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tance of about 2000 toifes. But, befide fome imperfection in the conftruction, owing to the great hurry in which it had been made, a fudden gust of wind, while it was inflating, made two rents feven feet long near the top, which could not but in fome measure prevent the promised effect. It fwelled however in 11 minutes fufficiently to raise it about 240 toifes; it floated to the distance of nearly 1700 toifes, and, after having been in the air about eight minutes, it fubfided gradually in the wood of Vaucreffon.-The animals in the cage were fafely landed. The fheep was found feeding; the cock had received fome hurt on one of his wings, probably from a kick of the fheep: the duck was perfeally well.

VI. M. Montgolfier determined now to repeat the experiment under more favourable circumstances, and more at his leifure. He therefore made a new balloon, in a garden, in the Fauxbourg St. Antoine, which measured 70 feet in height, and 46 feet in diameter. A gallery of wicker was contrived round the aperture at the bottom; under which an iron grate or brazier was fufpended, and port-holes opened on the infide of the gallery, towards the aperture, through which any perfon cui robur et es triplex circa pecus fuerit, who might venture to afcend, might feed the fire on the grate, and thus keep

up

the vapour, fmoke, or as we rather apprehend, the dilation of the air, in this vaft cavity.

On the 15th of October, M. Pilatre de Rozier, no doubt the moft intrepid philofopher of the age, placed himself in the gallery, afcended about 80 feet from

the ground, and there kept the balloon afloat for fome time, by repeatedly throwing ftraw and wool upon the fire. In this experiment it was found, that the defcent of a globe (provided no extraordinary accident happened to it) muft neceffarily be gradual; and that it will always light foftly upon the ground, fince, in fact, in every part of its defcent it enters a denfer medium; whence its velocity in falling will rather be retarded than accelerated. On the 19th of October, M. P. de R. afcended a fecond time, about 250 feet. After continuing ftationary about eight minutes, a guft of wind carried the balloon among fome trees, where it entangled itfelf fo as to endanger its being torn to pieces. But, on M. R. throwing fome fresh ftraw upon the fire, it immediately reafcended, amid the loud acclamations of a vaft multitude of people, who lit tle expected to fee fo fudden a recovery. The balloon was then haulded down, and M. Giron de Villette placed himself in the gallery oppofite to M. R. They were once more let up; and, for fome time, hovered over Paris, in the fight of all its inhabitants, at the height of 324 feet."

The foregoing Experiments were foon Succeeded by two most extraordinary arial Voyages; the first undertaken by M. Pilatre de Rozier, and the Marquis D'Arlandes, on the 21st of November; and the fecond by Me Charles and Robert, on the 1st of December, 1783.-For an Account of which we refer onr Readers to the following Authorities.

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Tranflation of a Copy of the Certificate dated at the Chateau-de-la Muette, near Paris, the 21ft of November, 1783, relative to the Excurfion of the Marquis D'Arlandes, and M. Pilatre.

THIS

HIS day, at the king's palace, the Chateau-de-la Muette, an experiment has been made of the aeroftatique machine of M. Montgolfiers. The fky was cloudy in fome places, clear in others, the wind N. W. Eight minutes after twelve at noon, fignal was given to announce that they began to fill the machine; in eight minutes time it was perfectly developed on all fides, and ready to ftart. The Marquis D'Arlandes and M. Pilatre de Rozier were placed in the gallery.

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It was intended at firft to let the machine rife, and then to withhold it with ropes, in order to put it to trial, to compute the exact weight it might carry, and alfo to fee whether every part was properly completed for the important experiment which was going to be made. But the machine being driven by the wind, inftead of raifing itself vertically, went in a direction on one of the walks in the garden, and the ropes which held it acting with too much force, feveral rents were occafioned thereby, one of which was fix feet in length. The machine having been replaced on the alcove, was re paired in less than two hours. Having been filled again, it went off at 54 minutes after one, carrying the fame gentlemen; it rofe in a majestic manner, and when it had afcended the height of above 250 feet, the intrepid travellers waving their hats, faluted the fpec.

tators: it was impoffible not to feel then a fenfe intermixed with fear and admiration.

The aerial travellers were foon out of fight, but the machine hovering on the horizon, and appearing in the most beautiful form, afcended gradually 3000 feet, fome fay 3000 feet in height, where it ftill remained vifible; it croffed the Seine below the Bar of Conte nance, and paffing thence between the Military School and the Hotel of the Invalids, it was visible by all Paris.

The travellers being fatisfied with this experiment, and not being willing to extend their excur fion, concerted means to defcend, but perceiving that the wind carried them over the house in the Rue Seve, fuburb St. Germaine, and fill maintaining their cool intrepidity, fang froid, they let fly a fluth of gaz, and thereby raifing themfelves again, they continued their airy route until they had paffed over Paris. They then af fcended in an eafy manner in the fields beyond the New Boulevards, oppofite the mill of Croulebarbe, without having experienced the leaft inconveniency, having ftill left in their gallery above twothirds of their provifional ftores; they might, therefore, if they had chofen it, have gone over a fpace of treble the extent; their route was from four to five thoufand toifes or fathoms, and performed in from twenty to twenty five mi

nutes.

The machine was feventy feet in height, forty-fix in diameter, its infide 60,000 cubical feet, and the weight it bore up was from fixteen to feventeen hundred pounds.

This depofition,

witnessed at the Chateau-de-la-Muette, at five in the afternoon, and figned by the Duc de POLIGNAC, the Duc.de GUINES, the Comte de POLASTROC DE VAUDREUIL D'HU NAUD, Dr. BENJAMIN FRANK LIN, FAUJAS DE ST. FOND, DaLISLE LE ROY, of the Academy of Sciences.

Account of the aerial Excurfion of Me Charles and Robert, on theft of December, 1783, as given by Monf. Charles; tranf lated from the Journal de Paris, of the 13th and 14th of the fame Month.

PREVIOUS

to our afcenfion, we had fent up a globe of five feet eight inches diameter, in order to discover the courfe of the wind, and to mark out our intended route. The compliment of cutting the ftring was paid to M. Montgolfier, and it inftantly rofe. Meanwhile we prepared to follow it with impatience; but the perplexing circumstances we were in prevented our putting into execution every minute particular that we had intended the night before. The globe and the chariot were in exact equilibrium on the ground. At three quarters after one, we threw out 29 pounds of ballaft, and rofe in the midft of a profound filence, occafioned by the emotion and aftonishment of both parties. Our first pleafing reflections, on our escape from the perfecution and calumny which had attacked us, were heightened by the majestic fcene which pre

fented itself to our view; on every fide a moft ferene fky, without a cloud, and a moft charming diftant profpect. As we afcended by an accelerated progreffive mo tion we waved our banner in token of joy; and, in order the better to infure our fafety, I was particularly attentive to the barometer. M. Robert examined the cargo with which our friends had bal lafted our chariot, as for a long voyage, of champaign, &c. blankets, and furs.-Having enough, and to fpare, he began with throwing out one of the blankets, which fpread itfelf in the air, and fell near the dome of the Affump tion. The barometer then funk 66 inches, and we had ceafed to afcend, or, more properly speaking, were arrived at the height of about 300 toifes. This was the height at which I had undertaken to ftop, and from this moment to that of our first getting out of fight of the obfervers at the different

ftations our horizontal courfe was between 26 inches, and 26 inches eight lines of the mercury, which agrees with the observations made at Paris. We took care to throw out our ballaft in proportion as we defcended by the infenfible lofs of inflammable air, and we raised ourselves fenfibly to the fame height. Had circumstances permitted us to regulate this ballaft with more exactnefs, our courfe would have been almoft abfolutely horizontal and voluntary.

Having reached the height of Mouffeaux, which we left a little to the left, we remained for a moment ftationary. Our chariot turned about, and we then filed

* Les circonstances orageufes qui nous presseant.

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off,

off, as the wind directed. We foon after paffed the Seine, between St. Quen and Afnieres, and leaving Colombe on the left, paffed almoft over Gennevilliers. We had croffed the river a second time; leaving Argenteuil on the left, we paffed at Sanois, Franconville, Faubonne, St. Leu-Taverny, Villiers, croffed L'Ifle Adam, and afterwards Nefle, where we defcended. Such were nearly the places over which we must have paffed almoft perpendicularly. This paffage makes about nine Paris leagues, which we raw over in two hours, with fcarcely any fenfible agitation in the air. During the whole of this delightful journey we felt not the leaft uneafinefs about our own fate, or that of the machine. The globe fuffered no other alteration than the fucceffive modifications of dilatation and compreffion, of which we availed ourfelves, to rife or defcend at pleasure, in any quantity. The thermometer was, for above an hour, between 10 and 12 deg. above o, owing to the infide of our chariot having been warmed by the rays of the fun. Its heat foon communicated itself to our globe, and contributed, by the dilatation of the inflammable, air within, to keep us at the fame height, without being obliged to lighten our ballaft; but we fuffered a greater lofs: the inflammable air, dilated by the fun's heat, efcaped by the appendage to the globe, which we held in our hands, and loofened, as circumftances required, to let out the, air too much dilated. By this eafy method we avoided the expanfions and explofions which perfons unacquainted with thefe

matters apprehended. The inflam mable air could not break its pris. fon, fince it had always a vent, and the atmospheric air could not get into the globe, fince its preffure made the appendage ferve as a valve to oppofe its entrance.

"Are not

After 56 minutes progrefs we heard the gun which was the fignal of our difappearing from the obfervers at Paris. Not being obliged to confine our courfe to an horizontal direction, as we had till then done, we gave ourfelves up to the contemplation of the varied fcenes in the open country bẹneath us. We fhouted Vive le Roi, and heard our fhouts reechoed. We heard, very diftinctly, voices faying, you afraid, my friends? Are not you fick? What a clever thing it is! God preferve you! Farewell, my friends!"- We continued waving our banners, and we saw that thefe fignals redoubled the joy and fecurity of those below. We feveral times came down low enough to be heard: people asked us whence we came, and what time we fet out; and we afcended, bidding them farewell.-As circumftances required, we threw out, fucceffively, great coats, muffs, cloaths. As we failed over L'lle Adam, we flourished our banners, and afked after the Prince of Conti; but had the mortification to be told, by a fpeaking trumpet, that he was at Paris. At length, re-afcending, we reached the plains of Nefle about half after three, when, as I intended a fecond expedition, and wifhed to avail myfelf of the advantage of fituation, as well as of the day-light, I propofed to M. Robert to defcend. Seeing a

troop

troop of country people running before us over the fields, we defcended towards a fpacious madow, inclofed with fome trees and bushes. Our chariot advanced majestically along a long inclined. plane. As it approached the trees, fearing it might be entangled among them, I threw out two pounds of ballait, and it fprang upwards over them. We ran over above 20 toifes within one or two feet of the land, and looked like travellers in a fledge. The country peopie purfued us as children do a butterfly, without being able to overtake us. At length we came to the ground. As foon as the curate and fyndics could be brought to the fpot, I drew up a verbal procefs, which they immediately figued. Prefently galloped up the Duke de Chartres, the Duke de FitzJames, Mr. Farrer, an English gentleman, and a number of horsemen, who had followed us from Paris. Fortunately we alighted near a hunting feat of the latter, who immediately mounted his horfe, and riding up to us exclaimed, "Mr. Charles, I an first." The prince embraced both in our chariot, and figned the process. So did the Duke de Fitz-James. Mr. Farrer figned it three times. His fignature was omitted in the Journal, for he was fo tranfported with joy, that he could not write legibly. Of above 200 horsemen who followed from Paris, only these could over, take us; the reft had knocked up their horfes, or given out. After relating a few particulars to the Duke de Chartres, I told him I was going off again, when would he have me return? He replied,

I

us

us

in half an hour. M. Robert quitted the chariot, as we had agreed. Thirty peafants held down the machine, I afked for fome earth to ballaft it, having not above four or five pounds left. A fpade was not at hand, nor were there any ftones in the meadow. The fun was near fetting. I made a hafty calculation of the time requifite for the alteration of weight, and giving a fignal to the pealants to quit their hold, I fprang up like a bird. In 20 minutes I was 1500 toifes high, out. of fight of all terreftrial objects. I had taken the neceffary precau tions against the explofion of the globe, and prepared to make the cbfervations which I had promifed myfelf. In order to obferve he barometer and thermometer placed at the ends of the chariot, without altering the centre of gravity, I knelt down in the middle, ftretching forwards my body and one leg, holding my watch and paper in my left, and my. pen and the ftring of the valve in my right, waiting for the event. The globe, which, at my fetting out, was rather flaccid, fwelled infenfibly. The air efcaped in great quantities at the valve. I drew the valve from time to time, to give it two vents; and I continued to afcend, ftill lofing air, which iffued out hiffing, and became vifible, like a warm vapour in a cold atmosphere. The reas fon of this phenomenon is obvious. On earth the thermometer was feven degrees above the freezing point; after 10 minutes afcent it was five degrees below. The inflammable air had not had time to recover the equilibrium of its temperature. Its claftic equili

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