the cords had been lengthened, the adventurers were carried up to the
height of 324 feet. At this elevation the balloon rested in perfect
equilibrium for nine minutes. It was the first time that human beings
had ever been carried to an equal elevation, and the spectators were
astonished to find that they could remain there without danger and
without alarm. The balloon had a superb effect at this elevation; it
looked down upon the whole town, and was seen from all the suburbs. Its
size seemed hardly diminished in the least, though the men themselves
were barely visible. By the aid of glasses, Roziers could be seen calmly
and industriously making new gas. When the balloon descended the two men
declared that they had not experienced the slightest inconvenience from
the elevation. They received the universal applause which their zeal and
courage so well deserved. The Marquis d'Arlandes, a major of infantry,
afterwards went up with Roziers, and this latter experiment was as
successful as the former."

Some days after these experiments the conductors of the Journal de Paris
who described them, received a letter from Montgolfier, and also one
from Gerond de Villette. The latter only is of interest here. Gerond
de Villette says: "I found myself in the space of a quarter of a minute
raised 400 feet above the surface of the earth. Here we remained six
minutes. My first employment was to watch with admiration my intelligent
companion. His intelligence, his courage and agility in attending to the
fire, enchanted me. Turning round, I could behold the Boulevards, from
the gate of St. Antoine to that of St. Martin, all covered with people,
who seemed to me a flat band of flowers of various colours. Glancing at
the distance, I beheld the summit of Montmartre, which seemed to me much
below our level. I could easily distinguish Neuilly, St. Cloud, Sevres,
Issy, Ivry, Charenton, and Choisy. At once I was convinced that this
machine, though a somewhat expensive one, might be very useful in war
to enable one to discover the position of the enemy, his manoeuvres,
and his marches; and to announce these by signals to one's own army. 1
believe that at sea it is equally possible to make use of this machine.
These prove the usefulness of the balloon, which time will perfect
for us. All that I regret is that I did not provide myself with a
telescope."

Chapter IX. The First Aerial Voyage--Roziers and Arlandes.

These experiments had onl