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thursday february 25th 1037 the acton free press hp jfrpp flreae bort tnrg the blizzard basket by john bcott doudlas have about one oilanca in ten of getting out of this storm alive shouted dale irosscr attempting to raise hid voice above the shrilling wind which spanked their eddying balloon the words were whipped past stan berry marlins ringing ears in vague blur tlie onng man caught the gist of his fellow pilots meaning liowavcr und nodded uncomfortably ithu big bug they lud entered in thi kulloiuil balloon ilaie wiu uhirllng imd tpin ulntf in jostling croji currents the blucj teeth of huh tnlhg ripped through the black thunder ads tumbling about them flushing rain cut their fuce to pain ful rawncv the two youtlti trkd to imvlute the balloon through the maw of the storm before the takooif of uie race at uettls weld pituburgh dale and stanberry iutd aheated the balloon bucket in rubberized fabric envclojwt so that in the event mklutp should force them to land hi some body of water they might hope to remain afloat until rescued instead of keeping out water it was liavlng the reverse effect acting as catchall over four hun dred pounds of rain water uwlslicd about their ankles with uie twutlng of the bag starting from pittsburg at eight miles hour the storm und tlie wind had celerated their speed to nearly totgnju their gas and blow them into atoms fcranbcrry tlxought of hurling out an otlier sandbag but paralysis of help lessness seised him at the realization tliati they would hit in few seconds and it would take more time than thai to give uft to tlie balloon iuio heaving baiidbag over the side ut tliat moment now perceived the elec trical menace lying directly in their oath were going to hit he yelled upon irraduutlon from college stan berry martin had taken position with the huston balloon company in the de signing department lu had accepted the work only because he was short of money and must do uimcthlng to live it had been lib belief upon taking the position that ballooning was utmost dead being almoit entirely replaced by hying in heavlertluinalr craft aero planes after being with tlie company for year ho still hod that feeling but he did not intend to ieelc work elsewhere dad huston inventor and owner of the little balloon company wuf the reason for their change of lieart lie was large man with leonine lieod ilowlng white mane and blue eyes which seem ed to see distant horizons as large in ttature ui tlie roughhewn man himself iitanberry soon learned that he was al most iruilgnirlcant hi mental stature be nty thej dared not climb through 3dod iusum ho love the it because the balloon would be rendered visionary as though lie were his own blazing inferno if it were struck lightning 3mr over ten minutes tliey had been valving or tpllllng gas in an elfort to counteract tlie rising con vection current which fed the cloud dales tliln uqulllne face was gar uoellke in the bluish light or mash were going to be hit he screamed hoarsely lets spill all the gas from the appendix and quit this race le had enough umber ry set his firm jouin jaw stubbornly as he tliought of dad iious ton dcilgner of the balloon hi wludh they rode he nhook hui head we cint betray mr houstons trust he shouted back ills only reply was savage grunt dale iplahed to tlie other tide of the bliket stanberry grasped hli arm as blade of lightning ripped open tlie skies to be follouod almost instantly by it shadow accompaniment of thunder we cant quit dale he said but we have good chance of getting lilt let us take some precautions if hit on tlie edge of the bosket and have string tied to our rlpcortii it may open our parachutes een if we are knocked unconscious bj lightning dale sau the uliclom of his compan ion reasoning he nil among their pauesslons lor and flnall found some uhlch ianbern cut into two jardlong pieces vilth his sheath knife these thej tied to rope futlie dad huston contended tliat uie day of the balloon was not past lib larg est sales were to small fairs which charged passengers for short ascension flights mr huston believed that the balloon could seine larger usefulness if people could only be made to realize it its ten times as useful as an aero plane for locating forest fires he would tell stanberry as they stood on tlie field observing dads latest innovation in ths balloon field its mighty dangerous to fly an aeroplane oer heavily wooded area no place to land hut balloon ah thats different it con be elevated as high as the rancerr uant it and louered in ease of storm and an ob ierver in the balloon basket has really good chance to study tlie landscape with his glosses it must come its just matter of time at lirst people hod laughed at dad huston but hlsoun faith finally found listeners his ideas had even reached washington and had been considered by higher officials there of late the rumor had become more persistent that the government uas waiting for the outcome of the national balloon races select balloon which would stand evere punishment us it surely must in around the ranger sen ice 01110 cord believing that hin order hung on inning the balloon race dad huston was determined to enter the winning balloon he planned to fl it himself which supported the basket of their uith ills production manager dole pro ughterthanair craft and to their rip cords so tliat the rings of their chutes would automatically be opened if they were tliroun free bj striking lightning ier to assist him in the flight unfor tunately in climbing ladder to inspect what he was afraid was flaw in th rubber he had fallen fracturing hi they then perched themselves on the wrist the day before the race he ap rlm of the basket clinging to support pointed stanberry marlln to take his ropes it was dangerous in its way and place tlie joung man had made many there was uie possibility that they would experimental flights but he had never tumble into space and make forced managed balloon alone landing even if then bag was not struck it was better however than risking being roasted alive in burning balloon they continued riding the storm while the blackness grew with ap proaching night the thunder claps finally became jess violent objects on the earth appeared in shadowy relief they had lost considerable gas in fight ing rising wind currents stanberry was about to suggest tliat they had dropped far enough and could now re lease ballast to give them more altitude when tlie inconstant wind current caus ed tlie balloon to fall rapidly he jumped down from the edge of the basket and hurled sandbag into fpace but his decision had conie too late tlie bislet of the balloon sirucu earth with staggering impact an stanberry was hurled forcibly again ihe hard basket dole was meanwhile hurling sand bags out of the basket to give the bal loon lift the bagi were so sodden ll wus dl trie tilt to rube them over the dge stanbet rv clambered unsteadhv to hs fct issbl hi ompaiium the threw ov er board ten bags idle lie wind haung them in lls rluuhe sucu tin in along it fnriv mllf an hoai hverv three or four hundred jirds th struck tarlh onlj to bounce llftv 01 ui hundred fei into the air uddenlj his hurt stkd still tus man bepj saw the greatest menace of free bdlouiilng rushing ut them through til gathering tluk hightension pownj line something chocked up within him he nulled their danger tin re was jo 000 uibl feet of highly tnti unmable hydrogen gas scant ten ft el wboi their heads they were speeding towa1 six power lines ut neurly tlfty nillei un liour now kocli of thoe un carried uhroxlmately 0000 volu of tlctrlclty ihe liuttunt they hit proli4bly juit above tlielr loadrhig any two ttliort circuited wires would cuuw large enough tpurc he was not likely to prove liability nevertheless since he liad come to the company he had made study of aerol ogy the phase of meteorology most valuable to balloonist he had fair working knowledge of navigation ijus but no least he had delved deeply into toiographlcol geography so tliat he could have identified important lant marka in almost all parts of america etanberry had arrived at bctus flcu in pittsburg in answer to telegram from his employer few hours arter mr huston liad received the oompounl fracture of the wrist he had learned that balloon race was like no other race on earth the winner is determin ed by measuring the farthest point from the takeoff tills distance being noted on the arc of great circle between uw starting point and the point of landing dale and stanberry seventii in posi tion among the eighteen balloons lined up at tlie takeoff point liad started to fly low heading slightly north of cast toward new england the higher fly ing balloons licaded slightly south of east almost at tlie stiitt stanberry liad found dale lacking in tlie nerve neces sary to uln free balloon ruce he hud insisted on climbing above the clouds which lay some ten miles directly ahead of jtlieni stmurry had demurred knowing tlait the velocity or the wind lurgiuy dctermlneu their ijieed and uuit tlie wind velocity would be greatest in the tort urea tliey hud ulmast com to blows lie fore dale had anally lie grudgingly given hb consent to con tinue low into the stormstricken region almat simultaneoiwly with dale startled cry announcing tliat they were going to hit they did so tlie basket of the balloon shuddered violently and stuikberry wus hurled backward with staggering force good fortune was with them tliey clipped through the wires as if tliey had hocn tlie tape ut tlie end of hundredyard track tticre wan not the slightest spark perhaps due to the speed with which tliey struck almost instantly stanberry caw twelvewire telegraph line across rail road track over which tliey were pass ing he breutlied heavy sigh of re lief telegraph line was tamo com pared to that highpower tension unci it proved stronger however theru was tremendous creak as they collided with uie crossarm of uie telegraph pole grating and pounding of some thing heavy on the ground below and then the balloon was brought to an abrupt etop quivering as it hung on the pole were lucky to be out of tliat alive muttered dale prosser grimly now that were stopped we can empty this bag and get to earth safely what about our promise to mr hus ton that wed do our besti demanded stanberry slight edge on his voice huston can run his ownracci dad huston would have run this rav himself fractured wrist and all if hod thought thero was possibility of our betraj trig his trust snapped stan berry you can climb down that pole and get to earth if ou uant to badly few minutes before stanberry had cost overboard his drag rope with th hope of it catching in something to hold them until they could drop out sufnicnt ballast to rise it was now badly tangled in the pole he turned to freeing their basket paying no at tention to his disgruntled partner working for some minute to jerl th rope free he finally lost patience cut ting it with his sheath knife well are ou going to quit here he demanded and let jou li ie the lenthousond dolltr prie which goes to the winning balloon not much if jou wont quit uon but well probablj both ik killed slonberr said nothing peering dowr water they would rise freed of all of it the aky would bo their limit how was it to be managed there was nothing with which to ball out the water he then saw how it might be done he tut liolo in tlie side of the rubber envelope slicuthlngtho basket he motioned dale to that side and they tipped the basket permitting the water to spill out of tlie hole in uie side tlie basket und balloqj roae almoat immediately when he had lost what lie estimated was halt uic water stan berry moved to the other side of uie baskrt so tliat they could keep uis re maining two hundred pounds for future ballast they rose swiftly into uie chill upper strata of air llaln oonunucd to fall but they were out of tlie storm urea proper dale grumbled repeatedly ut uie cold hb soaked clouilng at hli companion for continuing against what he consid ered insurmountable obstacle stan berry wild nothing when they lutd climbed to little to rest lr seven uiousand fet ice begun lo landing held form on their rigging their clothing became lncrusted in ice their speed had increastd to slightly ovir thirty miles un hour however which was en couraging to stanberry mku the high er ballooiii at the takeoif they were now moving in slightly southeasterly direction blizzard raged about them whip ping them with ley blast which chilled to uie bono halbitones as large as marbles slushed their numb faces th basket shook as though it were live thing shuddering hi uie cold gradually tho gas in their bag con tracting from the cold and uie ice forming on their rigging drove uiem down to lower altitudes the cold was less bitter but they were to uioroughly miserable uiat uiey nouced htue dif ference dale spilled more gas from the appendix although they liad already last onethird or uielr supply and they approached earth aguin dark mass or trees appeared in silhouette perliapr iffleen hundred feet below heres where im quitung uie race said dale savagely put uic balloon down the first cleared space jou tee if we touch tnarlh once were dis qualified tliat doesnt mean sulke with terra flrmu the rules said any complee stop wholl know demanded dale ill know answered stanberry with asperity theres jour chance if jou want it meadow below but uilnl joull do better to stick tlie race is over at live oclock we uont uln it anvway snapped the other he swung over the side gripped the ring of his ripcord and dropped into spaix the chute bios somed into white carnation nndwent drifting away toward the field stan bery could dimly see dale make safe landing before he pissed out of sight ij the southeast all night long stanberry would ris into the chill moonlit night above uie clouds and then valving to loco gas sink into uie despairing darkness be neath the block canopies of sullen clouds uuiy times he was sorely tempted to pll his gas and seek landing itcmcnjbrance of mr hustons dependence on him however ruulc such thought seem etirap just as dawn broke he suw uic broad sweep of uic itappuluuinock kivcr be low him with the broader arm of chesapeake hay ahead ucyond that glimmered hi the distance tho rolling gruy of uie auantlc ho studied his wet maps incredulously itcarccly be lieving he could have travelled from httsburgli over maryland und to the coast of vlrrlnlu hi one night hli maps however upheld hu own know ledge of the country town glittered below in the early morning sunlight and he opened hli uppetullx full filling the air with uie nauseous fumes of hydrogn gas the balloon dropped rapidly us it donated and dually came jmill round aeroplane some earl mechanic try salada orange pekoe blend salada tea came running up to meet him where am demanded stunherrj wetms virginia one mechanic told him whered jou come fiom in that contruptlon stanberry told him the mechanic whistled softly the mechanics heljied him empty the lost of the gus from the bag and roll it for hipping truck carried it to the truln he telegraphed the commit tee in rl large of the race of ills des tination and took the train for pitts burgh dad huston iriet him at tlie train his kindly old face wreathed in smiles knew my balloon could win the race he cried exuberantly but guess uic greatest credit goes to uic pilots orders have been lowing into uie plant all morning sine the paper came out with the news and congressman tele graphed me that he thinks my balloons will be used in observation work in spot ting forest fires isnt that greaf did really win havent you read the papers asked dad huston in surprise stanberry shook his head smiling ive been making up lost sleep wheres dale stanberry explained trying to make it as easy is he could for the deserter dad huston face was grim however when he had completed his recital stan im making you production man ager instead or dale said uie old man it isnt just this race its an atti tude of mind with dale several times ive been on the point or firing him for losing lis courage when things get rough well said stanberry fter thoughtful pause wm going to give they dont 5biutk it all c0h lliird ii told tho fluid tho nearly four nil lion dairy cowt on fk farmt of canada pfoduco moig ikon 16 billion pound of milk year tna dominions caniutmrt dont dinl all init mill only about ut until th dsvalopmani of cfoom and lar dry and vapo raud mill iha only maflot for ttm olkr mill waf lufur and clit sine ids turn of um canlury fiowsvr buoil avry var at in addiltonul uii for milt each fiat flpd to bilab ittha morvdpndabia yeararoundmarkarforall milk produced for 80 yaart orln inrough riarcri and talimantliip ka carriad icadino part doveloping utt and marllf for milt iuai today af malting dairying oh of tk graltr tourcat of farm incom in canada assocuvid commmivs kjlchauts of umt umiuf actub ls of ultk hlooucts distrltuiobs tiisouchour hit wok id dale lialfof the prle money anyway he helped me get uirough the hardest half of the race wlui his knowledge of navigation dad huston eyed his new production manager for moment in silence you are under no obligation to give dale anyuilng he said watching the others face he forfeits nil rights to the prliu when he quit perhaps said stanberry but dont like to do things that way dad laughed softly you wouldn bo the man thought jou were if joj did dnina onknaunritefco ktk cent hobby jones was being given lib lirst flight in an aeroplane and as tliey pass ed over his native city at 3000 feet the plane suddenly went into no due ha lial laughed uie pilot bet jou fifty potxent of uie people down there thought we were falling yyjes rmld his passenger and fifty per cent or the people up here thought so too the aberdonlans ore frying their bacon in lux because it wont sluink the engllshmns devotion to king and country is tempered with an even higher devotion to the principles of democracy and penjonal liberty why put up with pimples wrinkles and sallow skin into the blackness below to see why their balloon would not rise it did no aim to be caught anvuhere perhap more lightening of uielr load uould el it life he felt about in the swishing water and urose with cry of dismay our sandbags are all torn open and the bottc ms covered uhji sand no we havent any more ballast then well have to quit stanberry shook his head not if can think of some alternative the ley water in which he stood gave him his idea there was he knew nearl four hundred pounds of it by rough calculation freed of part or the so many women throw then elinrm iiml beauty away look ears older than tluy uie becauhi they ncjlect common constipation they fmget that badly balanced iiciiih over jtenod of yen cai hunjje how they look and feel often their menus lack the bulk leeeled for regular habits the onstipation the beautykiller jet in other efttcts may he liemd che iistleinl bleep lesnesa cet bulk back into jour meal aith dehcioua cereal kehojrkh ilitiun it absoibs moistun vitliin the body fonna soft mass gently cleuntea the bystem juat cat two tnlilcspoonfulii daily cither na ceieal or in cookei diaheo aubiun ia guaranteed try it week if not catibfactory your money will be refunded by the kcllopg company sold by ull cro eero mude by kellokft lonelon ur or ib 33r canned sound and dry lbs onions 9c lettuce ct crisp htiids jjt turnips lbs waxed extra good jc tomatoes 25c iirni and lbs lor kipc carrotis new lnrrc bunches 1jc grapefruit tv texas seedless ih medium larue uoc jttx spinach oranges tiikuy stalks nice siye each nev nawl carrolls cahbac firm and kufl vlleu cheese djviottt freih en tj lull licorice allsorts chocouu mint pahies ik 21r fued whit tuna lin carrolls pll soap 19c limited limited miix htiteet store closes saturday night 1030 free delivery ihonk 158