United States or Saint Pierre and Miquelon ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
"Is it possible that you have never heard the name of Byfield?" "Possible and true," said I. "And is fame so small a thing?" cried he. "Byfield, sir, is an aëronaut. He apes the fame of a Lunardi, and is on the point of offering to the inhabitants I beg your pardon, to the nobility and gentry of our neighbourhood the spectacle of an ascension.
Sheepshanks had fallen into placid slumber. I kept the valve open until we descended into a stratum of fog from which, no doubt, the Lunardi had lately risen: the moisture collected here would account for its congelated coat of silver.
Previous to this an Italian, named Lunardi, had in November, 1783, dispatched from the Artillery Ground, in London, a small balloon made of oil-silk, 10 feet in diameter and weighing 11 pounds. This small craft was sent aloft at one o'clock, and came down, about two and a half hours later, in Sussex, about 48 miles from its starting-place.
Word Of The Day