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The Balloon hoax By Edgar Allan Poe
PAGE: 1
THE BALLOON-HOAX
[Astounding News by Express, _via_ Norfolk! - The Atlantic
crossed in Three Days! Signal Triumph of Mr. Monck Mason's Flying
Machine! - Arrival at Sullivan's Island, near Charlestown, S.C., of
Mr. Mason, Mr. Robert Holland, Mr. Henson, Mr. Harrison Ainsworth,
and four others, in the Steering Balloon, "Victoria," after a passage
of Seventy-five Hours from Land to Land! Full Particulars of the
Voyage!
The subjoined _jeu d'esprit_ with the preceding heading in
magnificent capitals, well interspersed with notes of admiration, was
originally published, as matter of fact, in the "New York Sun," a
daily newspaper, and therein fully subserved the purpose of creating
indigestible aliment for the _quidnuncs_ during the few hours
intervening between a couple of the Charleston mails. The rush for
the "sole paper which had the news," was something beyond even the
prodigious; and, in fact, if (as some assert) the "Victoria" _did_
not absolutely accomplish the voyage recorded, it will be difficult
to assign a reason why she _should_ not have accomplished it.]
THE great problem is at length solved! The air, as well as the
earth and the ocean, has been subdued by science, and will become a
common and convenient highway for mankind. _The Atlantic has been
actually crossed in a Balloon!_ and this too without difficulty -
without any great apparent danger - with thorough control of the
machine - and in the inconceivably brief period of seventy-five hours
from shore to shore! By the energy of an agent at Charleston, S.C.,
we are enabled to be the first to furnish the public with a detailed
account of this most extraordinary voyage, which was performed
between Saturday, the 6th instant, at 11, A.M., and 2, P.M., on
Tuesday, the 9th instant, by Sir Everard Bringhurst; Mr. Osborne, a
nephew of Lord Bentinck's; Mr. Monck Mason and Mr. Robert Holland,
the well-known æronauts; Mr. Harrison Ainsworth, author of "Jack
Sheppard," &c.; and Mr. Henson, the projector of the late
unsuccessful flying machine - with two seamen from Woolwich - in all,
eight persons. The particulars furnished below may be relied on as
authentic and accurate in every respect, as, with a slight exception,
they are copied _verbatim_ from the joint diaries of Mr. Monck Mason
and Mr. Harrison Ainsworth, to whose politeness our agent is also
indebted for much verbal information respecting the balloon itself,
its construction, and other matters of interest. The only alteration
in the MS. received, has been made for the purpose of throwing the
hurried account of our agent, Mr. Forsyth, into a connected and
intelligible form.
"THE BALLOON.
"Two very decided failures, of late - those of Mr. Henson and Sir
George Cayley - had much weakened the public interest in the subject
of aerial navigation. Mr. Henson's scheme (which at first was
considered very feasible even by men of science,) was founded upon
the principle of an inclined plane, started from an eminence by an
extrinsic force, applied and continued by the revolution of impinging
vanes, in form and number resembling the vanes of a windmill. But,
in all the experiments made with models at the Adelaide Gallery, it
was found that the operation of these fans not only did not propel
the machine, but actually impeded its flight. The only propelling
force it ever exhibited, was the mere _impetus_ acquired from the
descent of the inclined plane; and this _impetus_ carried the
machine farther when the vanes were at rest, than when they were in
motion - a fact which sufficiently demonstrates their inutility;
and in the absence of the propelling, which was also the _sustaining_
power, the whole fabric would necessarily descend. This
consideration led Sir George Cayley to think only of adapting a
propeller to some machine having of itself an independent power of
support - in a word, to a balloon; the idea, however, being novel,
or original, with Sir George, only so far as regards the mode of its
application to practice. He exhibited a model of his invention at
the Polytechnic Institution. The propelling principle, or power, was
here, also, applied to interrupted surfaces, or vanes, put in
revolution. These vanes were four in number, but were found entirely
ineffectual in moving the balloon, or in aiding its ascending power.
The whole project was thus a complete failure.
"It was at this juncture that Mr. Monck Mason (whose voyage from
Dover to Weilburg in the balloon, "Nassau," occasioned so much
excitement in 1837,) conceived the idea of employing the principle of
the Archimedean screw for the purpose of propulsion through the air -
rightly attributing the failure of Mr. Henson's scheme, and of Sir
George Cayley's, to the interruption of surface in the independent
vanes. He made the first public experiment at Willis's Rooms, but
afterward removed his model to the Adelaide Gallery.
"Like Sir George Cayley's balloon, his own was an ellipsoid. Its
length was thirteen feet six inches - height, six feet eight inches.
It contained about three hundred and twenty cubic feet of gas, which,
if pure hydrogen, would support twenty-one pounds upon its first
inflation, before the gas has time to deteriorate or escape. The
weight of the whole machine and apparatus was seventeen pounds -
leaving about four pounds to spare. Beneath the centre of the
balloon, was a frame of light wood, about nine feet long, and rigged
on to the balloon itself with a network in the customary manner.
From this framework was suspended a wicker basket or car.
"The screw consists of an axis of hollow brass tube, eighteen
inches in length, through which, upon a semi-spiral inclined at
fifteen degrees, pass a series of steel wire radii, two feet long,
and thus projecting a foot on either side. These radii are connected
at the outer extremities by two bands of flattened wire - the whole
in this manner forming the framework of the screw, which is completed
by a covering of oiled silk cut into gores, and tightened so as to
present a tolerably uniform surface. At each end of its axis this
screw is supported by pillars of hollow brass tube descending from
the hoop. In the lower ends of these tubes are holes in which the
pivots of the axis revolve. From the end of the axis which is next
the car, proceeds a shaft of steel, connecting the screw with the
pinion of a piece of spring machinery fixed in the car. By the
operation of this spring, the screw is made to revolve with great
rapidity, communicating a progressive motion to the whole. By means
of the rudder, the machine was readily turned in any direction. The
spring was of great power, compared with its dimensions, being
capable of raising forty-five pounds upon a barrel of four inches
diameter, after the first turn, and gradually increasing as it was
wound up. It weighed, altogether, eight pounds six ounces. The
rudder was a light frame of cane covered with silk, shaped somewhat
like a battledoor, and was about three feet long, and at the widest,
one foot. Its weight was about two ounces. It could be turned
_flat_, and directed upwards or downwards, as well as to the right or
left; and thus enabled the æronaut to transfer the resistance of
the air which in an inclined position it must generate in its
passage, to any side upon which he might desire to act; thus
determining the balloon in the opposite direction.
"This model (which, through want of time, we have necessarily
described in an imperfect manner,) was put in action at the Adelaide
Gallery, where it accomplished a velocity of five miles per hour;
although, strange to say, it excited very little interest in
comparison with the previous complex machine of Mr. Henson - so
resolute is the world to despise anything which carries with it an
air of simplicity. To accomplish the great desideratum of ærial
navigation, it was very generally supposed that some exceedingly
complicated application must be made of some unusually profound
principle in dynamics.
"So well satisfied, however, was Mr. Mason of the ultimate
success of his invention, that he determined to construct
immediately, if possible, a balloon of sufficient capacity to test
the question by a voyage of some extent - the original design being
to cross the British Channel, as before, in the Nassau balloon. To
carry out his views, he solicited and obtained the patronage of Sir
Everard Bringhurst and Mr. Osborne, two gentlemen well known for
scientific acquirement, and especially for the interest they have
exhibited in the progress of ærostation. The project, at the desire
of Mr. Osborne, was kept a profound secret from the public - the only
persons entrusted with the design being those actually engaged in the
construction of the machine, which was built (under the
superintendence of Mr. Mason, Mr. Holland, Sir Everard Bringhurst,
and Mr. Osborne,) at the seat of the latter gentleman near
Penstruthal, in Wales. Mr. Henson, accompanied by his friend Mr.
Ainsworth, was admitted to a private view of the balloon, on Saturday
last - when the two gentlemen made final arrangements to be included
in the adventure. We are not informed for what reason the two seamen
were also included in the party - but, in the course of a day or two,
we shall put our readers in possession of the minutest particulars
respecting this extraordinary voyage.
"The balloon is composed of silk, varnished with the liquid gum
caoutchouc. It is of vast dimensions, containing more than 40,000
cubic feet of gas; but as coal gas was employed in place of the
more expensive and inconvenient hydrogen, the supporting power of the
machine, when fully inflated, and immediately after inflation, is not
more than about 2500 pounds. The coal gas is not only much less
costly, but is easily procured and managed.
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