ight, began to assail us
respecting our voyage, our ignorance of where we were, and what were the
objects we were attempting to discover, you may form some idea of our
singular position."

About midnight, the travellers found themselves above Liege. Situated
in the midst of a thickly-peopled country, full of foundries, smelting
works, and forges, this town was quite a blaze of light. The gas-lamps
with which this town is so well lighted, clearly marked out for our
travellers the main streets, the squares, and the public buildings. But
after midnight, at which time the lamps in continental towns are mostly
put out, the whole of the under world disappeared from the view of the
aeronauts.

"After the turn of the night," says Mason, "the moon did not show
itself, and the heavens, always more sombre when regarded from great
altitudes, seemed to us to intensify the natural darkness. On the
other hand, by a singular contrast, the stars shone out with unusual
brilliancy, and seemed like living sparks sown upon the ebony vault that
surrounded us. In fact, nothing could exceed the intensity of the night
which prevailed during this part of our voyage. A black profound abyss
surrounded us on all sides, and, as we attempted to penetrate into the
mysterious deeps, it was with difficulty we could beat back the idea and
the apprehension that we were making a passage through an immense mass
of black marble, in which we were enclosed, and which, solid to within a
few inches of us, appeared to open up at our approach."

Until three o'clock the voyagers were in this state. The height of the
balloon, as calculated by the barometer, was 2,000 feet. They had not
then anything to fear from a disastrous encounter, when all at once a
sudden explosion was heard, the silk of the balloon quivered, the car
received a violent shock, and seemed to be shot suddenly into the gloomy
abyss. A second explosion and a third succeeded, accompanied each time
by this fearful shock to the car. The travellers soon found out that,
owing to the great altitude, the gas had expanded, and the rope which
surrounded it, saturated with water, and frozen with the intense cold,
had yielded to the pressure, in jerks which caused the report and the
shock.

"From time to time," continues Mason, "vast masses of clouds covered the
lower regions of the atmosphere, and spread a thick, whitish veil over
the earth, intercepting our view, and leaving us for some time uncertain