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172
Wonderful Balloon Ascents; Or, The Conquest of the Skies
·
Fulgence Marion
44
At
six
in
the
morning,
the
road
from
Paris
to
Versailles
was
covered
with
carriages.
Crowds
came
from
all
parts,
and
at
noon
the
avenues,
the
square
of
the
castle,
the
windows,
and
even
the
roofs
of
the
houses,
were
crowded
with
spectators.
The
noblest,
the
most
illustrious,
and
most
learned
men
in
France
were
present,
and
the
splendour
of
the
scene
was
complete
when
their
majesties
and
the
royal
family
entered
within
the
enclosure,
and
went
forward
to
inspect
the
balloon,
and
to
make
themselves
familiar
with
the
preparations
for
the
ascent.
In
a
short
time
the
fire
was
lit,
the
funnel
extended
over
it,
and
the
smoke
rose
inside,
while
the
balloon,
unfolding,
gradually
swelled
to
its
full
size,
and
then,
drawing
after
it
the
cage,
in
which
a
sheep
and
some
pigeons
were
enclosed,
rose
majestically
into
the
air.
Without
interreruption,
it
ascended
to
a
vast
height,
where,
inclining
toward
the
north,
it
seemed
to
remain
stationary
for
a
few
seconds,
showing
all
the
beauty
of
its
form,
and
then,
as
though
possessed
of
life,
it
descended
gently
upon
the
wood
of
Vaucresson,
10,200
feet
from
the
point
of
its
departure.
Its
highest
elevation,
as
estimated
by
the
astronomers
Le
Gentil
and
M.
Jeaurat,
Jeaurat,
was
about
1,700
feet.
Chapter
VIII.
Men
and
Balloons.
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