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-The Project Gutenberg eBook, A Voyage in a Balloon (1852), by Jules Verne,
-et al, Translated by Anne T. Wilbur
-
-
-This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
-almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
-re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
-with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
-
-
-
-
-
-Title: A Voyage in a Balloon (1852)
-
-
-Author: Jules Verne
-
-
-
-Release Date: June 17, 2005  [eBook #16085]
-
-Language: English
-
-Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
-
-
-***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A VOYAGE IN A BALLOON (1852)***
-
-
-E-text prepared by Norm Wolcott
-
-
-
-A VOYAGE IN A BALLOON (1852)
-
-by
-
-Jules Verne
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-REDACTOR'S NOTE
-
-From _Sartain's Union Magazine of Literature and Art_ (Philadelphia:
-1849-1852): May 1852: VOL. X. No. 5: p. 389-395.
-
-John Sartain (1808-1897) was an English artist and engraver skilled
-in the art of mezzotint who emigrated to the United States; in 1848
-he purchased a one-half interest in the "Union Magazine", a New York
-periodical, which he transferred to Philadelphia. The name was changed
-to "Sartain's Union Magazine", and during the four years of its
-existence the journal became widely known, publishing works of Poe and
-other literati. The article here is a translation of "La science en
-famille / Un voyage en ballon. / (Réponse à l'énigme de juillet.)", In:
-_Musée des Familles. Lectures du soir_, Paris, seconde série. vol. 8,
-no. 11 (August 1851), pp. 329-336 (5 illustrations by A. de Bar, two
-chapters). This is a different version from the one published by Hetzel;
-"Un drame dans les airs", in: _Le Docteur Ox_, 19 October 1874, (ed. C &
-D) (6 illustrations by Emile Bayard, only one chapter!).
-
-In this early work we see the ingredients of Verne's later _Voyages
-Extraordinaires_; characters brought or thrown together on a journey to
-afar; introduction of new characters part way through the story; careful
-scientific explanation of critical events (the ascension, filling
-the balloon, rising and falling, ballast); use of dialogue to convey
-scientific information (the history of ballooning); use of scientific
-instruments (barometer, compass); chapter heads to presage the
-story; escapes from perilous events caused by scientific or natural
-catastrophes.
-
-One may also wonder why Hetzel removed the description of the inflation
-of the balloon with hydrogen gas. In fact hydrogen is barely mentioned
-in the revised story. Could it be that while Hetzel approved of Verne's
-scientific descriptions of impossible undertakings, when it came to real
-exploits such as ballooning he did not want his juvenile readers
-experimenting with the "hogsheads of sulphuric acid and nails" to
-produce explosive hydrogen? In fact in the Hetzel version the lifting
-gas hydrogen is replaced with "illuminating gas", an inferior, though
-lighter than air material, but one which his readers would find
-difficult to use for deadly experimentation.
-
-It may also be that Verne had little to do with this volume; Hetzel may
-have edited the collection so that it would count as one of the required
-volumes Verne was to produce annually. The correspondence archives may
-shed some light.
-
-Ms. Wilbur also translated other articles on ballooning from the French.
-It is also interesting that she retained in her translation the original
-units which Verne used (metre, feet, leagues), a practice forgotten
-until recently. This may be the first appearance of a work by Jules
-Verne in the English language.
-
-Norman M. Wolcott
-Rockville, Maryland
-
-
-
-
-A VOYAGE IN A BALLOON
-
-by
-
-JULES VERNE
-
-Translated from the French by Anne T. Wilbur
-
-1852
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-I.
-
-
-My Ascension at Frankfort--The Balloon, the Gas, the Apparatus, the
-Ballast--An Unexpected Travelling Companion--Conversation in the
-Air--Anecdotes--At 800 Metres[A]--The Portfolio of the Pale Young
-Man--Pictures and Caricatures--Des Rosiers and d'Arlandes--At 1200
-Metres--Atmospheric Phenomena--The Philosopher
-Charles--Systems--Blanchard--Guyton-Morveaux--M. Julien--M. Petin--At
-1500 Metres--The Storm--Great Personages in Balloons--The Valve--The
-Curious Animals--The Aerial Ship--Game of Balloons.
-
-[Footnote A: A metre is equal to 39.33 English inches.]
-
-In the month of September, 1850, I arrived at Frankfort-on-the-Maine. My
-passage through the principal cities of Germany, had been brilliantly
-marked by aerostatic ascensions; but, up to this day, no inhabitant of
-the Confederation had accompanied me, and the successful experiments at
-Paris of Messrs. Green, Godard, and Poitevin, had failed to induce the
-grave Germans to attempt aerial voyages.
-
-Meanwhile, hardly had the news of my approaching ascension circulated
-throughout Frankfort, than three persons of note asked the favour of
-accompanying me. Two days after, we were to ascend from the Place de la
-Comédie. I immediately occupied myself with the preparations. My
-balloon, of gigantic proportions, was of silk, coated with gutta percha,
-a substance not liable to injury from acids or gas, and of absolute
-impermeability. Some trifling rents were mended: the inevitable results
-of perilous descents.
-
-The day of our ascension was that of the great fair of September, which
-attracts all the world to Frankfort. The apparatus for filling was
-composed of six hogsheads arranged around a large vat, hermetically
-sealed. The hydrogen gas, evolved by the contact of water with iron and
-sulphuric acid, passed from the first reservoirs to the second, and
-thence into the immense globe, which was thus gradually inflated. These
-preparations occupied all the morning, and about 11 o'clock, the balloon
-was three-quarters full; sufficiently so;--for as we rise, the
-atmospheric layers diminish in density, and the gas, confined within the
-aerostat, acquiring more elasticity, might otherwise burst its envelope.
-My calculations had furnished me with the exact measurement of gas
-required to carry my companions and myself to a considerable height.
-
-We were to ascend at noon. It was truly a magnificent spectacle, that of
-the impatient crowd who thronged around the reserved enclosure,
-inundated the entire square and adjoining streets, and covered the
-neighbouring houses from the basements to the slated roofs. The high
-winds of past days had lulled, and an overpowering heat was radiating
-from an unclouded sky; not a breath animated the atmosphere. In such
-weather, one might descend in the very spot he had left.
-
-I carried three hundred pounds of ballast, in bags; the car, perfectly
-round, four feet in diameter, and three feet in height, was conveniently
-attached; the cord which sustained it was symmetrically extended from
-the upper hemisphere of the aerostat; the compass was in its place, the
-barometer suspended to the iron hoop which surrounded the supporting
-cord, at a distance of eight feet above the car; the anchor carefully
-prepared;--all was in readiness for our departure.
-
-Among the persons who crowded around the enclosure, I remarked a young
-man with pale face and agitated features. I was struck with his
-appearance. He had been an assiduous spectator of my ascensions in
-several cities of Germany. His uneasy air and his extraordinary
-pre-occupation never left him; he eagerly contemplated the curious
-machine, which rested motionless at a few feet from the ground, and
-remained silent.
-
-The clock struck twelve! This was the hour. My _compagnons du voyage_
-had not appeared. I sent to the dwelling of each, and learned that one
-had started for Hamburg, another for Vienna and the third, still more
-fearful, for London. Their hearts had failed them at the moment of
-undertaking one of those excursions, which, since the ingenious
-experiments of aeronauts, are deprived of all danger. As they made, as
-it were a part of the programme of the fête, they had feared being
-compelled to fulfil their agreements, and had fled at the moment of
-ascension. Their courage had been in inverse ratio to the square of
-their swiftness in retreat.
-
-The crowd, thus partly disappointed, were shouting with anger and
-impatience. I did not hesitate to ascend alone. To re-establish the
-equilibrium between the specific gravity of the balloon and the weight
-to be raised, I substituted other bags of sand for my expected
-companions and entered the car. The twelve men who were holding the
-aerostat by twelve cords fastened to the equatorial circle, let them
-slip between their fingers; the car rose a few feet above the ground.
-There was not a breath of wind, and the atmosphere, heavy as lead,
-seemed insurmountable.
-
-"All is ready!" exclaimed I; "attention!"
-
-The men arranged themselves; a last glance informed me that everything
-was right.
-
-"Attention!"
-
-There was some movement in the crowd which seemed to be invading the
-reserved enclosure.
-
-"Let go!"
-
-The balloon slowly ascended; but I experienced a shock which threw me to
-the bottom of the car. When I rose, I found myself face to face with an
-unexpected voyager,--the pale young man.
-
-"Monsieur, I salute you!" said he to me.
-
-"By what right?"--
-
-"Am I here? By the right of your inability to turn me out."
-
-I was confounded. His assurance disconcerted me; and I had nothing to
-say in reply. I looked at him, but he paid no regard to my astonishment.
-He continued:
-
-"My weight will disturb your equilibrium, Monsieur: will you permit
-me--"
-
-And without waiting for my assent, he lightened the balloon by two bags
-of sand which he emptied into the air.
-
-"Monsieur," said I, taking the only possible course, "you are
-here,--well! you choose to remain,--well! but to me alone belongs the
-management of the aerostat."
-
-"Monsieur," replied he, "your urbanity is entirely French; it is of the
-same country with myself! I press in imagination the hand which you
-refuse me. Take your measures,--act as it may seem good to you; I will
-wait till you have ended--"
-
-"To--"
-
-"To converse with you."
-
-The barometer had fallen to twenty-six inches; we had attained a height
-of about six hundred metres, and were over the city; which satisfied me
-of our complete quiescence, for I could not judge by our motionless
-flags. Nothing betrays the horizontal voyage of a balloon; it is the
-mass of air surrounding it which moves. A kind of wavering heat bathed
-the objects extended at our feet, and gave their outlines an
-indistinctness to be regretted. The needle of the compass indicated a
-slight tendency to float towards the south.
-
-I looked again at my companion. He was a man of thirty, simply clad; the
-bold outlines of his features betokened indomitable energy; he appeared
-very muscular. Absorbed in the emotion of this silent suspension, he
-remained immovable, seeking to distinguish the objects which passed
-beneath his view.
-
-"Vexatious mist!" said he, at the expiration of a few moments.
-
-I made no reply.
-
-"What would you? I could not pay for my voyage; I was obliged to take
-you by surprise."
-
-"No one has asked you to descend!"
-
-"A similar occurrence," he resumed, "happened to the Counts of Laurencin
-and Dampierre, when they ascended at Lyons, on the 15th of January,
-1784. A young merchant, named Fontaine, scaled the railing, at the risk
-of upsetting the equipage. He accomplished the voyage, and nobody was
-killed!"
-
-"Once on the earth, we will converse!" said I, piqued at the tone of
-lightness with which he spoke.
-
-"Bah! do not talk of returning!"
-
-"Do you think then that I shall delay my descent?"
-
-"Descent!" said he, with surprise. "Let us ascend!"
-
-And before I could prevent him, two bags of sand were thrown out,
-without even being emptied.
-
-"Monsieur!" said I, angrily.
-
-"I know your skill," replied he, composedly; "your brilliant ascensions
-have made some noise in the world. Experience is the sister of practice,
-but it is also first cousin to theory, and I have long and deeply
-studied the aerostatic art. It has affected my brain," added he, sadly,
-falling into a mute torpor.
-
-The balloon, after having risen, remained stationary; the unknown
-consulted the barometer, and said:
-
-"Here we are at 800 metres! Men resemble insects! See, I think it is
-from this height that we should always look at them, to judge correctly
-of their moral proportions! The Place de la Comédie is transformed to an
-immense ant-hill. Look at the crowd piled up on the quays. The Zeil
-diminishes. We are above the church of Dom. The Mein is now only a white
-line dividing the city, and this bridge, the Mein-Brucke, looks like a
-white thread thrown between the two banks of the river."
-
-The atmosphere grew cooler.
-
-"There is nothing I will not do for you, my host," said my companion.
-"If you are cold, I will take off my clothes and lend them to you."
-
-"Thanks!"
-
-"Necessity makes laws. Give me your hand, I am your countryman. You
-shall be instructed by my company, and my conversation shall compensate
-you for the annoyance I have caused you."
-
-I seated myself, without replying, at the opposite extremity of the car.
-The young man had drawn from his great coat a voluminous portfolio; it
-was a work on aerostation.
-
-"I possess," said he, "a most curious collection of engraving, and
-caricatures appertaining to our aerial mania. This precious discovery
-has been at once admired and ridiculed. Fortunately we have passed the
-period when the Mongolfiers sought to make factitious clouds with the
-vapour of water; and of the gas affecting electric properties, which
-they produced by the combustion of damp straw with chopped wool."
-
-"Would you detract from the merit of these inventions?" replied I. "Was
-it not well done to have proved by experiment the possibility of rising
-in the air?"
-
-"Who denies the glory of the first aerial navigators? Immense courage
-was necessary to ascend by means of those fragile envelopes which
-contained only warm air. Besides, has not aerostatic science made great
-progress since the ascensions of Blanchard? Look, Monsieur."
-
-He took from his collection an engraving.
-
-"Here is the first aerial voyage undertaken by Pilatre des Rosiers and
-the Marquis d'Arlandes, four months after the discovery of balloons.
-Louis XVI. refused his consent to this voyage; two condemned criminals
-were to have first attempted aerial travelling. Pilatre des Rosiers was
-indignant at this injustice and, by means of artifice, succeeded in
-setting out. This car, which renders the management of the balloon easy,
-had not then been invented; a circular gallery surrounded the lower part
-of the aerostat. The two aeronauts stationed themselves at the
-extremities of this gallery. The damp straw with which it was filled
-encumbered their movements. A chafing-dish was suspended beneath the
-orifice of the balloon; when the voyagers wished to ascend, they threw,
-with a long fork, straw upon this brazier, at the risk of burning the
-machine, and the air, growing warmer, gave to the balloon a new
-ascensional force. The two bold navigators ascended, on the 21st of
-November, 1783, from the gardens of La Muette, which the Dauphin had
-placed at their disposal. The aerostat rose majestically, passed the
-Isle des Cygnes, crossed the Seine at the Barrière de la Conference,
-and, directing its way between the dome of the Invalides and L'Ecole
-Militaire, approached St. Sulpice; then the aeronauts increased the
-fire, ascended, cleared the Boulevard, and descended beyond the Barrière
-d'Enfer. As it touched the ground, the collapsed, and buried Pilatre des
-Rosiers beneath its folds."
-
-"Unfortunate presage!" said I, interested in these details, which so
-nearly concerned me.
-
-"Presage of his catastrophe," replied the unknown, with sadness. "You
-have experienced nothing similar?"
-
-"Nothing!"
-
-"Bah! misfortunes often arrive without presage." And he remained silent.
-
-We were advancing towards the south; the magnetic needle pointed in the
-direction of Frankfort, which was flying beneath our feet.
-
-"Perhaps we shall have a storm," said the young man.
-
-"We will descend first."
-
-"Indeed! it will be better to ascend; we shall escape more surely;" and
-two bags of sand were thrown overboard.
-
-The balloon rose rapidly, and stopped at twelve hundred metres. The cold
-was now intense, and there was a slight buzzing in my ears.
-Nevertheless, the rays of the sun fell hotly on the globe, and, dilating
-the gas it contained, gave it a greater ascensional force. I was
-stupified.
-
-"Fear nothing," said the young man to me.
-
-"We have three thousand five hundred toises of respirable air. You need
-not trouble yourself about my proceedings."
-
-I would have risen, but a vigorous hand detained me on my seat.
-
-"Your name?" asked I.
-
-"My name! how does it concern you?"
-
-"I have the honour to ask your name."
-
-"I am called Erostratus or Empedocles,--as you please. Are you
-interested in the progress of aerostatic science?"
-
-He spoke with icy coldness, and I asked myself with whom I had to do.
-
-"Monsieur," continued he, "nothing new has been invented since the days
-of the philosopher Charles. Four months after the discovery of
-aerostats, he had invented the valve, which permits the gas to escape
-when the balloon is too full, or when one wishes to descend; the car,
-which allows the machine to be easily managed; the network, which
-encloses the fabric of the balloon, and prevents its being too heavily
-pressed; the ballast, which is used in ascending and choosing the spot
-of descent; the coat of caoutchouc, which renders the silk impermeable;
-the barometer, which determines the height attained; and, finally, the
-hydrogen, which, fourteen times lighter than air, allows of ascension to
-the most distant atmospheric layers, and prevents exposure to aerial
-combustion. On the 1st of December, 1783, three hundred thousand
-spectators thronged the Tuileries. Charles ascended, and the soldiers
-presented arms. He travelled nine leagues in the air: managing his
-machine with a skill never since surpassed in aeronautic experiments.
-The King conferred on him a pension of two thousand livres, for in those
-days inventions were encouraged. In a few days, the subscription list
-was filled; for every one was interested in the progress of science."
-
-The unknown was seized with a violent agitation.
-
-"I, Monsieur, have studied; I am satisfied that the first aeronauts
-guided their balloons. Not to speak of Blanchard, whose assertions might
-be doubted, at Dijon, Guyton-Morveaux, by the aid of oars and a helm,
-imparted to his machines perceptible motions, a decided direction. More
-recently, at Paris, a watchmaker, M. Julien, has made at the Hippodrome
-convincing experiments; for, with the aid of a particular mechanism, an
-aerial apparatus of oblong form was manifestly propelled against the
-wind. M. Petin placed four balloons, filled with hydrogen, in
-juxtaposition, and, by means of sails disposed horizontally and
-partially furled, hoped to obtain a disturbance of the equilibrium,
-which, inclining the apparatus, should compel it to an oblique path. But
-the motive power destined to surmount the resistance of currents,--the
-helice, moving in a movable medium, was unsuccessful. I have discovered
-the only method of guiding balloons, and not an Academy has come to my
-assistance, not a city has filled my subscription lists, not a
-government has deigned to listen to me! It is infamous!"
-
-His gesticulations were so furious that the car experienced violent
-oscillations; I had much difficulty in restraining him. Meanwhile, the
-balloon had encountered a more rapid current. We were advancing in a
-southerly direction, at 1200 metres in height, almost accustomed to this
-new temperature.
-
-"There is Darmstadt," said my companion. "Do you perceive its
-magnificent chateau? The storm-cloud below makes the outlines of objects
-waver; and it requires a practised eye to recognise localities."
-
-"You are certain that it is Darmstadt?"
-
-"Undoubtedly; we are six leagues from Frankfort."
-
-"Then we must descend."
-
-"Descend! you would not alight upon the steeples!" said the unknown,
-mockingly.
-
-"No; but in the environs of the city."
-
-"Well, it is too warm; let us remount a little."
-
-As he spoke thus, he seized some bags of ballast. I precipitated myself
-upon him; but, with one hand, he overthrew me, and the lightened balloon
-rose to a height of 1500 metres.
-
-"Sit down," said he, "and do not forget that Brioschi, Biot, and
-Gay-Lussac, ascended to a height of seven thousand metres, in order to
-establish some new scientific laws."
-
-"We must descend;" resumed I, with an attempt at gentleness. "The storm
-is gathering beneath our feet and around us; it would not be prudent."
-
-"We will ascend above it, and shall have nothing to fear from it. What
-more beautiful than to reign in heaven, and look down upon the clouds
-which hover upon the earth! Is it not an honour to navigate these aerial
-waves? The greatest personages have travelled like ourselves. The
-Marquise and Comtesse de Montalembert, the Comtesse de Potteries, Mlle.
-La Garde, the Marquis of Montalembert, set out from the Faubourg St.
-Antoine for these unknown regions. The Duc de Chartres displayed much
-address and presence of mind in his ascension of the 15th of July, 1784;
-at Lyons, the Comtes de Laurencin and de Dampierre; at Nantes, M. de
-Luynes; at Bordeaux, D'Arbelet des Granges; in Italy, the Chevalier
-Andreani; in our days, the Duke of Brunswick; have left in the air the
-track of their glory. In order to equal these great personages, we must
-ascend into the celestial regions higher than they. To approach the
-infinite is to comprehend it."
-
-The rarefaction of the air considerably dilated the hydrogen, and I saw
-the lower part of the aerostat, designedly left empty, become by degrees
-inflated, rendering the opening of the valve indispensable; but my
-fearful companion seemed determined not to allow me to direct our
-movements. I resolved to pull secretly the cord attached to the valve,
-while he was talking with animation. I feared to guess with whom I had
-to do; it would have been too horrible! It was about three-quarters of
-an hour since we had left Frankfort, and from the south thick clouds
-were arising and threatening to engulf us.
-
-"Have you lost all hope of making your plans succeed?" said I, with
-great apparent interest.
-
-"All hope!" replied the unknown, despairingly. "Wounded by refusals,
-caricatures, those blows with the foot of an ass, have finished me. It
-is the eternal punishment reserved for innovators. See these caricatures
-of every age with which my portfolio is filled."
-
-I had secured the cord of the valve, and stooping over his works,
-concealed my movements from him. It was to be feared, nevertheless, that
-he would notice that rushing sound, like a waterfall, which the gas
-produces in escaping.
-
-"How many jests at the expense of the Abbé Miolan! He was about to
-ascend with Janninet and Bredin. During the operation, their balloon
-took fire, and an ignorant populace tore it to pieces. Then the
-caricature of _The Curious Animals_ called them _Maulant, Jean Mind, and
-Gredin_."
-
-The barometer had began to rise; it was time! A distant muttering of
-thunder was heard towards the south.
-
-"See this other engraving," continued he, without seeming to suspect my
-manoeuvres. "It is an immense balloon, containing a ship, large castles,
-houses, &c. The caricaturists little thought that their absurdities
-would one day become verities. It is a large vessel; at the left is the
-helm with the pilot's box; at the prow, _maisons de plaisance_, a
-gigantic organ, and cannon to call the attention of the inhabitants of
-earth or of the moon; above the stern the observatory and pilot-balloon;
-at the equatorial circle, the barracks of the army; on the left the
-lantern; then upper galleries for promenades, the sails, the wings;
-beneath, the cafés and general store-houses of provisions. Admire this
-magnificent announcement. 'Invented for the good of the human race,
-this globe will depart immediately for the seaports in the Levant, and
-on its return will announce its voyages for the two poles and the
-extremities of the Occident. Every provision is made; there will be an
-exact rate of fare for each place of destination; but the prices for
-distant voyages will be the same, 1000 louis. And it must be confessed
-that this is a moderate sum, considering the celerity, convenience, and
-pleasure of this mode of travelling above all others. While in this
-balloon, every one can divert himself as he pleases, dancing, playing,
-or conversing with people of talent. Pleasure will be the soul of the
-aerial society.' All these inventions excited laughter. But before long,
-if my days were not numbered, these projects should become realities."
-
-We were visibly descending; he did not perceive it!
-
-"See this game of balloons; it contains the whole history of the
-aerostatic art. This game, for the use of educated minds, is played like
-that of the Jew; with dice and counters of any value agreed upon, which
-are to be paid or received, according to the condition in which one
-arrives."
-
-"But," I resumed, "you seem to have valuable documents on aerostation?"
-
-"I am less learned than the Almighty! That is all! I possess all the
-knowledge possible in this world. From Phaeton, Icarus, and Architas. I
-have searched all, comprehended all! Through me, the aerostatic art
-would render immense services to the world, if God should spare my life!
-But that cannot be."
-
-"Why not?"
-
-"Because my name is Empedocles or Erostratus!"
-
-
-II.
-
-
-The Company of Aerostiers--The Battle of Fleurus--The Balloon over the
-Sea--Blanchard and Jefferies--A Drama such as is rarely seen--3000
-Metres--The Thunder beneath our Feet--Gavnerin at Rome--The Compass
-gone--The Victims of Aerostation--Pilatre--At 4000 Metres--The Barometer
-gone--Descents of Olivari, Mosment, Bittorf, Harris, Sadler, and Madame
-Blanchard--The Valve rendered useless--7000 Metres--Zambecarri--The
-Ballon (sic) Wrecked--Incalculable Heights--The Car
-Overset--Despair--Vertigo--The Fall--The Dénouement.
-
-I shuddered! Fortunately the balloon was approaching the earth. But the
-danger is the same at 50 feet as at 5000 metres! The clouds were
-advancing.
-
-"Remember the battle of Fleurus, and you will comprehend the utility of
-aerostats! Coulee, by order of the government, organized a company of
-aerostiers. At the siege of Maubeuge, General Jourdan found this new
-method of observation so serviceable, that twice a day, accompanied by
-the General himself, Coutelle ascended into the air; the correspondence
-between the aeronaut and the aerostiers who held the balloon, was
-carried on by means of little white, red, and yellow flags. Cannons and
-carbines were often aimed at the balloon at the moment of its ascension,
-but without effect. When Jourdan was preparing to invest Charleroi,
-Coutelle repaired to the neighbourhood of that place, rose from the
-plain of Jumet, and remained taking observations seven or eight hours,
-with General Morelot. The Austrians came to deliver the city, and a
-battle was fought on the heights of Fleurus. General Jourdan publicly
-proclaimed the assistance he had received from aeronautic observations.
-Well! notwithstanding the services rendered on this occasion, and during
-the campaign with Belgium, the year which witnessed the commencement of
-the military career of balloons, also saw it terminate. And the school
-of Meuon, founded by government, was closed by Bonaparte, on his return
-from Egypt. 'What are we to expect from the child which has just been
-born?' Franklin had said. But the child was born alive! It need not
-have been strangled!"
-
-The unknown hid his forehead in his hands, reflected for a few moments,
-then, without raising his head, said to me:
-
-"Notwithstanding my orders, you have opened the upper valve!"
-
-I let go the cord.
-
-"Fortunately" continued he, "we have still two hundred pounds of
-ballast."
-
-"What are your plans?" said I, with effort.
-
-"You have never crossed the sea?"
-
-I grew frightfully pale, terror froze my veins.
-
-"It is a pity," said he, "that we are being wafted towards the Adriatic!
-That is only a streamlet. Higher! we shall find other currents!"
-
-And without looking at me, he lightened the balloon by several bags of
-sand.
-
-"I allowed you to open the valve, because the dilatation of the gas
-threatened to burst the balloon. But do not do it again."
-
-I was stupified.
-
-"You know the voyage from Dover to Calais made by Blanchard and
-Jefferies. It was rich in incident. On the 7th of January, 1785, in a
-northeast wind, their balloon was filled with gas on the Dover side;
-scarcely had they risen, when an error in equilibrium compelled them to
-threw out their ballast, retaining only thirty pounds. The wind drifted
-them slowly along towards the shores of France. The permeability of the
-tissue gradually suffered the gas to escape, and at the expiration of an
-hour and a half, the voyagers perceived that they were descending.
-'What is to be done?' said Jefferies.--'We have passed over only
-three-fourths of the distance,' replied Blanchard 'and at a slight
-elevation. By ascending we shall expose ourselves to contrary winds.
-Throw out the remainder of the ballast.' The balloon regained its
-ascensional force, but soon re-descended. About midway of the voyage,
-the aeronauts threw out their books and tools. A quarter of an hour
-afterwards, Blanchard said to Jefferies: 'The barometer?'--'It is
-rising! We are lost; and yet there are the shores of France!' A great
-noise was heard. 'Is the balloon rent?' asked Jefferies.--'No! the
-escape of the gas has collapsed the lower part of the balloon'--'But we
-are still descending. We are lost! Everything not indispensable must be
-thrown overboard!' Their provisions, oars and helm were thrown out into
-the sea. They were now only 100 metres in height. 'We are remounting,'
-said the Doctor.--' No, it is the jerk caused by the diminution of
-weight. There is not a ship in sight! Not a bark on the horizon! To the
-sea with our garments!' And the unfortunate men stripped, but the
-balloon continued to descend. 'Blanchard,' said Jefferies, 'you were
-to have made this voyage alone; you consented to take me; I will
-sacrifice myself to you! I will throw myself into the water, and the
-balloon, relieved, will re-ascend!'--' No, no, it is frightful.' The
-balloon collapsed more and more, and its concavity forming a parachute,
-forced the gas against its sides and accelerated its motion. 'Adieu, my
-friend,' said the Doctor. 'May God preserve you!' He was about to have
-taken the leap, when Blanchard detained him. 'One resource remains to
-us! We can cut the cords by which the car is attached, and cling to the
-network? perhaps the balloon will rise. Ready! But the barometer falls!
-We remount! The wind freshens! We are saved!' The voyagers perceived
-Calais! Their joy became delirium; a few moments later, they descended
-in the forest of Guines. I doubt not," continued the unknown, "that in
-similar circumstances you would follow the example of Doctor Jefferies."
-
-The clouds were unrolling beneath our feet in glittering cascades; the
-balloon cast a deep shadow on this pile of clouds, and was surrounded by
-them as with an aureola! The thunder growled beneath our feet! All this
-was frightful!
-
-"Let us descend!" exclaimed I.
-
-"Descend, when the sun is awaiting us yonder! Down with the bags!" And
-he lightened the balloon of more than fifty pounds. At 3000 metres we
-remained stationary. The unknown talked incessantly, but I scarcely
-heard him; I was completely prostrated, while he seemed in his element.
-
-"With a good wind, we shall go far, but we must especially go high!"
-
-"We are lost!"
-
-"In the Antilles there are currents of air which travel a hundred leagues
-an hour! On the occasion of Napoleon's coronation, Gavnerin let off a
-balloon illuminated with coloured lamps, at eleven o'clock in the
-evening! The wind blew from the N.N.E.; the next morning at daybreak the
-inhabitants of Rome saluted its passage above the dome of St. Peter's.
-We will go farther."
-
-I scarcely heard him; everything was buzzing around me! There was an
-opening in the clouds!
-
-"See that city, my host;" said the unknown. "It is Spire. Nothing else!"
-
-I dared not lean over the railing of the car. Nevertheless I perceived a
-little black spot. This was Spire. The broad Rhine looked like a riband,
-the great roads like threads. Above our heads the sky was of a deep
-azure; I was benumbed with the cold. The birds had long since forsaken
-us; in this rarefied air their flight would have been impossible. We
-were alone in space, and I in the presence of a strange man!
-
-"It is useless for you to know whither I am taking you," said he, and he
-threw the compass into the clouds. "A fall is a fine thing. You know
-that there have been a few victims from Pilatre des Rosiers down to
-Lieutenant Gale, and these misfortunes have always been caused by
-imprudence. Pilatre des Rosiers ascended in company with Remain, at
-Boulogne, on the 13th of June, 1785. To his balloon, inflated with gas,
-he had suspended a _mongolfier_ filled with warm air, undoubtedly to
-save the trouble of letting off gas, or throwing out ballast. It was
-like putting a chafing-dish beneath a powder-cask. The imprudent men
-rose to a height of four hundred metres, and encountered opposing winds,
-which drove them over the ocean. In order to descend, Pilatre attempted
-to open the valve of the aerostat; but the cord of this valve caught in
-the balloon, and tore it so that it was emptied in an instant. It fell
-on the mongolfier, overturned it, and the imprudent men were dashed to
-pieces in a few seconds. It is _frightful, is_ it not?" said the
-unknown, shaking me from my torpor.
-
-I could reply only by these words:
-
-"In pity, let us descend! The clouds are gathering around us in every
-direction, and frightful detonations reverberating from the cavity of
-the aerostat are multiplying around us."
-
-"You make me impatient!" said he. "You shall no longer know whether we
-are ascending or descending."
-
-And the barometer went after the compass, along with some bags of sand.
-We must have been at a height of four thousand metres. Some icicles were
-attached to the sides of the car, and a sort of fine snow penetrated to
-my bones. Meanwhile a terrific storm was bursting beneath our feet. We
-were above it.
-
-"Do not fear," said my strange companion; "it is only imprudence that
-makes victims. Olivari, who perished at Orleans, ascended in a
-mongolfier made of paper; his car, suspended below the chafing-dish, and
-ballasted with combustible materials, became a prey to the flames!
-Olivari fell, and was killed. Mosment ascended at Lille, on a light
-platform; an oscillation made him lose his equilibrium. Mosment fell,
-and was killed. Bittorf, at Manheim, saw his paper balloon take fire in
-the air! Bittorf fell, and was killed. Harris ascended in a balloon
-badly constructed, the valve of which was too large to be closed again.
-Harris fell, and was killed. Sadler, deprived of ballast by his long
-stay in the air, was dragged over the city of Boston, and thrown against
-the chimneys. Sadler fell, and was killed. Cocking descended with a
-convex parachute which he pretended to have perfected. Cocking fell, and
-was killed. Well, I love them, those noble victims of their courage! and
-I will die like them! Higher! higher!"
-
-All the phantoms of this necrology were passing before my eyes! The
-rarefaction of the air and the rays of tile sun increased the dilatation
-of the gas; the balloon continued to ascend! I mechanically attempted to
-open the valve; but the unknown cut the cord a few feet above my head. I
-was lost!
-
-"Did you see Madame Blanchard fall?" said he to me. "I saw her, I--yes,
-I was at Tivoli on the 6th of July, 1819. Madame Blanchard ascended in a
-balloon of small size, to save the expense of filling; she was therefore
-obliged to inflate it entirely, and the gas escaped by the lower
-orifice, leaving on its route a train of hydrogen. She carried,
-suspended above her car, by an iron wire, a kind of firework, forming an
-aureola, which she was to kindle. She had often repeated this
-experiment. On this occasion she carried, besides, a little parachute,
-ballasted by a firework terminating in a ball with silver rain. She was
-to launch this apparatus, after having lighted it with a _lance à feu_,
-prepared for the purpose. She ascended. The night was dark. At the
-moment of lighting the firework, she was so imprudent as to let the
-lance pass beneath the column of hydrogen, which was escaping from the
-balloon. My eyes were fixed on her. Suddenly an unexpected flash
-illuminated the darkness. I thought it a surprise of the skilful
-aeronaut. The flame increased, suddenly disappeared, and re-appeared at
-the top of the aerostat under the form of an immense jet of burning gas.
-This sinister light projected over the Boulevard, and over the quarter
-Montmartre. Then I saw the unfortunate woman rise, twice attempt to
-compress the orifice of the balloon, to extinguish the fire, then seat
-herself in the car and seek to direct its descent; for she did not fall.
-The combustion of the gas lasted several minutes. The balloon,
-diminishing by degrees, continued to descend, but this was not a fall!
-The wind blew from the northeast, and drove her over Paris. There were,
-at that time, in the neighbourhood of the house No. 16 Rue de Provence,
-immense gardens. The aeronaut might have fallen there without danger.
-But unhappily the balloon and the car alighted on the roof of the house.
-The shock was slight. 'Help!' cried the unfortunate woman. I arrived in
-the street at that moment. The car slid along the roof, and encountered
-an iron hook. At this shock, Madame Blanchard was thrown out of the car,
-and precipitated on the pavement! She was killed!"
-
-These histories of fatal augury froze me with horror. The unknown was
-standing upright, with bare head, bristling hair, haggard eyes.
-
-Illusion was no longer possible. I saw at last the horrible truth. I had
-to deal with a madman!
-
-He threw out half the ballast, and we must have been borne to a height
-of 7000 metres! Blood spouted from my nose and mouth.
-
-"What a fine thing it is to be martyrs to science! They are canonized by
-posterity!"
-
-I heard no more. The unknown looked around him with horror, and knelt at
-my ear.
-
-"On the 7th of October, 1804, the weather had began to clear up a
-little; for several days preceding, the wind and rain had been
-incessant. But the ascension announced by Zambecarri could not be
-postponed! His idiot enemies already scoffed at him. To save himself and
-science from public ridicule, it became necessary for him to ascend. It
-was at Bologna! No one aided him in filling his balloon; he rose at
-midnight, accompanied by Andreoli and Grossetti. The balloon ascended
-slowly; it had been rent by the wind, and the gas escaped. The three
-intrepid voyagers could observe the state of the barometer only by the
-aid of a dark lantern. Zambecarri had not eaten during twenty-four
-hours; Grossetti was also fasting.
-
-"'My friends,' said Zambecarri, 'I am benumbed with the cold; I am
-exhausted; I must die;' and he fell senseless in the gallery.
-
-"It was the same with Grossetti. Andreoli alone remained awake. After
-long efforts he succeeded in arousing Zambecarri from his stupor.
-
-"'What is there new? Where are we going? In which direction is the wind?
-What time is it?'
-
-"' It is two o'clock!'
-
-"' Where is the compass?'
-
-"'It has fallen out.'
-
-"' Great God! the lamp is extinguished!'
-
-"' It could not burn longer in this rarefied air!' said Zambecarri.
-
-"The moon had not risen; the atmosphere was plunged in horrible
-darkness.
-
-"' I am cold, I am cold, Andreoli! What shall we do?'
-
-"The unfortunate men slowly descended through a layer of white clouds.
-
-"'Hush!' said Andreoli; 'do you hear--'
-
-"' What?' replied Zambecarri.
-
-"'A singular noise!'
-
-"'You are mistaken!'
-
-"'No!--Do you see those midnight travellers, listening to that
-incomprehensible sound? Have they struck against a rower? Are they about
-to be precipitated on the roofs? Do you hear it? It is like the sound of
-the ocean!'
-
-"'Impossible!'
-
-"' It is the roaring of the waves!'
-
-"' That is true!--Light! light!'
-
-"After five fruitless attempts, Andreoli obtained it. It was three
-o'clock. The sound of the waves was heard with violence; they almost
-touched the surface of the sea.
-
-"' We are lost!' exclaimed Zambecarri, seizing a bag of ballast.
-
-"' Help!' cried Andreoli.
-
-"The car touched the water, and the waves covered them breast high. To
-the sea with instruments, garments, money! The aeronauts stripped
-entirely. The lightened balloon rose with frightful rapidity. Zambecarri
-was seized with violent vomiting. Grossetti bled freely. The unhappy men
-could not speak; their respiration was short. They were seized with
-cold, and in a moment covered with a coat of ice. The moon appeared to
-them red as blood. After having traversed these high regions during half
-an hour, the machine again fell into the sea. It was four o'clock in the
-morning: the bodies of the wretched aeronauts were half in the water,
-and the balloon, acting as a sail, dragged them about during several
-hours. At daybreak, they found themselves opposite Pesaro, five miles
-from the shore; they were about to land, when a sudden flow of wind
-drove them back to the open sea. They were lost! The affrighted barks
-fled at their approach. Fortunately, a more intelligent navigator hailed
-them, took them on board; and they landed at Ferrara. That was
-frightful! Zambecarri was a brave man. Scarcely recovered from his
-sufferings, he recommenced his ascensions. In one of them, he struck
-against a tree; his lamp, filled with spirits of wine, was spilled over
-his clothes, and they caught fire; he was covered with flame; his machine
-was beginning to kindle, when he descended, half burned. The 21st
-September, 1812, he made another ascension at Bologna; his balloon
-caught in a tree; his lamp set fire to it. Zambecarri fell, and was
-killed! And in presence of these high facts, shall we still hesitate?
-No! The higher we go the more glorious will be our death."
-
-The balloon, entirely unballasted, we were borne to incredible heights.
-The aerostat vibrated in the atmosphere; the slightest sound re-echoed
-through the celestial vaults; the globe, the only object which struck my
-sight in immensity, seemed about to be annihilated, and above us the
-heights of heaven lost themselves in the profound darkness!
-
-I saw the unknown rise before me.
-
-"This is the hour!" said he to me. "We must die! We are rejected by
-men! They despise us! let us crush them!"
-
-"Mercy!" exclaimed I.
-
-"Let us cut the cords! let this car be abandoned in space! The
-attractive force will change its direction, and we shall land in the
-sun!"
-
-Despair gave me strength! I precipitated myself upon the madman, and a
-frightful struggle took place! But I was thrown down! and while he held
-me beneath his knee, he cut the cords of the car!
-
-"One!" said he.
-
-"Mercy! O, God!"
-
-"Two! three!"
-
-One cord more, and the car was sustained only on one side. I made a
-superhuman effort, rose, and violently repulsed this insensate.
-
-"Four!" said he.
-
-The car was overset. I instinctively clung to the cords which held it,
-and climbed up the outside.
-
-The unknown had disappeared in space!
-
-In a twinkling the balloon ascended to an immeasurable height! A
-horrible crash was heard. The dilated gas had burst its envelope! I
-closed my eyes. A few moments afterwards, a moist warmth reanimated me;
-I was in the midst of fiery clouds! The balloon was whirling with
-fearful rapidity! I felt myself swooning! Driven by the wind, I
-travelled a hundred leagues an hour in my horizontal course; the
-lightnings flashed around me!
-
-Meanwhile my fall was not rapid. When I opened my eyes, I perceived the
-country. I was two miles from the sea, the hurricane urging me on with
-great force. I was lost, when a sudden shock made me let go; my hands
-opened, a cord slipped rapidly between my fingers, and I found myself on
-the ground. It was the cord of the anchor, which, sweeping the surface
-of the ground, had caught in a crevice! I fainted, and my lightened
-balloon, resuming its flight, was lost beyond the sea.
-
-When I recovered my senses, I was in the house of a peasant, at
-Harderwick, a little town of Gueldre, fifteen leagues from Amsterdam, on
-the banks of the Zuyderzée.
-
-A miracle had saved me. But my voyage had been but a series of
-imprudences against which I had been unable to defend myself.
-
-May this terrific recital, while it instructs those who read it, not
-discourage the explorers of the routes of air.
-
-
-
-***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A VOYAGE IN A BALLOON (1852)***
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diff --git a/old/16085.txt b/old/16085.txt
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-The Project Gutenberg eBook, A Voyage in a Balloon (1852), by Jules Verne,
-et al, Translated by Anne T. Wilbur
-
-
-This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
-almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
-re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
-with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
-
-
-
-
-
-Title: A Voyage in a Balloon (1852)
-
-
-Author: Jules Verne
-
-
-
-Release Date: June 17, 2005  [eBook #16085]
-
-Language: English
-
-Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)
-
-
-***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A VOYAGE IN A BALLOON (1852)***
-
-
-E-text prepared by Norm Wolcott
-
-
-
-A VOYAGE IN A BALLOON (1852)
-
-by
-
-Jules Verne
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-REDACTOR'S NOTE
-
-From _Sartain's Union Magazine of Literature and Art_ (Philadelphia:
-1849-1852): May 1852: VOL. X. No. 5: p. 389-395.
-
-John Sartain (1808-1897) was an English artist and engraver skilled
-in the art of mezzotint who emigrated to the United States; in 1848
-he purchased a one-half interest in the "Union Magazine", a New York
-periodical, which he transferred to Philadelphia. The name was changed
-to "Sartain's Union Magazine", and during the four years of its
-existence the journal became widely known, publishing works of Poe and
-other literati. The article here is a translation of "La science en
-famille / Un voyage en ballon. / (Reponse a l'enigme de juillet.)", In:
-_Musee des Familles. Lectures du soir_, Paris, seconde serie. vol. 8,
-no. 11 (August 1851), pp. 329-336 (5 illustrations by A. de Bar, two
-chapters). This is a different version from the one published by Hetzel;
-"Un drame dans les airs", in: _Le Docteur Ox_, 19 October 1874, (ed. C &
-D) (6 illustrations by Emile Bayard, only one chapter!).
-
-In this early work we see the ingredients of Verne's later _Voyages
-Extraordinaires_; characters brought or thrown together on a journey to
-afar; introduction of new characters part way through the story; careful
-scientific explanation of critical events (the ascension, filling
-the balloon, rising and falling, ballast); use of dialogue to convey
-scientific information (the history of ballooning); use of scientific
-instruments (barometer, compass); chapter heads to presage the
-story; escapes from perilous events caused by scientific or natural
-catastrophes.
-
-One may also wonder why Hetzel removed the description of the inflation
-of the balloon with hydrogen gas. In fact hydrogen is barely mentioned
-in the revised story. Could it be that while Hetzel approved of Verne's
-scientific descriptions of impossible undertakings, when it came to real
-exploits such as ballooning he did not want his juvenile readers
-experimenting with the "hogsheads of sulphuric acid and nails" to
-produce explosive hydrogen? In fact in the Hetzel version the lifting
-gas hydrogen is replaced with "illuminating gas", an inferior, though
-lighter than air material, but one which his readers would find
-difficult to use for deadly experimentation.
-
-It may also be that Verne had little to do with this volume; Hetzel may
-have edited the collection so that it would count as one of the required
-volumes Verne was to produce annually. The correspondence archives may
-shed some light.
-
-Ms. Wilbur also translated other articles on ballooning from the French.
-It is also interesting that she retained in her translation the original
-units which Verne used (metre, feet, leagues), a practice forgotten
-until recently. This may be the first appearance of a work by Jules
-Verne in the English language.
-
-Norman M. Wolcott
-Rockville, Maryland
-
-
-
-
-A VOYAGE IN A BALLOON
-
-by
-
-JULES VERNE
-
-Translated from the French by Anne T. Wilbur
-
-1852
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-I.
-
-
-My Ascension at Frankfort--The Balloon, the Gas, the Apparatus, the
-Ballast--An Unexpected Travelling Companion--Conversation in the
-Air--Anecdotes--At 800 Metres[A]--The Portfolio of the Pale Young
-Man--Pictures and Caricatures--Des Rosiers and d'Arlandes--At 1200
-Metres--Atmospheric Phenomena--The Philosopher
-Charles--Systems--Blanchard--Guyton-Morveaux--M. Julien--M. Petin--At
-1500 Metres--The Storm--Great Personages in Balloons--The Valve--The
-Curious Animals--The Aerial Ship--Game of Balloons.
-
-[Footnote A: A metre is equal to 39.33 English inches.]
-
-In the month of September, 1850, I arrived at Frankfort-on-the-Maine. My
-passage through the principal cities of Germany, had been brilliantly
-marked by aerostatic ascensions; but, up to this day, no inhabitant of
-the Confederation had accompanied me, and the successful experiments at
-Paris of Messrs. Green, Godard, and Poitevin, had failed to induce the
-grave Germans to attempt aerial voyages.
-
-Meanwhile, hardly had the news of my approaching ascension circulated
-throughout Frankfort, than three persons of note asked the favour of
-accompanying me. Two days after, we were to ascend from the Place de la
-Comedie. I immediately occupied myself with the preparations. My
-balloon, of gigantic proportions, was of silk, coated with gutta percha,
-a substance not liable to injury from acids or gas, and of absolute
-impermeability. Some trifling rents were mended: the inevitable results
-of perilous descents.
-
-The day of our ascension was that of the great fair of September, which
-attracts all the world to Frankfort. The apparatus for filling was
-composed of six hogsheads arranged around a large vat, hermetically
-sealed. The hydrogen gas, evolved by the contact of water with iron and
-sulphuric acid, passed from the first reservoirs to the second, and
-thence into the immense globe, which was thus gradually inflated. These
-preparations occupied all the morning, and about 11 o'clock, the balloon
-was three-quarters full; sufficiently so;--for as we rise, the
-atmospheric layers diminish in density, and the gas, confined within the
-aerostat, acquiring more elasticity, might otherwise burst its envelope.
-My calculations had furnished me with the exact measurement of gas
-required to carry my companions and myself to a considerable height.
-
-We were to ascend at noon. It was truly a magnificent spectacle, that of
-the impatient crowd who thronged around the reserved enclosure,
-inundated the entire square and adjoining streets, and covered the
-neighbouring houses from the basements to the slated roofs. The high
-winds of past days had lulled, and an overpowering heat was radiating
-from an unclouded sky; not a breath animated the atmosphere. In such
-weather, one might descend in the very spot he had left.
-
-I carried three hundred pounds of ballast, in bags; the car, perfectly
-round, four feet in diameter, and three feet in height, was conveniently
-attached; the cord which sustained it was symmetrically extended from
-the upper hemisphere of the aerostat; the compass was in its place, the
-barometer suspended to the iron hoop which surrounded the supporting
-cord, at a distance of eight feet above the car; the anchor carefully
-prepared;--all was in readiness for our departure.
-
-Among the persons who crowded around the enclosure, I remarked a young
-man with pale face and agitated features. I was struck with his
-appearance. He had been an assiduous spectator of my ascensions in
-several cities of Germany. His uneasy air and his extraordinary
-pre-occupation never left him; he eagerly contemplated the curious
-machine, which rested motionless at a few feet from the ground, and
-remained silent.
-
-The clock struck twelve! This was the hour. My _compagnons du voyage_
-had not appeared. I sent to the dwelling of each, and learned that one
-had started for Hamburg, another for Vienna and the third, still more
-fearful, for London. Their hearts had failed them at the moment of
-undertaking one of those excursions, which, since the ingenious
-experiments of aeronauts, are deprived of all danger. As they made, as
-it were a part of the programme of the fete, they had feared being
-compelled to fulfil their agreements, and had fled at the moment of
-ascension. Their courage had been in inverse ratio to the square of
-their swiftness in retreat.
-
-The crowd, thus partly disappointed, were shouting with anger and
-impatience. I did not hesitate to ascend alone. To re-establish the
-equilibrium between the specific gravity of the balloon and the weight
-to be raised, I substituted other bags of sand for my expected
-companions and entered the car. The twelve men who were holding the
-aerostat by twelve cords fastened to the equatorial circle, let them
-slip between their fingers; the car rose a few feet above the ground.
-There was not a breath of wind, and the atmosphere, heavy as lead,
-seemed insurmountable.
-
-"All is ready!" exclaimed I; "attention!"
-
-The men arranged themselves; a last glance informed me that everything
-was right.
-
-"Attention!"
-
-There was some movement in the crowd which seemed to be invading the
-reserved enclosure.
-
-"Let go!"
-
-The balloon slowly ascended; but I experienced a shock which threw me to
-the bottom of the car. When I rose, I found myself face to face with an
-unexpected voyager,--the pale young man.
-
-"Monsieur, I salute you!" said he to me.
-
-"By what right?"--
-
-"Am I here? By the right of your inability to turn me out."
-
-I was confounded. His assurance disconcerted me; and I had nothing to
-say in reply. I looked at him, but he paid no regard to my astonishment.
-He continued:
-
-"My weight will disturb your equilibrium, Monsieur: will you permit
-me--"
-
-And without waiting for my assent, he lightened the balloon by two bags
-of sand which he emptied into the air.
-
-"Monsieur," said I, taking the only possible course, "you are
-here,--well! you choose to remain,--well! but to me alone belongs the
-management of the aerostat."
-
-"Monsieur," replied he, "your urbanity is entirely French; it is of the
-same country with myself! I press in imagination the hand which you
-refuse me. Take your measures,--act as it may seem good to you; I will
-wait till you have ended--"
-
-"To--"
-
-"To converse with you."
-
-The barometer had fallen to twenty-six inches; we had attained a height
-of about six hundred metres, and were over the city; which satisfied me
-of our complete quiescence, for I could not judge by our motionless
-flags. Nothing betrays the horizontal voyage of a balloon; it is the
-mass of air surrounding it which moves. A kind of wavering heat bathed
-the objects extended at our feet, and gave their outlines an
-indistinctness to be regretted. The needle of the compass indicated a
-slight tendency to float towards the south.
-
-I looked again at my companion. He was a man of thirty, simply clad; the
-bold outlines of his features betokened indomitable energy; he appeared
-very muscular. Absorbed in the emotion of this silent suspension, he
-remained immovable, seeking to distinguish the objects which passed
-beneath his view.
-
-"Vexatious mist!" said he, at the expiration of a few moments.
-
-I made no reply.
-
-"What would you? I could not pay for my voyage; I was obliged to take
-you by surprise."
-
-"No one has asked you to descend!"
-
-"A similar occurrence," he resumed, "happened to the Counts of Laurencin
-and Dampierre, when they ascended at Lyons, on the 15th of January,
-1784. A young merchant, named Fontaine, scaled the railing, at the risk
-of upsetting the equipage. He accomplished the voyage, and nobody was
-killed!"
-
-"Once on the earth, we will converse!" said I, piqued at the tone of
-lightness with which he spoke.
-
-"Bah! do not talk of returning!"
-
-"Do you think then that I shall delay my descent?"
-
-"Descent!" said he, with surprise. "Let us ascend!"
-
-And before I could prevent him, two bags of sand were thrown out,
-without even being emptied.
-
-"Monsieur!" said I, angrily.
-
-"I know your skill," replied he, composedly; "your brilliant ascensions
-have made some noise in the world. Experience is the sister of practice,
-but it is also first cousin to theory, and I have long and deeply
-studied the aerostatic art. It has affected my brain," added he, sadly,
-falling into a mute torpor.
-
-The balloon, after having risen, remained stationary; the unknown
-consulted the barometer, and said:
-
-"Here we are at 800 metres! Men resemble insects! See, I think it is
-from this height that we should always look at them, to judge correctly
-of their moral proportions! The Place de la Comedie is transformed to an
-immense ant-hill. Look at the crowd piled up on the quays. The Zeil
-diminishes. We are above the church of Dom. The Mein is now only a white
-line dividing the city, and this bridge, the Mein-Brucke, looks like a
-white thread thrown between the two banks of the river."
-
-The atmosphere grew cooler.
-
-"There is nothing I will not do for you, my host," said my companion.
-"If you are cold, I will take off my clothes and lend them to you."
-
-"Thanks!"
-
-"Necessity makes laws. Give me your hand, I am your countryman. You
-shall be instructed by my company, and my conversation shall compensate
-you for the annoyance I have caused you."
-
-I seated myself, without replying, at the opposite extremity of the car.
-The young man had drawn from his great coat a voluminous portfolio; it
-was a work on aerostation.
-
-"I possess," said he, "a most curious collection of engraving, and
-caricatures appertaining to our aerial mania. This precious discovery
-has been at once admired and ridiculed. Fortunately we have passed the
-period when the Mongolfiers sought to make factitious clouds with the
-vapour of water; and of the gas affecting electric properties, which
-they produced by the combustion of damp straw with chopped wool."
-
-"Would you detract from the merit of these inventions?" replied I. "Was
-it not well done to have proved by experiment the possibility of rising
-in the air?"
-
-"Who denies the glory of the first aerial navigators? Immense courage
-was necessary to ascend by means of those fragile envelopes which
-contained only warm air. Besides, has not aerostatic science made great
-progress since the ascensions of Blanchard? Look, Monsieur."
-
-He took from his collection an engraving.
-
-"Here is the first aerial voyage undertaken by Pilatre des Rosiers and
-the Marquis d'Arlandes, four months after the discovery of balloons.
-Louis XVI. refused his consent to this voyage; two condemned criminals
-were to have first attempted aerial travelling. Pilatre des Rosiers was
-indignant at this injustice and, by means of artifice, succeeded in
-setting out. This car, which renders the management of the balloon easy,
-had not then been invented; a circular gallery surrounded the lower part
-of the aerostat. The two aeronauts stationed themselves at the
-extremities of this gallery. The damp straw with which it was filled
-encumbered their movements. A chafing-dish was suspended beneath the
-orifice of the balloon; when the voyagers wished to ascend, they threw,
-with a long fork, straw upon this brazier, at the risk of burning the
-machine, and the air, growing warmer, gave to the balloon a new
-ascensional force. The two bold navigators ascended, on the 21st of
-November, 1783, from the gardens of La Muette, which the Dauphin had
-placed at their disposal. The aerostat rose majestically, passed the
-Isle des Cygnes, crossed the Seine at the Barriere de la Conference,
-and, directing its way between the dome of the Invalides and L'Ecole
-Militaire, approached St. Sulpice; then the aeronauts increased the
-fire, ascended, cleared the Boulevard, and descended beyond the Barriere
-d'Enfer. As it touched the ground, the collapsed, and buried Pilatre des
-Rosiers beneath its folds."
-
-"Unfortunate presage!" said I, interested in these details, which so
-nearly concerned me.
-
-"Presage of his catastrophe," replied the unknown, with sadness. "You
-have experienced nothing similar?"
-
-"Nothing!"
-
-"Bah! misfortunes often arrive without presage." And he remained silent.
-
-We were advancing towards the south; the magnetic needle pointed in the
-direction of Frankfort, which was flying beneath our feet.
-
-"Perhaps we shall have a storm," said the young man.
-
-"We will descend first."
-
-"Indeed! it will be better to ascend; we shall escape more surely;" and
-two bags of sand were thrown overboard.
-
-The balloon rose rapidly, and stopped at twelve hundred metres. The cold
-was now intense, and there was a slight buzzing in my ears.
-Nevertheless, the rays of the sun fell hotly on the globe, and, dilating
-the gas it contained, gave it a greater ascensional force. I was
-stupified.
-
-"Fear nothing," said the young man to me.
-
-"We have three thousand five hundred toises of respirable air. You need
-not trouble yourself about my proceedings."
-
-I would have risen, but a vigorous hand detained me on my seat.
-
-"Your name?" asked I.
-
-"My name! how does it concern you?"
-
-"I have the honour to ask your name."
-
-"I am called Erostratus or Empedocles,--as you please. Are you
-interested in the progress of aerostatic science?"
-
-He spoke with icy coldness, and I asked myself with whom I had to do.
-
-"Monsieur," continued he, "nothing new has been invented since the days
-of the philosopher Charles. Four months after the discovery of
-aerostats, he had invented the valve, which permits the gas to escape
-when the balloon is too full, or when one wishes to descend; the car,
-which allows the machine to be easily managed; the network, which
-encloses the fabric of the balloon, and prevents its being too heavily
-pressed; the ballast, which is used in ascending and choosing the spot
-of descent; the coat of caoutchouc, which renders the silk impermeable;
-the barometer, which determines the height attained; and, finally, the
-hydrogen, which, fourteen times lighter than air, allows of ascension to
-the most distant atmospheric layers, and prevents exposure to aerial
-combustion. On the 1st of December, 1783, three hundred thousand
-spectators thronged the Tuileries. Charles ascended, and the soldiers
-presented arms. He travelled nine leagues in the air: managing his
-machine with a skill never since surpassed in aeronautic experiments.
-The King conferred on him a pension of two thousand livres, for in those
-days inventions were encouraged. In a few days, the subscription list
-was filled; for every one was interested in the progress of science."
-
-The unknown was seized with a violent agitation.
-
-"I, Monsieur, have studied; I am satisfied that the first aeronauts
-guided their balloons. Not to speak of Blanchard, whose assertions might
-be doubted, at Dijon, Guyton-Morveaux, by the aid of oars and a helm,
-imparted to his machines perceptible motions, a decided direction. More
-recently, at Paris, a watchmaker, M. Julien, has made at the Hippodrome
-convincing experiments; for, with the aid of a particular mechanism, an
-aerial apparatus of oblong form was manifestly propelled against the
-wind. M. Petin placed four balloons, filled with hydrogen, in
-juxtaposition, and, by means of sails disposed horizontally and
-partially furled, hoped to obtain a disturbance of the equilibrium,
-which, inclining the apparatus, should compel it to an oblique path. But
-the motive power destined to surmount the resistance of currents,--the
-helice, moving in a movable medium, was unsuccessful. I have discovered
-the only method of guiding balloons, and not an Academy has come to my
-assistance, not a city has filled my subscription lists, not a
-government has deigned to listen to me! It is infamous!"
-
-His gesticulations were so furious that the car experienced violent
-oscillations; I had much difficulty in restraining him. Meanwhile, the
-balloon had encountered a more rapid current. We were advancing in a
-southerly direction, at 1200 metres in height, almost accustomed to this
-new temperature.
-
-"There is Darmstadt," said my companion. "Do you perceive its
-magnificent chateau? The storm-cloud below makes the outlines of objects
-waver; and it requires a practised eye to recognise localities."
-
-"You are certain that it is Darmstadt?"
-
-"Undoubtedly; we are six leagues from Frankfort."
-
-"Then we must descend."
-
-"Descend! you would not alight upon the steeples!" said the unknown,
-mockingly.
-
-"No; but in the environs of the city."
-
-"Well, it is too warm; let us remount a little."
-
-As he spoke thus, he seized some bags of ballast. I precipitated myself
-upon him; but, with one hand, he overthrew me, and the lightened balloon
-rose to a height of 1500 metres.
-
-"Sit down," said he, "and do not forget that Brioschi, Biot, and
-Gay-Lussac, ascended to a height of seven thousand metres, in order to
-establish some new scientific laws."
-
-"We must descend;" resumed I, with an attempt at gentleness. "The storm
-is gathering beneath our feet and around us; it would not be prudent."
-
-"We will ascend above it, and shall have nothing to fear from it. What
-more beautiful than to reign in heaven, and look down upon the clouds
-which hover upon the earth! Is it not an honour to navigate these aerial
-waves? The greatest personages have travelled like ourselves. The
-Marquise and Comtesse de Montalembert, the Comtesse de Potteries, Mlle.
-La Garde, the Marquis of Montalembert, set out from the Faubourg St.
-Antoine for these unknown regions. The Duc de Chartres displayed much
-address and presence of mind in his ascension of the 15th of July, 1784;
-at Lyons, the Comtes de Laurencin and de Dampierre; at Nantes, M. de
-Luynes; at Bordeaux, D'Arbelet des Granges; in Italy, the Chevalier
-Andreani; in our days, the Duke of Brunswick; have left in the air the
-track of their glory. In order to equal these great personages, we must
-ascend into the celestial regions higher than they. To approach the
-infinite is to comprehend it."
-
-The rarefaction of the air considerably dilated the hydrogen, and I saw
-the lower part of the aerostat, designedly left empty, become by degrees
-inflated, rendering the opening of the valve indispensable; but my
-fearful companion seemed determined not to allow me to direct our
-movements. I resolved to pull secretly the cord attached to the valve,
-while he was talking with animation. I feared to guess with whom I had
-to do; it would have been too horrible! It was about three-quarters of
-an hour since we had left Frankfort, and from the south thick clouds
-were arising and threatening to engulf us.
-
-"Have you lost all hope of making your plans succeed?" said I, with
-great apparent interest.
-
-"All hope!" replied the unknown, despairingly. "Wounded by refusals,
-caricatures, those blows with the foot of an ass, have finished me. It
-is the eternal punishment reserved for innovators. See these caricatures
-of every age with which my portfolio is filled."
-
-I had secured the cord of the valve, and stooping over his works,
-concealed my movements from him. It was to be feared, nevertheless, that
-he would notice that rushing sound, like a waterfall, which the gas
-produces in escaping.
-
-"How many jests at the expense of the Abbe Miolan! He was about to
-ascend with Janninet and Bredin. During the operation, their balloon
-took fire, and an ignorant populace tore it to pieces. Then the
-caricature of _The Curious Animals_ called them _Maulant, Jean Mind, and
-Gredin_."
-
-The barometer had began to rise; it was time! A distant muttering of
-thunder was heard towards the south.
-
-"See this other engraving," continued he, without seeming to suspect my
-manoeuvres. "It is an immense balloon, containing a ship, large castles,
-houses, &c. The caricaturists little thought that their absurdities
-would one day become verities. It is a large vessel; at the left is the
-helm with the pilot's box; at the prow, _maisons de plaisance_, a
-gigantic organ, and cannon to call the attention of the inhabitants of
-earth or of the moon; above the stern the observatory and pilot-balloon;
-at the equatorial circle, the barracks of the army; on the left the
-lantern; then upper galleries for promenades, the sails, the wings;
-beneath, the cafes and general store-houses of provisions. Admire this
-magnificent announcement. 'Invented for the good of the human race,
-this globe will depart immediately for the seaports in the Levant, and
-on its return will announce its voyages for the two poles and the
-extremities of the Occident. Every provision is made; there will be an
-exact rate of fare for each place of destination; but the prices for
-distant voyages will be the same, 1000 louis. And it must be confessed
-that this is a moderate sum, considering the celerity, convenience, and
-pleasure of this mode of travelling above all others. While in this
-balloon, every one can divert himself as he pleases, dancing, playing,
-or conversing with people of talent. Pleasure will be the soul of the
-aerial society.' All these inventions excited laughter. But before long,
-if my days were not numbered, these projects should become realities."
-
-We were visibly descending; he did not perceive it!
-
-"See this game of balloons; it contains the whole history of the
-aerostatic art. This game, for the use of educated minds, is played like
-that of the Jew; with dice and counters of any value agreed upon, which
-are to be paid or received, according to the condition in which one
-arrives."
-
-"But," I resumed, "you seem to have valuable documents on aerostation?"
-
-"I am less learned than the Almighty! That is all! I possess all the
-knowledge possible in this world. From Phaeton, Icarus, and Architas. I
-have searched all, comprehended all! Through me, the aerostatic art
-would render immense services to the world, if God should spare my life!
-But that cannot be."
-
-"Why not?"
-
-"Because my name is Empedocles or Erostratus!"
-
-
-II.
-
-
-The Company of Aerostiers--The Battle of Fleurus--The Balloon over the
-Sea--Blanchard and Jefferies--A Drama such as is rarely seen--3000
-Metres--The Thunder beneath our Feet--Gavnerin at Rome--The Compass
-gone--The Victims of Aerostation--Pilatre--At 4000 Metres--The Barometer
-gone--Descents of Olivari, Mosment, Bittorf, Harris, Sadler, and Madame
-Blanchard--The Valve rendered useless--7000 Metres--Zambecarri--The
-Ballon (sic) Wrecked--Incalculable Heights--The Car
-Overset--Despair--Vertigo--The Fall--The Denouement.
-
-I shuddered! Fortunately the balloon was approaching the earth. But the
-danger is the same at 50 feet as at 5000 metres! The clouds were
-advancing.
-
-"Remember the battle of Fleurus, and you will comprehend the utility of
-aerostats! Coulee, by order of the government, organized a company of
-aerostiers. At the siege of Maubeuge, General Jourdan found this new
-method of observation so serviceable, that twice a day, accompanied by
-the General himself, Coutelle ascended into the air; the correspondence
-between the aeronaut and the aerostiers who held the balloon, was
-carried on by means of little white, red, and yellow flags. Cannons and
-carbines were often aimed at the balloon at the moment of its ascension,
-but without effect. When Jourdan was preparing to invest Charleroi,
-Coutelle repaired to the neighbourhood of that place, rose from the
-plain of Jumet, and remained taking observations seven or eight hours,
-with General Morelot. The Austrians came to deliver the city, and a
-battle was fought on the heights of Fleurus. General Jourdan publicly
-proclaimed the assistance he had received from aeronautic observations.
-Well! notwithstanding the services rendered on this occasion, and during
-the campaign with Belgium, the year which witnessed the commencement of
-the military career of balloons, also saw it terminate. And the school
-of Meuon, founded by government, was closed by Bonaparte, on his return
-from Egypt. 'What are we to expect from the child which has just been
-born?' Franklin had said. But the child was born alive! It need not
-have been strangled!"
-
-The unknown hid his forehead in his hands, reflected for a few moments,
-then, without raising his head, said to me:
-
-"Notwithstanding my orders, you have opened the upper valve!"
-
-I let go the cord.
-
-"Fortunately" continued he, "we have still two hundred pounds of
-ballast."
-
-"What are your plans?" said I, with effort.
-
-"You have never crossed the sea?"
-
-I grew frightfully pale, terror froze my veins.
-
-"It is a pity," said he, "that we are being wafted towards the Adriatic!
-That is only a streamlet. Higher! we shall find other currents!"
-
-And without looking at me, he lightened the balloon by several bags of
-sand.
-
-"I allowed you to open the valve, because the dilatation of the gas
-threatened to burst the balloon. But do not do it again."
-
-I was stupified.
-
-"You know the voyage from Dover to Calais made by Blanchard and
-Jefferies. It was rich in incident. On the 7th of January, 1785, in a
-northeast wind, their balloon was filled with gas on the Dover side;
-scarcely had they risen, when an error in equilibrium compelled them to
-threw out their ballast, retaining only thirty pounds. The wind drifted
-them slowly along towards the shores of France. The permeability of the
-tissue gradually suffered the gas to escape, and at the expiration of an
-hour and a half, the voyagers perceived that they were descending.
-'What is to be done?' said Jefferies.--'We have passed over only
-three-fourths of the distance,' replied Blanchard 'and at a slight
-elevation. By ascending we shall expose ourselves to contrary winds.
-Throw out the remainder of the ballast.' The balloon regained its
-ascensional force, but soon re-descended. About midway of the voyage,
-the aeronauts threw out their books and tools. A quarter of an hour
-afterwards, Blanchard said to Jefferies: 'The barometer?'--'It is
-rising! We are lost; and yet there are the shores of France!' A great
-noise was heard. 'Is the balloon rent?' asked Jefferies.--'No! the
-escape of the gas has collapsed the lower part of the balloon'--'But we
-are still descending. We are lost! Everything not indispensable must be
-thrown overboard!' Their provisions, oars and helm were thrown out into
-the sea. They were now only 100 metres in height. 'We are remounting,'
-said the Doctor.--' No, it is the jerk caused by the diminution of
-weight. There is not a ship in sight! Not a bark on the horizon! To the
-sea with our garments!' And the unfortunate men stripped, but the
-balloon continued to descend. 'Blanchard,' said Jefferies, 'you were
-to have made this voyage alone; you consented to take me; I will
-sacrifice myself to you! I will throw myself into the water, and the
-balloon, relieved, will re-ascend!'--' No, no, it is frightful.' The
-balloon collapsed more and more, and its concavity forming a parachute,
-forced the gas against its sides and accelerated its motion. 'Adieu, my
-friend,' said the Doctor. 'May God preserve you!' He was about to have
-taken the leap, when Blanchard detained him. 'One resource remains to
-us! We can cut the cords by which the car is attached, and cling to the
-network? perhaps the balloon will rise. Ready! But the barometer falls!
-We remount! The wind freshens! We are saved!' The voyagers perceived
-Calais! Their joy became delirium; a few moments later, they descended
-in the forest of Guines. I doubt not," continued the unknown, "that in
-similar circumstances you would follow the example of Doctor Jefferies."
-
-The clouds were unrolling beneath our feet in glittering cascades; the
-balloon cast a deep shadow on this pile of clouds, and was surrounded by
-them as with an aureola! The thunder growled beneath our feet! All this
-was frightful!
-
-"Let us descend!" exclaimed I.
-
-"Descend, when the sun is awaiting us yonder! Down with the bags!" And
-he lightened the balloon of more than fifty pounds. At 3000 metres we
-remained stationary. The unknown talked incessantly, but I scarcely
-heard him; I was completely prostrated, while he seemed in his element.
-
-"With a good wind, we shall go far, but we must especially go high!"
-
-"We are lost!"
-
-"In the Antilles there are currents of air which travel a hundred leagues
-an hour! On the occasion of Napoleon's coronation, Gavnerin let off a
-balloon illuminated with coloured lamps, at eleven o'clock in the
-evening! The wind blew from the N.N.E.; the next morning at daybreak the
-inhabitants of Rome saluted its passage above the dome of St. Peter's.
-We will go farther."
-
-I scarcely heard him; everything was buzzing around me! There was an
-opening in the clouds!
-
-"See that city, my host;" said the unknown. "It is Spire. Nothing else!"
-
-I dared not lean over the railing of the car. Nevertheless I perceived a
-little black spot. This was Spire. The broad Rhine looked like a riband,
-the great roads like threads. Above our heads the sky was of a deep
-azure; I was benumbed with the cold. The birds had long since forsaken
-us; in this rarefied air their flight would have been impossible. We
-were alone in space, and I in the presence of a strange man!
-
-"It is useless for you to know whither I am taking you," said he, and he
-threw the compass into the clouds. "A fall is a fine thing. You know
-that there have been a few victims from Pilatre des Rosiers down to
-Lieutenant Gale, and these misfortunes have always been caused by
-imprudence. Pilatre des Rosiers ascended in company with Remain, at
-Boulogne, on the 13th of June, 1785. To his balloon, inflated with gas,
-he had suspended a _mongolfier_ filled with warm air, undoubtedly to
-save the trouble of letting off gas, or throwing out ballast. It was
-like putting a chafing-dish beneath a powder-cask. The imprudent men
-rose to a height of four hundred metres, and encountered opposing winds,
-which drove them over the ocean. In order to descend, Pilatre attempted
-to open the valve of the aerostat; but the cord of this valve caught in
-the balloon, and tore it so that it was emptied in an instant. It fell
-on the mongolfier, overturned it, and the imprudent men were dashed to
-pieces in a few seconds. It is _frightful, is_ it not?" said the
-unknown, shaking me from my torpor.
-
-I could reply only by these words:
-
-"In pity, let us descend! The clouds are gathering around us in every
-direction, and frightful detonations reverberating from the cavity of
-the aerostat are multiplying around us."
-
-"You make me impatient!" said he. "You shall no longer know whether we
-are ascending or descending."
-
-And the barometer went after the compass, along with some bags of sand.
-We must have been at a height of four thousand metres. Some icicles were
-attached to the sides of the car, and a sort of fine snow penetrated to
-my bones. Meanwhile a terrific storm was bursting beneath our feet. We
-were above it.
-
-"Do not fear," said my strange companion; "it is only imprudence that
-makes victims. Olivari, who perished at Orleans, ascended in a
-mongolfier made of paper; his car, suspended below the chafing-dish, and
-ballasted with combustible materials, became a prey to the flames!
-Olivari fell, and was killed. Mosment ascended at Lille, on a light
-platform; an oscillation made him lose his equilibrium. Mosment fell,
-and was killed. Bittorf, at Manheim, saw his paper balloon take fire in
-the air! Bittorf fell, and was killed. Harris ascended in a balloon
-badly constructed, the valve of which was too large to be closed again.
-Harris fell, and was killed. Sadler, deprived of ballast by his long
-stay in the air, was dragged over the city of Boston, and thrown against
-the chimneys. Sadler fell, and was killed. Cocking descended with a
-convex parachute which he pretended to have perfected. Cocking fell, and
-was killed. Well, I love them, those noble victims of their courage! and
-I will die like them! Higher! higher!"
-
-All the phantoms of this necrology were passing before my eyes! The
-rarefaction of the air and the rays of tile sun increased the dilatation
-of the gas; the balloon continued to ascend! I mechanically attempted to
-open the valve; but the unknown cut the cord a few feet above my head. I
-was lost!
-
-"Did you see Madame Blanchard fall?" said he to me. "I saw her, I--yes,
-I was at Tivoli on the 6th of July, 1819. Madame Blanchard ascended in a
-balloon of small size, to save the expense of filling; she was therefore
-obliged to inflate it entirely, and the gas escaped by the lower
-orifice, leaving on its route a train of hydrogen. She carried,
-suspended above her car, by an iron wire, a kind of firework, forming an
-aureola, which she was to kindle. She had often repeated this
-experiment. On this occasion she carried, besides, a little parachute,
-ballasted by a firework terminating in a ball with silver rain. She was
-to launch this apparatus, after having lighted it with a _lance a feu_,
-prepared for the purpose. She ascended. The night was dark. At the
-moment of lighting the firework, she was so imprudent as to let the
-lance pass beneath the column of hydrogen, which was escaping from the
-balloon. My eyes were fixed on her. Suddenly an unexpected flash
-illuminated the darkness. I thought it a surprise of the skilful
-aeronaut. The flame increased, suddenly disappeared, and re-appeared at
-the top of the aerostat under the form of an immense jet of burning gas.
-This sinister light projected over the Boulevard, and over the quarter
-Montmartre. Then I saw the unfortunate woman rise, twice attempt to
-compress the orifice of the balloon, to extinguish the fire, then seat
-herself in the car and seek to direct its descent; for she did not fall.
-The combustion of the gas lasted several minutes. The balloon,
-diminishing by degrees, continued to descend, but this was not a fall!
-The wind blew from the northeast, and drove her over Paris. There were,
-at that time, in the neighbourhood of the house No. 16 Rue de Provence,
-immense gardens. The aeronaut might have fallen there without danger.
-But unhappily the balloon and the car alighted on the roof of the house.
-The shock was slight. 'Help!' cried the unfortunate woman. I arrived in
-the street at that moment. The car slid along the roof, and encountered
-an iron hook. At this shock, Madame Blanchard was thrown out of the car,
-and precipitated on the pavement! She was killed!"
-
-These histories of fatal augury froze me with horror. The unknown was
-standing upright, with bare head, bristling hair, haggard eyes.
-
-Illusion was no longer possible. I saw at last the horrible truth. I had
-to deal with a madman!
-
-He threw out half the ballast, and we must have been borne to a height
-of 7000 metres! Blood spouted from my nose and mouth.
-
-"What a fine thing it is to be martyrs to science! They are canonized by
-posterity!"
-
-I heard no more. The unknown looked around him with horror, and knelt at
-my ear.
-
-"On the 7th of October, 1804, the weather had began to clear up a
-little; for several days preceding, the wind and rain had been
-incessant. But the ascension announced by Zambecarri could not be
-postponed! His idiot enemies already scoffed at him. To save himself and
-science from public ridicule, it became necessary for him to ascend. It
-was at Bologna! No one aided him in filling his balloon; he rose at
-midnight, accompanied by Andreoli and Grossetti. The balloon ascended
-slowly; it had been rent by the wind, and the gas escaped. The three
-intrepid voyagers could observe the state of the barometer only by the
-aid of a dark lantern. Zambecarri had not eaten during twenty-four
-hours; Grossetti was also fasting.
-
-"'My friends,' said Zambecarri, 'I am benumbed with the cold; I am
-exhausted; I must die;' and he fell senseless in the gallery.
-
-"It was the same with Grossetti. Andreoli alone remained awake. After
-long efforts he succeeded in arousing Zambecarri from his stupor.
-
-"'What is there new? Where are we going? In which direction is the wind?
-What time is it?'
-
-"' It is two o'clock!'
-
-"' Where is the compass?'
-
-"'It has fallen out.'
-
-"' Great God! the lamp is extinguished!'
-
-"' It could not burn longer in this rarefied air!' said Zambecarri.
-
-"The moon had not risen; the atmosphere was plunged in horrible
-darkness.
-
-"' I am cold, I am cold, Andreoli! What shall we do?'
-
-"The unfortunate men slowly descended through a layer of white clouds.
-
-"'Hush!' said Andreoli; 'do you hear--'
-
-"' What?' replied Zambecarri.
-
-"'A singular noise!'
-
-"'You are mistaken!'
-
-"'No!--Do you see those midnight travellers, listening to that
-incomprehensible sound? Have they struck against a rower? Are they about
-to be precipitated on the roofs? Do you hear it? It is like the sound of
-the ocean!'
-
-"'Impossible!'
-
-"' It is the roaring of the waves!'
-
-"' That is true!--Light! light!'
-
-"After five fruitless attempts, Andreoli obtained it. It was three
-o'clock. The sound of the waves was heard with violence; they almost
-touched the surface of the sea.
-
-"' We are lost!' exclaimed Zambecarri, seizing a bag of ballast.
-
-"' Help!' cried Andreoli.
-
-"The car touched the water, and the waves covered them breast high. To
-the sea with instruments, garments, money! The aeronauts stripped
-entirely. The lightened balloon rose with frightful rapidity. Zambecarri
-was seized with violent vomiting. Grossetti bled freely. The unhappy men
-could not speak; their respiration was short. They were seized with
-cold, and in a moment covered with a coat of ice. The moon appeared to
-them red as blood. After having traversed these high regions during half
-an hour, the machine again fell into the sea. It was four o'clock in the
-morning: the bodies of the wretched aeronauts were half in the water,
-and the balloon, acting as a sail, dragged them about during several
-hours. At daybreak, they found themselves opposite Pesaro, five miles
-from the shore; they were about to land, when a sudden flow of wind
-drove them back to the open sea. They were lost! The affrighted barks
-fled at their approach. Fortunately, a more intelligent navigator hailed
-them, took them on board; and they landed at Ferrara. That was
-frightful! Zambecarri was a brave man. Scarcely recovered from his
-sufferings, he recommenced his ascensions. In one of them, he struck
-against a tree; his lamp, filled with spirits of wine, was spilled over
-his clothes, and they caught fire; he was covered with flame; his machine
-was beginning to kindle, when he descended, half burned. The 21st
-September, 1812, he made another ascension at Bologna; his balloon
-caught in a tree; his lamp set fire to it. Zambecarri fell, and was
-killed! And in presence of these high facts, shall we still hesitate?
-No! The higher we go the more glorious will be our death."
-
-The balloon, entirely unballasted, we were borne to incredible heights.
-The aerostat vibrated in the atmosphere; the slightest sound re-echoed
-through the celestial vaults; the globe, the only object which struck my
-sight in immensity, seemed about to be annihilated, and above us the
-heights of heaven lost themselves in the profound darkness!
-
-I saw the unknown rise before me.
-
-"This is the hour!" said he to me. "We must die! We are rejected by
-men! They despise us! let us crush them!"
-
-"Mercy!" exclaimed I.
-
-"Let us cut the cords! let this car be abandoned in space! The
-attractive force will change its direction, and we shall land in the
-sun!"
-
-Despair gave me strength! I precipitated myself upon the madman, and a
-frightful struggle took place! But I was thrown down! and while he held
-me beneath his knee, he cut the cords of the car!
-
-"One!" said he.
-
-"Mercy! O, God!"
-
-"Two! three!"
-
-One cord more, and the car was sustained only on one side. I made a
-superhuman effort, rose, and violently repulsed this insensate.
-
-"Four!" said he.
-
-The car was overset. I instinctively clung to the cords which held it,
-and climbed up the outside.
-
-The unknown had disappeared in space!
-
-In a twinkling the balloon ascended to an immeasurable height! A
-horrible crash was heard. The dilated gas had burst its envelope! I
-closed my eyes. A few moments afterwards, a moist warmth reanimated me;
-I was in the midst of fiery clouds! The balloon was whirling with
-fearful rapidity! I felt myself swooning! Driven by the wind, I
-travelled a hundred leagues an hour in my horizontal course; the
-lightnings flashed around me!
-
-Meanwhile my fall was not rapid. When I opened my eyes, I perceived the
-country. I was two miles from the sea, the hurricane urging me on with
-great force. I was lost, when a sudden shock made me let go; my hands
-opened, a cord slipped rapidly between my fingers, and I found myself on
-the ground. It was the cord of the anchor, which, sweeping the surface
-of the ground, had caught in a crevice! I fainted, and my lightened
-balloon, resuming its flight, was lost beyond the sea.
-
-When I recovered my senses, I was in the house of a peasant, at
-Harderwick, a little town of Gueldre, fifteen leagues from Amsterdam, on
-the banks of the Zuyderzee.
-
-A miracle had saved me. But my voyage had been but a series of
-imprudences against which I had been unable to defend myself.
-
-May this terrific recital, while it instructs those who read it, not
-discourage the explorers of the routes of air.
-
-
-
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