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Sup. 1783.
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AIR BALLOONS.
THERE is nothing new under the sun, not even air balloons: above four-score years ago, a French-man, of the name of Voiture,(but not the celebrated writer) and of some family, had committed many outrageous actions, for which he had received the king's pardon; but having
in a fit of passion shot his coachman, as he was returning from a journey; all his interest could not procure forgiveness for the murder, and he made
his escape to Brussels. Voiture there became acquainted with a very inventive genius of a philosopher, who
promised to obtain the king's mercy, provided Voiture would go to his majesty at St. Germains, in a machine, which he, (the philosopher) had contrived; and assured him, that the king seeing him travel with so extraordinary an equipage, would certainly grant his request.
Infatuated with this romantic idea, and the hope of pardon, Voiture consented: the philosopher and he shut
themselves up in a garret, till the areostatical machine was constructed; the globe was filled with a very light
or inflammable air, with an appendage to it, not unlike the tail of a kite, where Voiture was placed, to direct
it through the atmosphere; the air, it was pretended would sustain it;
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482 Marriage Ceremonie
Count, who was actually in one of those critical moments so feelingly mentioned by Dr. Graham. Whether the action of Voiture gave energy to the stroke, we are really unable to determine.
The Count was enraged, and Voiture not less so, though from different causes; the Count threatened to have Voiture apprehended as a thief; while he promised to discover the tete-a-tete to the Countess, and the world. The business was therefore settled without the interference of judicial authority.
The whim of ærial expeditions has since (probably from the foregoing adventure) been resumed by Dr. Priestly, in some of his multitudinous writings, and carried into practice by the French, and probably when the lives of half a dozen wretches have been sacrificed to this new play-thing, the bubble will burst, and sink into annihilation.
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For the MORNING HERALD.
Mr. Editor, ^[[Dec; 1784 [[handwritten in ink]]
TO improve the art of travelling in various regions of the atmosphere, is at present the occupation of a number of ingenious persons in several counties of Europe, and the journals of aerial voyagers, which are the
experiments made with the view of cultivating this art, or of exciting the admiration of mankind, are the favorite subjects of reading and conversation. A method of obtaining inflammable gas at a small expence, is a great desideratum in the Aeroastic art. I beg leave then to acquaint your readers with the following easy and cheap manner of procuring this substance. It was discovered by Lavoisica, while he was attempting to change water into inflammable gas and dephlogisticated air; and, again, inflammable gas and dephlogisticated air into water.
Take a very strong, thick tube of iron, the bore of which is of a moderate width; put therein a quantity of iron turnings, so as to nearly fill it: expose it to heat, till it is white hot; then join to it another tube, and pour water into the heated tube (but not in such
quantity as to cool it considerably) upon which an
inflammable steam, with vapour, will be found
to issue through the cold tube, which burns upon
approaching a lighted candle near the end of
it. This vapour may be easily collected, for the
purpose of filling balloons, &c.
Dec. 10, 1784. L.M.N.
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388 THE LONDON CHRONICLE for 1784. Oct. 19-21.
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AEROSTATION.
OUR Readers may wish, in the present rage for balloons, to have a short and accurate account of the different aerostatic voyages which have been made since Mr. Montgolfier's discovery. We are enabled, through the
intelligence of M. de la Lande, the valuable Editor
of the Journal des Scavans, to present them with the following correct catalogue:
1st Experiment. 21st November 1783, the Marquis d'Arlandes† and M. Pilatre de Rozier ascended in a Montgolfier, or balloon filled with rarefied air, from the Muette, at 54 minutes past one o'clock, and their voyage lasted from 20 to 25 minutes.
2d. The first aerostat filled with inflammable air ascended from the Thuilleries on the 1st of December 1783, at 40 minutes past one, and the ingenious discoveries, as well as adventurers, were, Messrs. Charles and Robert.
Their voyage lasted lasted two hours and five minutes. The same day M. Charles mounted alone, and continued aloft 35 minutes.
3d. The grand Montgolfier of Lyons was elevated at Lyons on the 19th of January 1784; and the travellers were Mess. Joseph Montgolfier, Pilatre de Rozier, the Comte de
Lauraucin, the Compte de Dampiere, the Prince de Ligne, the Compte de la Porte, and M. Fontaine. the immense machine took fire, but they descended without injury in about 15 minutes.
4th, At Milan, on the 25th of February, the Compte Andreani, Mess. Augustin Gerli, and Ch. Jos. Gerli, ascended, and continued in the air about 20 minutes.
5th. Mr. Blanchard made his first experiment, and ascended from the Champ de Mars, near Paris, on the 2d of March, at half past 12 o'clock, and continued an hour and 15 minutes in his voyage.
6th. On the 13th of March the Compte Andreani and two companions, ascended again at Milan, the heighth of 850 toises, and travelled seven miles.
7th. At Dijon, on the 25th of April, Mess. de Morveau and Bertrand ascended at 48 minutes past four, and were one hour and 37 minutes in the air.
8th. At Marseilles, on the 8th of May, Mess. Bonin and Maret were elevated in an aerostat fifty feet in diameter, named le Marseillois; they were only seven minutes in the air, and travelled a mile and a half.
9th. At Strasbourg, on the 15th of May, a balloon was raised with two persons; but the voyage did not succeed.
10th. At Rouen, on hte 23d of May, M. Blanchard made his second voyage; he travelled one hour.
11th. At Marseilles, on the 29th of May, Mess. Maret and Bremond went up again in the Marseillois. It went rather higher than before, but it took fire, and they escaped with great difficulty.
12th. At Lyons, on the 4th of June, in the presence of the King of Sweden, M. Fleurant and Madame Tible ascended in a Montgolfier seventy feet in diameter. This was the first lady who ascended. Their journey lasted forty-five minutes, and they travelled about
two miles.
13th. In Spain, on the 5th of June, M. Bouche, a young French painter, ascended in a Montgolfier made by order of the Infant Don Gabriel. It took fire, and he escaped with great difficulty.
14th. At Dijon, on the 12th of June, Mons. de Morveau and de Virly ascended, and made a voyage of one hour and two minutes.
15th. The Suffrein was raised from the Orphan-house at Nantes, on the 13th of June, at
† The Marquis d'Arlandes, one of the two first
persons who ever adventured in a balloon to the
upper regions of the atmosphere, was broke in the
course of the late war on a charge of cowardice.
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ten minutes past six o'clock; the travellers were
Mess. Constard, de Massi, and Mouchet. They were fifty-eight minutes.
16th. At Bourdeaux, on the 16th of June, Mess. Darbelet, des Granges, and Chalfour, ascended, and were up one hour and fourteen minutes.
17th. A grand Montgolfier was elevated at Versailles on the 23d of June, at forty-five minutes past four o'clock. The voyagers were Mess. Pilatre de Rozier and Proust. They were up forty-seven minutes.
It may be mentioned in this recital, that on the 11th of July, Messrs. Miollan and Janinet failed in their public experiment, though on a previous trial their machine had elevated nine persons with 700 pounds of ballast.
18th. The Mess. Roberts, and the Duke de Chartres, ascended from St. Cloud on the 15th of July, and their continued about forty-five minutes.
19th. Mess. Blanchard and Boby ascended at Rouen on the 18th of July, and were up two hours and fifty-five minutes.
20th. The same Gentlemen ascended at Bourdeaux on the 26th of July, and traversed the Garonne, and the Dordogne.
21st. On the 6th of August, Mess. Carny and Louchet ascended from Rhodes, and were up thirty-five minutes.
22d. On the 6th of September the Suffrein ascended again from the Orphan-house at Nantes. Mess. Coustard, de Massy, and Delaynes, were the voyagers. It was up two-hours and thirty-two minutes.
23d. At London, on the 15th of September, Mr. Lunadi, an Italian, ascended, and continued in the atmosphere three hours and 20 minutes, in which time he travelled 25 miles.
24th. The brothers Robert, and M. Hulin, ascended at Paris on the 19th of Sept. from the Thuilleries, and in six hours and 40 minutes travelled 150 miles, which is as yet the longest journey performed by aerostation, and in every particular the most complete.
Thus far we have from M. de la Lande; but
there are to be added one or two to the above
which have taken place since the date of his
Journal.
There is some doubt whether Mr. Sadlier ascended at Oxford on the 4th of October; it being asserted pretty roundly, that he was neither seen in his assent of descent.
25th. Mess. Blanchard and Sheldon ascended at Chelsea, near London, on the 16th of Oct. at eight minutes past 12; Mr. Sheldon alighted at Sunbury, and Mr. Blanchard continued his voyage to Rumsey, distance 73 miles from
London, which he performed in less than four hours.
Mr. Carnet also raised himself at Philadelphia in a balloon; but the voyage was short, owing to its catching fire*.
*From this, and every one of the experiments which have been made with the Montgolfier, or balloon inflated with rarefied air, it is evident, that for purposes of use they can never depended on. They are so subject to accidents, and at the same time so unwieldy, that they will hardly be used, except of a small size for entertainment.
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