. Glaisher meant to read the secret of the skies. When
all was ready, Mr. Coxwell weighed anchor, and a few moments later the
city of Wolverhampton, from which they rose, was almost lost in the vast
tract of country upon which their eyes rested.

It was the third ascent these gentlemen had made together, and the
wonders Mr. Glaisher had witnessed on the two previous occasions must
have been more than enough to lead him to seek for more. He had pierced
the densest rain-clouds, and had seen the shadow of the balloon on the
white upper surface of the clouds surrounded by lovely circular
rainbows. He had peeped through holes in these clouds on to the world
beneath, which looked more like a misty picture than real meadows and
towns and rivers. Such experiences were more beautiful than any tales of
fairyland--because they were true.

But to-day he was to have a new and strange journey. At five thousand
feet above ground the balloon entered a mass of rain-clouds, one
thousand feet thick, and four minutes later they broke through into
sunshine. Mr. Glaisher tried to take a photograph of these clouds from
above, but the balloon rose too rapidly and kept turning round. At
twenty-one thousand feet (or four miles high) Mr. Coxwell found it
difficult to breathe, while it needed a great effort to tilt more sand
over the edge of the car. Up and up they sailed--four and a half, five,
five and a half miles--and the sky grew more and more intensely blue
till it became, at last, almost black.

Even now, at a height of twenty-nine thousand feet, when hoar-frost was
forming on the sides of the balloon, and the daring travellers were
stung with a cold more severe than that of the coldest winter day, the
instruments went on observing the wonders of the atmosphere without
themselves being observed. Mr. Glaisher, who had for some minutes found
a difficulty in seeing the small marks on his instruments, lay back
quite insensible against the side of the car. He had not fainted
suddenly. First, he tells us, his arms refused to move when he tried to
reach the various instruments. Then, as his eyes fell on Mr. Coxwell,
who had climbed into the ring to reach the valve-rope, he tried to
speak; but the power of speech was gone, and a moment later he lost all
consciousness.

The balloon was still ascending, and, to Mr. Coxwell's horror, he found
that the terrible cold had turned his hands black, and robbed them of
all muscular power. His position was