Wonderfull Balloon Ascents
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Fulgence Marion >> Wonderfull Balloon Ascents
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Some days after these experiments the conductors of the Journal
de Paris who described them, received a letter from Montgolfier,
and also one from Gerond de Villette. The latter only is of
interest here. Gerond de Villette says: "I found myself in the
space of a quarter of a minute raised 400 feet above the surface
of the earth. Here we remained six minutes. My first employment
was to watch with admiration my intelligent companion. His
intelligence, his courage and agility in attending to the fire,
enchanted me. Turning round, I could behold the Boulevards, from
the gate of St. Antoine to that of St. Martin, all covered with
people, who seemed to me a flat band of flowers of various
colours. Glancing at the distance, I beheld the summit of
Montmartre, which seemed to me much below our level. I could
easily distinguish Neuilly, St. Cloud, Sevres, Issy, Ivry,
Charenton, and Choisy. At once I was convinced that this
machine, though a somewhat expensive one, might be very useful in
war to enable one to discover the position of the enemy, his
manoeuvres, and his marches; and to announce these by signals to
one's own army. 1 believe that at sea it is equally possible to
make use of this machine. These prove the usefulness of the
balloon, which time will perfect for us. All that I regret is
that I did not provide myself with a telescope."
Chapter IX. The First Aerial Voyage--Roziers and Arlandes.
These experiments had only one aim--the application of
Montgolfier's discovery to aerial navigation. The knowledge
gained in the Faubourg St. Antoine having led to the most
favourable conclusions, it was resolved that a first aerial
voyage should be attempted.
"If," says Linguet, "there existed an autograph journal, written
by Columbus, descriptive of his first great voyage with what
jealous care it would be preserved, with what confidence it would
be quoted! We should delight to follow the candid account which
he gave of his thoughts, his hopes, his fears; of the complaints
of his followers, of his attempts to calm them, and, finally, of
his joy in the moment which, ratifying his word and justifying
his boldness, declared him the discoverer of a new world All
these details have been transmitted to us, but by stranger hands;
and, however interesting they may be, one cannot help feeling
that this circumstance makes them lose part of their value."
The narrative of the first aerial voyage, written by one of the
two first aeronauts, exists, and we are in a position to place it
before our readers. Such an enterprise certainly demanded great
courage in him who was the first to dare to confide himself to
the unknown currents of the atmosphere It threatened him with
dangers, perhaps with death by a fill, by fire, by cold, or by
straying into the mysterious cloud-land. Two men opposed the
first attempt. Montgolfier temporised, the king forbade it, or
rather only gave his permission on the condition that two
condemned criminals should be placed in the balloon! "What!"
cried Roziers, in indignation at the king's proposal, "allow two
vile criminals to have the first glory of rising into the sky!
No, no; that will never do!" Roziers conjured, supplicated,
agitated in a hundred ways for permission to try the first
voyage. He moved the town and the court; he addressed himself to
those who were most in favour at Versailles; he pleaded with the
Duchess de Polignac, who was all-powerful with the king. She
warmly supported his cause before Louis. Roziers dispatched the
Marquis d'Arlandes, who had been up with him, to the king.
Arlandes asserted that there was no danger, and, as proof of his
conviction, he offered himself to accompany Roziers. Solicited
on all sides, Louis at last yielded.
The gardens of La Muette, near Paris, were fixed upon as the spot
from which this aerial expedition should start. The Dauphin and
his suite were present on the occasion. It was on the 21st of
October, 1783,at one o'clock p.m., that Roziers and Irelands took
their leave of the earth for the first time. The following is
Arlandes' narrative of the expedition, given in the form of a
letter, addressed by the marquis to Faujas de Saint Fond:--"You
wish, my dear Faujas, and I consent most willingly to your
desires, that, owing to the number of questions continually
addressed to me, and for other reasons, I should gratify public
curiosity and fix public opinion upon the subject of our aerial
voyage.
"I wish to describe as well as I can the first journey which men
have attempted through an element which, prior to the discovery
of MM. Montgolfier, seemed so little fitted to support them.
"We went up on the 21st of October, 1783, at near two o'clock, M.
Roziers on the west side of the balloon, I on the east. The wind
was nearly north-west. The machine, say the public, rose with
majesty; but really the position of the balloon altered so that
M. Roziers was in the advance of our position, I in the rear.
"I was surprised at the silence and the absence of movement which
our departure caused among the spectators, and believed them to
be astonished and perhaps awed at the strange spectacle; they
might well have reassured themselves I was still gazing, when M.
Roziers cried to me--
"'You are doing nothing, and the balloon is scarcely rising a
fathom.'
"'Pardon me,' I answered, as I placed a bundle of straw upon the
fire and slightly stirred it. Then I turned quickly, but already
we had passed out of sight of La Muette. Astonished, I cast a
glance towards the river. I perceived the confluence of the
Oise. And naming the principal bends of the river by the places
nearest them, I cried, 'Passy, St. Germain, St. Denis, Sevres!'
"'If you look at the river in that fashion you will be likely to
bathe in it soon,' cried Roziers. 'Some fire, my dear friend,
some fire!'
"We travelled on; but instead of crossing the river, as our
direction seemed to indicate, we bore towards the Invalides, then
returned upon the principal bed of the river, and travelled to
above the barrier of La Conference, thus dodging about the river,
but not crossing it.
"'That river is very difficult to cross,' I remarked to my
companion.
"'So it seems,' he answered; 'but you are doing nothing I suppose
it is because you are braver than 1, and don't fear a tumble.'
"I stirred the fire, I seized a truss of straw with my fork; I
raised it and threw it in the midst of the flames. An instant
afterwards I felt myself lifted as it were into the heavens.
"'For once we move,' said I.
"'Yes, we move,' answered my companion.
"At the same instant I heard from the top of the balloon a sound
which made me believe that it had burst. I watched, yet I saw
nothing. My companion had gone into the interior, no doubt to
make some observations. As my eyes were fixed on the top of the
machine I experienced a shock, and it was the only one I had yet
felt. The direction of the movement was from above downwards I
then said--
"'What are you doing? Are you having a dance to yourself?'
"'I'm not moving.'
"'So much the better. It is only a new current which I hope will
carry us from the river,' I answered.
"I turned to see where we were, and found we were between the
Ecole Militaire and the Invalides.
"'We are getting on.' said Roziers.
"'Yes, we are travelling.'
"'Let us work, let us work,' said he.
"I now heard another report in the machine, which I believed was
produced by the cracking of a cord. This new intimation made me
carefully examine the inside of our habitation. I saw that the
part that was turned towards the south was full of holes, of
which some were of a considerable size.
"'It must descend,' I then cried.
"'Why?'
"'Look!' I said. At the same time I took my sponge and quietly
extinguished the little fire that was burning some of the holes
within my reach; but at the same moment I perceived that the
bottom of the cloth was coming away from the circle which
surrounded it.
"'We must descend,' I repeated to my companion.
"He looked below.
"'We are upon Paris,' he said.
"'It does not matter,' I answered 'Only look! Is there no danger?
Are you holding on well?'
"'Yes.'
"I examined from my side, and saw that we had nothing to fear. I
then tried with my sponge the ropes which were within my reach.
All of them held firm. Only two of the cords had broken.
"I then said, 'We can cross Paris.'
"During this operation we were rapidly getting down to the roofs.
We made more fire, and rose again with the greatest ease. I
looked down, and it seemed to me we were going towards the towers
of St. Sulpice; but, on rising, a new current made us quit this
direction and bear more to the south. I looked to the left, and
beheld a wood, which I believed to be that of Luxembourg. We
were traversing the boulevard, and I cried all at once--
"'Get to ground!'
"But the intrepid Roziers, who never lost his head, and who
judged more surely than I, prevented me from attempting to
descend. I then threw a bundle of straw on the fire. We rose
again, and another current bore us to were now close to the
ground, between two mills. As soon to the left. We as we came
near the earth I raised myself over the gallery, and leaning
there with my two hands, I felt the balloon pressing softly
against my head. I pushed it back, and leaped down to the
ground. Looking round and expecting to see the balloon still
distended, I was astonished to find it quite empty and flattened.
On looking for Roziers I saw him in his shirt-sleeves creeping
out from under the mass of canvas that had fallen over him.
Before attempting to descend he had put off his coat and placed
it in the basket. After a deal of trouble we were at last all
right.
"As Roziers was without a coat I besought him to go to the
nearest house. On his way thither he encountered the Duke of
Chartres, who had followed us, as we saw, very closely, for I had
had the honour of conversing with him the moment before we set
out."
The following report of this first aerial voyage was drawn up by
scientific observers, among other signatures to it being that of
Benjamin Franklin.
"Today 21st of October, 1783, at the Chateau de la Muette, an
experiment was made with the aerostatic machine of M.
Montgolfier. The sky was clouded in many parts, clear in
others--the wind north-west. At mid-day a signal was given,
which announced that the balloon was being filled. Soon after,
in spite of the wind, it was inflated in all its parts, and the
ascent was made. The Marquis d'Arlandes and M. Pilatre des
Roziers were in the gallery. The first intention was to raise
the machine and pull it back with ropes, to test it, to find out
the exact weight which it could carry, and to see if everything
was properly arranged before the actual ascent was attempted.
But the machine, driven by the wind, far from rising vertically,
was directed upon one of the walks of a garden, and the cords
which held it shook with so much force that several rents were
made in the balloon. The machine, being brought back to its
place, was repaired in less than two hours. Being again
inflated, it rose once more, bearing the same persons, and when
it had risen to the height of 250 feet, the intrepid voyagers,
bowing their heads, saluted the spectators. One could not resist
a feeling of mingled fear and admiration. Soon the aeronauts were
lost to view, but the balloon itself, displaying its very
beautiful shape, mounted to the height of 3,000 feet, and still
remained visible. The voyagers, satisfied with their experience,
and not wishing to make a longer course, agreed to descend, but,
perceiving that the wind was driving them upon the houses of the
Rue de Sevres, preserved their self-possession, renewed the hot
air, rose anew and continued their course till they had passed
Paris.
"They then descended tranquilly in the country, beyond the new
boulevard, without having experienced the slightest
inconvenience, having still the greater part of their fuel
untouched. They could, had they desired, have cleared a distance
three times as great as that which they traversed. Their flight
was nearly 30,000 feet, and the time it occupied was from twenty
to twenty-five minutes. This machine was 70 feet high, 46 feet
in diameter, and had a capacity of 60,000 cubic feet."
It is reported that Franklin, more illustrious in his humility
than the most brilliant among the lords of the court, when
consulted respecting the possible use of balloons, answered
simply, "C'est l'enfant qui vient de naitre?"
Chapter X. The Second Arial Voyage.
(1st December 1783.--Charles and Robert at the Tuileries.)
The first ascent of Roziers and Arlandes was a feat of hardihood
almost unique. The men's courage was, so to speak, their only
guarantee. Thanks to the balloon, however, they accomplished one
of the most extraordinary enterprises ever achieved by our race.
On the day after the experiment of the Champ de Mars (27th of
August), Professor Charles--who had already acquired celebrity at
the Louvre, by his scientific collection and by his rank as an
official instructor--and the Brothers Robert, mechanicians, were
engaged in the construction of a balloon, to be inflated with
hydrogen gas, and destined to carry a car and one or two
passengers. For this ascent Charles may be said to have created
all at once the art of aerostation as now practiced, for he
brought it at one bound to such perfection that since his day
scarcely any advance has been made upon his arrangements. His
simple yet complete invention was that of the valve which gives
escape to the hydrogen gas, and thus renders the descent of the
balloon gentle and gradual; the car that carries the travellers;
the ballast of sand, by which the ascent is regulated and the
fall is moderated; the coating of caoutchouc, by means of which
the material of the balloon is rendered airtight and prevents
loss of gas; and, finally, the use of the barometer, which marks
at every instant, by the elevation or the depression of the
mercury, the position in which the aeronaut finds himself in the
atmosphere. Charles created all the contrivances, or, in other
words, all the ingenious precautions which make up the art of
aerostation.
On the 26th of November, the balloon, fitted with its network,
and having the car attached to it, was sent away from the hall of
the Tuileries, where it had been exhibited. The ascent was fixed
for the 1st of December, 1783, a memorable day for the Parisians.
At noon upon that day, the subscribers, who had paid four louis
for their seats, took their places within the enclosure outside
the circle, in which stood the casks employed for making the gas.
The humbler subscribers, at three francs a-head, occupied the
rest of the garden. The number of spectators, as we read
underneath the numerous coloured prints which represent this
spectacle, was 600,000; but though, without doubt, the gardens of
the Tuileries are very large, it is probable this figure is a
considerable overstatement, for this number would have been
three-fourths of the whole population of Paris.
The roofs and windows of the houses were crowded, whilst the Pont
Royal and the square of Louis XV. were covered by an immense
multitude. About mid-day a rumour was spread to the effect that
the king forbade the ascent. Charles ran to the Chief Minister
of State, and plainly told him that his life was the king's, but
his honour was his own: his word was pledged to the country and
he would ascend. Taking this high ground, the bold professor
gained an unwilling permission to carry out his undertaking.
A little afterwards the sound of cannon was heard. This was the
signal which announced the last arrangements and thus dissipated
all doubt as to the rising of the balloon, There had during the
day been considerable disturbance among the crowd, between the
partisans of Charles and Montgolfier; each party extolled its
hero, and did everything possible to detract from the merits of
the rival inventor. But whatever ill-feeling might have existed
was swept away by Professor Charles with a compliment. When he
was ready to ascend, he walked up to Montgolfier, and, with the
true instinct of French politeness, presented him with a little
balloon, saying at the same time--
"It is for you, monsieur, to show us the way to the skies."
The exquisite taste and delicacy of this incident touched the
bystanders as with an electric shock, and the place at once rang
out with the most genuine and hearty applause The little balloon
thrown up by Montgolfier sped away to the north-east, its
beautiful emerald colour showing to fine effect in the sun.
From this point let us follow the narrative of Professor Charles
himself.
"The balloon," he says, "which escaped from the hands of M.
Montgolfier, rose into the air, and seemed to carry with it the
testimony of friendship and regard between that gentleman and
myself, while acclamations followed it. Meanwhile, we hastily
prepared for departure. The stormy weather did not permit us to
have at our command all the arrangements which we had
contemplated the previous evening; to do so would have detained
us too long upon the earth. After the balloon and the car were
in equilibrium, we threw over 19 lbs. of ballast, and we rose in
the midst of silence, arising from the emotion and surprise felt
on all sides.
"Nothing will ever equal that moment of joyous excitement which
filled my whole being when I felt myself flying away from the
earth. It was not mere pleasure; it was perfect bliss. Escaped
from the frightful torments of persecution and of calumny, I felt
that I was answering all in rising above all.
"To this sentiment succeeded one more lively still--the
admiration of the majestic spectacle that spread itself out
before us. On whatever side we looked, all was glorious; a
cloudless sky above, a most delicious view around. 'Oh, my
friend,' said I to M. Robert, 'how great is our good fortune! I
care not what may be the condition of the earth; it is the sky
that is for me now. What serenity! what a ravishing scene!
Would that I could bring here the last of our detractors, and say
to the wretch, Behold what you would have lost had you arrested
the progress of science.'
"Whilst we were rising with a progressively increasing speed, we
waved our bannerets in token of our cheerfulness, and in order to
give confidence to those below who took an interest in our fate.
M. Robert made an inventory of our stores; our friends had
stocked our commissariat as for a long voyage--champagne and
other wines, garments of fur and other articles of clothing.
"'Good,' I said; 'throw that out of the window.' He took a
blanket and launched it into the air, through which it floated
down slowly, and fell upon the dome of l'Assomption.
"When the barometer had fallen 26 inches, we ceased to ascend. We
were up at an elevation of 1,800 feet. This was the height to
which I had promised myself to ascend; and, in fact, from this
moment to the time when we disappeared from the eyes of our
friends, we always kept a horizontal course, the barometer
registering 26 inches to 26 inches 8 lines.
"We required to throw over ballast in proportion as the almost
insensible escape of the hydrogen gas caused us to descend, in
order to remain as nearly as possible at the same elevation. If
circumstances had permitted us to measure the amount of ballast
we threw over, our course would have been almost absolutely
horizontal.
"After remaining for a few moments stationary, our car I changed
its course, and we were carried on at the will of the wind. Soon
we passed the Seine, between St. Ouen and Asnieres. We traversed
the river a second time, leaving Argenteuil upon the left. We
passed Sannois, Franconville, Eau-Bonne, St. Leu-Taverny,
Villiers, and finally, Nesles. This was about twenty-seven miles
from Paris, and we had I reached this distance in two hours,
although there was so little wind that the air scarcely stirred.
"During the whole course of this delightful voyage, not the
slightest apprehension for our fate or that of our machine
entered my head for a moment. The globe did not suffer any
alteration beyond the successive changes of dilatation and
compression, which enabled us to mount and descend at will. The
thermometer was, during more than an hour, between ten and twelve
degrees above zero; this being to some extent accounted for by
the fact that the interior of the car was warmed by the rays of
the sun.
"At the end of fifty-six minutes, we heard the report of the
cannon which informed us that we had, at that moment, disappeared
from view at Paris. We rejoiced that we had escaped, as we were
no longer obliged to observe a horizontal course, and to regulate
the balloon for that purpose.
"We gave ourselves up to the contemplation of the views which the
immense stretch of country beneath us presented. From that time,
though we had no opportunity of conversing with the inhabitants,
we saw them running after us from all parts; we heard their
cries, their exclamations of solicitude, and knew their alarm and
admiration.
"We cried, 'Vive le Roi!' and the people responded. We heard,
very distinctly--'My good friends, have you no fear? Are you not
sick? How beautiful it is! Heaven preserve you! Adieu, my
friends.'
"I was touched to tears by this tender and true interest which
our appearance had called forth.
"We continued to wave our flags without cessation, and we
perceived that these signals greatly increased the cheerfulness
and calmed the solicitude of the people below. Often we
descended sufficiently low to hear what they shouted to us. They
asked us where we came from, and at what hour we had started.
"We threw over successively frock-coats, muffs, and habits.
Sailing on above the Ile d'Adam, after having admired the
splendid view, we made signals with our flags, and demanded news
of the Prince of Conti. One cried up to us, in a very powerful
voice, that he was at Paris, and that he was ill. We regretted
missing such an opportunity of paying our respects, for we could
have descended into the prince's gardens, if we had wished, but
we preferred to pursue our course, and we re-ascended. Finally,
we arrived at the plain of Nesles.
"We saw from the distance groups of peasants, who ran on before
us across the fields. 'Let us go,' I said, and we descended
towards a vast meadow.
"Some shrubs and trees stood round its border. Our car advanced
majestically in a long inclined plane. On arriving near the
trees, I feared that their branches might damage the car, so I
threw over two pounds of ballast, and we rose again. We ran
along more than 120 feet, at a distance of one or two feet from
the ground, and had the appearance of travelling in a sledge.
The peasants ran after us without being able to catch us, like
children pursuing a butterfly in the fields.
"Finally, we stopped, and were instantly surrounded. Nothing
could equal the simple and tender regard of the country people,
their admiration, and their lively emotion.
"I called at once for the cures and the magistrates. They came
round me on all sides: there was quite a fete on the spot. I
prepared a short report, which the cures and the syndics signed.
Then arrived a company of horsemen at a gallop. These were the
Duke of Chartres, the Duke of Fitzjames, and M. Farrer. By a
very singular chance, we had come down close by the hunting-lodge
of the latter. He leaped from his horse and threw himself into
my arms, crying, 'Monsieur Charles, I was first!'
"Charles adds that they were covered with the caresses of the
prince, who embraced both of them. He briefly narrated to the
Duke of Chartres some incidents of the voyage.
"'But this is not all, monseigneur. I am going away again,'
added Charles.
"'What! Going away!' exclaimed the duke.
"'Monseigneur, you will see. When do you wish me to come back
again?' I said.
"'In half an hour.'
"'Very well: be it so. In half an hour I shall be with you
again.'
"M. Robert descended from the car, and I was alone in the
balloon.
"I said to the duke, 'Monseigneur, I go.' I said to the peasants
who held down the balloon, 'My friends, go away, all of you, from
the car at the moment I give the signal.' I then rose like a
bird, and in ten minutes I was more than 3,000 feet above the
ground. I no longer perceived terrestrial objects; I only saw
the great masses of nature.
"In going away, Charles had taken his precautions against the
possible explosion of the balloon, and made himself ready to make
certain observations. In order to observe the barometer and the
thermometer, placed at different extremities of the car, without
endangering the equilibrium, he sat down in the middle, a watch
and paper in his left hand, a pen and the cord of the
safety-valve in his right.
"I waited for what should happen," continues he. "The balloon,
which was quite flabby and soft when I ascended, was now taut,
and fully distended. Soon the hydrogen gas began to escape in
considerable quantities by the neck of the balloon, and then,
from time to time, I pulled open the valve to give it two issues
at once; and I continued thus to mount upwards, all the time
losing the inflammable air, which, rushing past me from the neck
of the balloon, felt like a warm cloud.
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