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TN A FT UK IIAKKOON.THE SENSATIONS EXPERIENCED BY THE SUMMER AERONAUT.j*r% «f plunging froma height.. These indicate tlmf flw lcillooii season lias arrived and that (In1 aeronaut and parachutist is preparing for his season's work, However inmh roniaiiee there may appear in lialiooaino.it is nothing less than a trade, and a dillic ult one, requiring long years of training and experience for its mastery.In the first place it differs from other occupations in its constant excitement. To,the aeronaut each ascent means a fresh danger, and it is 011 this account, perhaps, that comparatively few engage in it.Few people who witness a halloon ascension comprehend its fascinations, its peri Is or its methods, and only those who have made the trip into the clouds can accurately describe its accompanying sensations. Professor Mortimer jVloKim, an aeronaut of experience, gives it as his opinion that the aeronaut lives a lifetime in the few brief moments of his voyage. To those interested in aerial navigation a description of the airship is necessary. The material employed in thu construction consists of a superior quality of sheeting, the breadths being stitcliod together firmly, with the edges felled. The average balloon being lit) feet in circumference and T.i feet in height requires 800 or more yards of cloth. At the mouth of the balloon a hoop the size of a wagon wheel and made of wood is attached to keep the month open whilo the hot air is being forced into it, and this orifice remains open during the ascension. The inside of the tire balloon iscoated witha sizing of glue, whiting, alum and other noncombustibles, as a precaution against sparks, which, with the hot air, arise frequently to a height of thirty feet during the inflation.On being released, the balloon rises at first slowly until at about a height of fifty feet, when its velocity is at the rate of forty-five miles an hour. At the expiration of two minutes tho balloon has attained an altitude of a mile and a half; then it commences to sail with the air current which strikes it. This drifting about continues for a period of four minutes, when the escaping hot air causes a gradual shrinking of the balloon ami its consequent descent. Tho unique sensations of tho aeronaut begin with the moment he mounts the trapeze bar attached to the balloon. Grasping the ropes, the feeling is much like that of being seated in a swing. For tho first 100 feet there is a realization of the ascent; ob.iects below appear smaller and smaller until gradually they fade from j iew. At, a height of 200 feet tho air, rushing past with tremendous velocity, gives one the impression of leaning out of the car window of a limited express, tho sounds of earth die a.way in a umr-nnir, andit isthenthat the balloonseems stutiidiary,, thoearth fiilfng away' Lookingdowniwanl from the height,all mi, litersappenr Ieeel. mountains andvail*es arealikeamithe world looks asif spread t(lit anat tinttoned by a rollingpin. RoadIs H«lt;1 riiits resolve tliem-selves inti* nat■n nvrihlions; fAvr**-fields and 11itudo*IVS 111ro elninps of tp'een,red and Id.nek. 1ivithgreen as tin dom-inant color. Attwi• miles earth is lostto view, asin a 1Presently tho bal-loon beginsto sai! Airiven by tin air cur-rent. ThenIt is innv n* apparent motion.The aeronnut e;iperieuees a feriing ofoppression.t he air, ih•privod of its vitalprinciple, cShan.-Is at each inspiration;milsareheard in ears, andone can,su’ tq SI[leak.. hear the stillness.The breath com1 quirk, successivegasps thatdo injt salisfy the lungs. Itis like going to one's death.ISFLMTXtt THE BAU.OOX,Looking upward, the; horizon is bounded by I lie big black ball the balloon— dark against the milky opaqueness of tin; atmosphere. The airship is swaying and swinging, while the rlouds, floating in a eoulrai v direction, produce a vague giddiness. There is. however, no tinio for tremors. Seconds seem hours, the mind and memory 1 raveling with electric flight, (miin an-- recollections and ret respect ions fla.-h across t lie bewildered brain . lt;»■ reels through space. Suddenly the toji of ;he balloon comes in contact witha eload. there is a slight jar. ami the best i„ o' all is enveloped in fog. fKjw.which tl;.- aeronaut emergen snaked wit,! And now for thespi-em-le: s i,P.--. -In.;eing. Mounts bis of ;r: ' — a . ■ white cloudstinged with .in. t ... like theplumage of the cockatoo. Swirling combinations of color, blending and shifting as in a gigantic bubble. Golden greens, that melt into purple and bronzo and crimson, with the sun dissolving and overflowing upon their tops. Wonderful tints, such as artist never dreamed of. To comprehend color it is necessary to have seen the magic canvases of the clouds. The balloon sails on and drops slowly away from this panorama, onco more into the colorless atmosphere.With the descent, earth appears to rise and tho balloon to remain fixed; and now the operator is occupied with one idea, speculation as to where and how lie will reach earth, for distance is incalculable and perspective a myth. The balloon is the sport of chance, and is liable to deposit its passenger anywhere from the top of a church steeple to the bottom of a ditch. The aeronaut takes his life in his own hands when he ascends with the airship. Should it take fire, burst in midair, or cool off too suddenly in striking a cold current, tho result is collapse and disaster, for there is no safety valve to the fire balloon.Tho aeronaut is invariably an enthusiast until ho meetB with an accident, after which discretion becomes the better part of bis valor and he is content to rally substitutes for an ascension. Aftei a few years he is apt to retire altogether and leave to others the hazardous occupation. Up to a period of six years ago there numbered but twenty aeronauts in the country, and these were in great demand at county fairs, settlers and soldiers’ reunions and upon legal holidays, rural celebrations being considered incomplete without the daring balloonist, who, for the time being, was of more importance than the president and entire senate, and, it may be added, that no occupation is more conducive to conceit and self sufficiency than that of the aeronaut. There is less profit In the business now than formerly; the novelty of the ordinary balloon ascension no longer exists for Americans. Realizing this, nearly every aeronaut now makes the sensational parachute descent.On reaching the desired altitude this is effected by cutting the connecting rope. Thero is a rapid fall, the resist-IX MID ATE. anceof tho air forcing open the parachute, which is nothing more than a ribless umbrella twenty-eight feet in diameter. The operator on cutting loose darts downward, as if fired from a catapult, until within a few hundred feet of earth, when he is sustained by the parachute. Should this fail to operate, death is inevitable. Abroad the balloon is still an attraction, and especially in Mexico, Australia and tho West Indies. Professor McKini, who has toured the civilized world, is one of the few experienced aeronauts who find it difficult to abandon the profession, aboht which there exists a fascination, even in the danger. Taken all in all it is as great a game of chance as ever played by man, with this difference—That the aeronaut has no opponent, an® should he fail no one is gainer through his defeat.Marie Petravsky.
Newspaper Details
Sunday News Sentinel
Fort Wayne, Indiana, US
Wed, May 18, 1892
Page 4
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
USA 17 Apr 2025
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