Viewing page 30 of 105

This transcription has been completed. Contact us with corrections.

[[strikethrough]]126[[/strikethrough]] 128

holding down both the balloon and the tent.

OUR OUTFIT DESTROYED BY A STORM

Sometime during the night a violent storm broke out over the city.  It awakened me and on going to the window to watch the lightning, I worried about the outfit and would have gone out to the grounds but as some of the men had been with me during the two previous years and knew just what to do in such an emergency, I tried to content myself.  This storm was about as severe as any I had ever seen.  Suddenly, I saw a great flash leap into the air.  Then it died down again and I felt sorry for the farmer who had [[strikethrough]]had[[/strikethrough]] his barn struck my lightning and lost his property.

I had just crawled back into bed again when my telephone rang.  A voice informed me that my outfit had been hit by the storm which dashed the captive balloon against the tent, broke the poles and ripped the balloon open.  Of course this liberated the gas and a spark from the bare electric light wires caused it to [[strikethrough]]explode[[/strikethrough]] catch fire.  There was nothing left.  I inquired after the boys and was told they were safe.  I lay awake the rest of the night making plans.  I had some valuable contracts that would have to be filled.

Early the following morning, Hamilton and I had breakfast together.  I told him of the accident and Charlie felt so unhappy about it that he cried. 

We hurried out to the grounds and I found two of my boys had been treated at the hospital and were badly burned but were able to work.

Everything had been left just as it fell.  As I was examining a piece of the silk of the balloon I was given two telegrams, one from Toronto, stating that the pilot had caught on a church steeple and had to be helped down by the fire department.  The other was