and that / did really open the
valve. This must have been the
case, for in a short time the exten-
sion of the drag rope at an acute
angle, showed me that the balloon
had again descended, and began



anxiously to peer through the mist
for signs of the earth. They came
with vengeance. The roar of the
storm over the trees became audi
bic again, and a moment later
the balloon emerged from the
cloud, and saw myself nearing the
forest with alarming rapidity. l
had let out too much gas from the
valve, and the balloon was descend
ing even faster than before. l had
hardly time to climb into the con-