A BALLOON FIGHT.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume V, Issue 284, 2 December 1870, Page 2

A BALLOON FIGHT.

(From the London Times, October 7.) The following extraordinary statement appears iv tbe Nouvelles dv Jour, a* Belgian paper. The intelligence was conveyed iv a note to that journal, from one of their correspondents at the seat of war, which note was conveyed to Brussels by a carrier pigeon : — Paris, October 1. "Nadar returned yesterday to Paris. His return was not, however, effected without much trouble, although his balloon was directed by a good wind and favorable currents since his departure from Tours. But let me relate the particulars of his voyage in chronological order. He left Tours at 6 o'clock in the morning, and the bold aeronaut arrived in view of Paris at 11 o'clock, floating about 3000 metres above the fort of Charenton. At the same time as the Intrepide, which was the name of M. Na'lar's balloon, appeared in sight, a second balloon was seea in the horizon. M. Nadar was observed to display a long streamer with the Freu-jh national colors. Immediately afterwards a national flag floated from the car of the other balloon. Vigorous hurrahs aud cries of C'est Durouff, from the garrison of the fort, greeted the appearance of the two aeronauts, whose balloons gradually approached. Suddeuly, aud when at a short distance from each other, a loud report was heard in the air, which report was followed by a series of explosions. These were at first supposed to be victorious signals or demonstrations, until M\ Nadar was seen to fling himself into the netting of the balloon, and to cling to its sides. During this time the other aeronaut continued discharging shots at M. Nadar and his balloou. The Intrepide was descending rapidly, aud it appeared evideut to the spectators below that some incomprehensible event had happened above. But mark what the French flag of the neighboring balloon came to. It was withdrawn, and a black and yellow staudard was observed to be floating in its place. All was explained, { Treason ! ' 'Itis a Prussian balloon ! ' *He has fired on the Intrepid ! ' were the cries that burst simultaneously from the French people. Nadar was supposed to have been lost. He was seen to descend rapidly in his car, and his balloon had once more nearly readied the earth. He, however, casts out his ballast aud agaiu ascends. M. Nadar, again clambers up tbe network of his balloon, and, by a marvellous effort, he succeeds iv stopping the hole made iv his balloon by the shot of his adversary. The Intrepide then becomes tbe assailant, and several shots were fired from the car into the Prussian balloon, which suddenly whirled about aud fell to the ground with giddy velocity. At soon as it reached the earth a party of Uhlans, who were on the plain, and who had been following the aerial combatants throughout this exciting struggle, rushed forth and, surrounding the balloou, received their champion — God knows in what condition. They then hastened off at full speed to the Prussian advanced posts. Iv the mean time M. Nadar descended safely at Charentou, where he si illisat this moment." The Echo dv Parlement commenting on this recital, observes : — " While the Nouvelles dv Jour was publishing that extraordinary account of an aerial combat, we read in the correspondence addressed from Versailles to the Times of the 30th September the following paragraph: — ' Au inexplicable phenomenon has just, baeu witnessed at Versailles. Two balloons attached to each other were seen hovering over Paris, moved by a strong east wind in the direction of the forest of Sfc.

Germain. While the gentlemen who narrated these facts to me was gazing at the aeronauts, his little daughter asked him to let her view the balloons through his spyglass. Scarcely had she distinguished the objects in the air when she exclaimed, *• They have fallen.' The balloons bad disappeared suddenly behind the trees." The Brussels journal also states that a smaller balloon was perceived about the same time above Nefie, near Bastogne, near which place it seemed to have slowly descended. It was supposed to have ascended from the garrison of Metz.

Dickens's Will. — The text of Mr Dickens's will has been published. It is written in blue ink, and fills a sheet of letter paper. Tlie personality was sworn under £80,000. After a number of bequests, including £1000 to Miss Ellen Ternanand nineteen guineas to every servant about his house and estate who should have been in his employment a year, and a provision for his daughter Mary, Mr Dickens bequeaths to his "dear sister-in-law, Georgina Hogarth," £8000 free of legacy duty, together with all his personal jewellery not otherwise disposed of, ■'and all the little familiar objects from my writing-table and my room, and she will know what to do with those things. I also give to the said Georgina Hogarth all my private papers whatsoever and wheresoever, and I leave her my grateful blessing, as tbe best and truest friend man ever had." In the latter|part of the will Miss Hogarth is'again referred to in these words: — "I solemnly enjoin my dear children always to remember how much they owe to the said Georgina Hocrarth, and never to be wanting in a grateful and affectionate attachment to her, for they know well that she has been, through all the stages of their growth aud progress, their ever-u°eful, self-denying, and devoted friend." Then follows this passage : — "And I desire here simply to record the fact that my wife, since our separation by consent, has been in the receipt from me of an annual income of six hundred pounds ; while all the great charges of a numerous For remainder of News see Fourth page.

and expensive family have devolved wholly upon myself." His sons Charles and Henry Fielding, are constituted trustees of the ■sum of £8000, with instructions to pay the interest annually to Mrs Dickens during her lifetime. The gold repeater presented to Mr Dickens at Coventry is bequeathed to his "dear and trusty friend, John Forster." To Mr Foi s ter also are bequeathed all the MSS. of Mr Dickens's published works which should be in his possession at death. Lastly, Mr Forster and Miss Hogarth are appointed trustees ond executors and guardians of his children during their minority. The will thus concludes : — *'I emphatically direct, that I be buried in an inexpensive, unostentatious, and strictly private manner; that no public announcement be made of the time or place of my burial ; lhat at the utmost not more than three plain mourning coaches be employed, and that, those who attend my funeral wear no scarf, cloak, black bow, long hatband, or other such revolting absurdity. I direct that my name be inscribed in plain English letters on my tomb without the addition of ' Mr ' or * Esquire.' I conjure my friends on no account to make me the subject of any monument, memoiial, or testimonial whatever. I rest, my claims to the remembrance of my country upon my published works, ■and to the remembrance of my friends upon their experience of me ; in addition thereto I commit my soul to the mercy of God through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and I exhort my dear children humbly to try to guide themselves by the teaching of the New Testament in its broad spirit, aud to put no faith in any man's narrow construction of its letter here or there." "Tall Talk*" from: the Prussian Press. — The Prussian newspapers are very angry with the Times for having proposed a mediation between the French and the Germans. Tlie Magdeburg 4xozeite declares that the idea is so imper•Siaeßt and extraordinary that it is difficult for any honest German io understand it. *■ The Times has the audacity to assert in the same article, while admitting that the if victorious, would have rejected any intervention, that we should be satisfied with a compensation for our war expenses. Nay, it even says, that what ■should now he done is to propose conditions of peace to the belligerents, and, as far as possible, to enforce them. On the «anie day Gladstone said that care must be taken lest the victor should become too strong. People in England evidently jhave no accurate notion of the extent of -our military power. At this moment, although we have sent to France an army which is twice as strong as any the French can bring against us, including their reserves, we have at home 122 battalions, that is to say, at least 150,000 ex--cellent troops of infantry, cavalry, and artillery; and these are ready, in conjunction with the even more powerful laud■wehr, to oppose anyone who should attempt to 'enforce' conditions of peace •npon us. Does the Times believe that the British fleet, and the 20,000 men •whom England is preparing for war would -suffice to dictate to such a powerful nation as ours. . . . Anyone lhat should •dare to interfere with us in our work of thoroughly humiliating France, or who, after our sons aud brothers have perished hy thousands, should be mad enough to ask us to settle the matter by a money compensation, may easily be involved in the •destiDy of Louis Napoleon." The "Captain." — The London Review stake the following causes ol the loss of the iion-clad "Captain": — It needs no very intimate acquaintance with the science ol shipbuilding to demonstiate that the lowsided monitor, when rigged as a sailing vessel, forfeits most of the conditions of stability necessary for a safebcat. The -•simple weight of turrets and armour raises the centre of gravity dangerously high ■enough without the addition of masts and spars. With them we get the very climax of insecurity. Proof of this we have now in the fate of the Captain. The pressure <o( the wind heeled her over a few degrees ■till the centre of gravity came above the •■centre of buoyancy, All then was lost. There was no reserve displacement ; the See dock was taking in water ; eveiy pound weight of masts, spars and turrets carried ■2ier over still more, and any advantage lhat could be gained by manipulating the topsails was rendered nugatory by the submerged edge of the ship, which bit the ■water like a bilge keel. Steadily over she -went, and clown ; a lasting remonstrance 3et us hope, against blind genius and official bigotty.

The mau who is paid to invent anecdotes about Englishmen for foreign papers has just written something about " Hempstead ! " He says be saw on a placard in a field there, " Horses with long tails taken iv to grass at three shillings a week ; with short tails, two shillings a week." On inquiry the Frenchman found out that it was based on a shrewd calculation that horses with long tails could switch off the flies and eat more than the short-tailed or fly-troubled ones.