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Wonderful Balloon Ascents; Or, The Conquest of the Skies
·
Fulgence Marion
58
On
the
3rd
of
February,
1784,
the
Marquis
de
Bullion
sent
up
a
paper
balloon,
of
about
fifteen
feet
in
diameter.
A
flat
sponge,
about
a
foot
square,
placed
in
a
tin
dish
and
drenched
with
a
pint
of
spirits
of
wine,
was
the
only
apparatus
made
use
of
to
create
a
supply
of
heated
air.
It
rose
at
Paris,
and
three
hours
afterwards
it
was
found
near
Basville,
about
thirty
miles
from
the
capital.
On
the
15th
of
the
same
month
Cellard
de
Chastelais
sent
up
a
paper
balloon.
Heated
air
was
supplied
on
this
occasion
by
a
paper
roll,
enclosing
a
sponge,
and
soaked
in
oil,
spirits
of
wine,
and
grease.
A
cage,
which
contained
a
cat,
was
attached
to
this
air
globe.
In
thirty-five
minutes
it
had
mounted
so
high
that
it
looked
but
like
the
smallest
star,
and
in
two
hours
it
had
flown
a
distance
of
forty-six
miles
from
the
place
where
it
was
thrown
off.
The
cat
was
dead,
but
it
was
not
discovered
from
what
cause.
The
first
balloon
that
traversed
the
English
channel
was
sent
off
at
Sandwich,
in
Kent,
on
the
22nd
of
February,
1784.
It
was
five
feet
in
diameter,
and
was
inflated
with
hydrogen
gas.
It
rose
rapidly,
and
was
carried
toward
France
by
a
north-west
wind.
Two
hours
and
a
half
after
it
had
been
let
off
it
was
found
in
a
field
about
nine
miles
from
Lille.
The
balloon
carried
a
letter,
instructing
the
finder
of
the
balloon
to
communicate
with
William
Boys,
Esq.,
Sandwich,
and
to
state
where
and
at
what
time
it
was
found.
This
request
was
complied
with.
On
the
19th
of
February
a
similar
balloon,
five
feet
in
diameter,
was
sent
up
from
Queen’s
College,
Oxford.
It
was
spherical,
and
was
made
of
Persian
silk,
coated
with
varnish.
It
was
the
first
balloon
sent
up
from
that
city.
De
Saussure
makes
mention,
in
a
letter
dated
from
Geneva,
the
26th
of
March,
1784,
of
certain
experiments
made
in
that
town
with
the
electricity
of
the
atmosphere
by
means
of
fixed
balloons--i.e.,
balloons
attached
to
the
earth
by
ropes,
which
gave
forth
sparks
and
positive
electricity.
Mention
is
also
made
of
a
certain
M.
Argand,
of
Geneva,
who
had
the
honour
of
making
balloon
experiments
at
Windsor
in
the
presence
of
King
George
III.,
Queen
Charlotte,
and
the
royal
family.
About
this
time
(1784)
balloons
became
“the
fashion,”
and
frequent
instances
occur
of
their
being
raised
by
day
and
night,
by
means
of
spirit-lamps,
to
the
great
delight
of
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