when view of the earth is obscured.

But Captain Burnaby is associated notably with the adventurous side of
ballooning, the most famous of his aerial exploits being, perhaps, that
of crossing the English Channel alone from Dover on March 23rd, 1882.
Outwardly, he made presence of sailing to Paris by sky to dine there
that evening; inwardly, he had determined to start simply with a wind
which bid fair for a cross-Channel trip, and to take whatever chances it
might bring him.

Thus, at 10.30 a.m., just as the mail packet left the pier, he cast
off with a lifting power which rapidly carried him to a height of 2,000
feet, when he found his course to be towards Folkestone. But by shortly
after 11 o'clock he had decided that he was changing his direction,
and when, as he judged, some seven miles from Boulogne, the wind was
carrying him not across, but down the Channel. Then, for nearly four
hours, the balloon shifted about with no improvement in the outlook,
after which the wind fell calm, and the balloon remained motionless at
2,000 feet above the sea. This state of things continuing for an hour,
the Captain resolved on the heroic expedient of casting out all his
ballast and philosophically abiding the issue. The manoeuvre turned
out a happy one, for the balloon, shooting up to 11,000 feet, caught a
current, on which it was rapidly carried towards and over the main land;
and, when twelve miles beyond Dieppe, it became easy to descend to
a lower level by manipulation of the valve, and finally to make a
successful landing in open country beyond.

A few years before, an attempt to cross the Channel from the other side
ended far more disastrously. Jules Duruof, already mentioned as having
piloted the first runaway balloon from beleaguered Paris, had
determined on an attempt to cross over to England from Calais; and, duly
advertising the event, a large concourse assembled on the day announced,
clamouring loudly for the ascent. But the wind proved unsuitable,
setting out over the North Sea, and the mayor thought fit to interfere,
and had the car removed so as to prevent proceedings. On this the
crowd grew impatient, and Duruof, determining to keep faith with them,
succeeded by an artifice in regaining his car, which he hastily carried
back to the balloon, and immediately taking his seat, and accompanied
by his wife, the intrepid pair commenced their bold flight just as the
shades of evening were settling down. Shortly the ballo