AN DREE' S FATAL FLIGHT IN A BALLOON 397 



anxiety. Entering the car and examining to see if everything was 

 in order, the leader called, "Strindberg!" Strindberg stepped upon 

 the car. "Frankel!" Frankel followed. "Come!" said Andree in 

 a cheerful tone. The sailors appointed to cut the holding cords 

 first released those that held the center of the balloon. It imme- 

 diately began a rolling motion, and they had to wait until it should 

 come to a partial rest. "Cut !" then cried Andree. The knives were 

 plied; the ropes parted; the balloon shot up three hundred feet into 

 the air. 



A loud cheer and cries of "Happy Voyage" came from those 

 left behind as they watched the course of the great balloon. Its 

 first movement was a swoop downward until it nearly reached the 

 surface of the water, then it rose again before the violent wind 

 that was blowing and shot away at great speed, the three explorers 

 waving their handkerchiefs as it swept from the land out over the 

 Arctic Sea. In about half an hour it vanished from the view of 

 the spectators, though they continued to wait for some time longer 

 in hope that a last glimpse might be obtained, some of them, doubt- 

 less, fearful that they had gazed for the last time upon their late 

 companions. 



An incident of an unfortunate character happened at the start. 

 As the balloon bounded upward two of the guide ropes, a consid- 

 erable length of which trailed upon the ground, yielded to the ten- 

 sion caused by the quick bound and friction with the surface, and 

 broke. Only that this possible accident had been provided for, these 

 indispensable aids would have been lost at the very start. Fore- 

 seeing such a mishap, Andree had the ropes constructed in sections 

 of about one hundred yards each, joined with screws. It was the 

 lower sections that gave way, so that fortunately the accident did 

 not prove serious. 



The utility of the guide ropes was evident to the spectators, 

 since, though the wind was south-southwest, the explorers suc- 

 ceeded in laying their course nearly due north. They also aided 



