BALLOONING, MODERN. 



87 

 173 

 258 

 343 

 422 

 500 

 573 

 642 

 707 

 766 

 819 



939 

 965 

 994 

 996 

 1000 

 996 

 984 

 965 

 939 

 906 



knife trim off the surplus, 

 leaving the curve already 

 formed in the cloth to 

 serve for the neck, or al- 

 tering it to suit the taste. 

 Mark this portion for the 

 sewers the same as the 

 upper part. Before the 

 pieces are lifted from 

 their places they must all 

 be marked with cross , 

 lines at double the dis- 

 tance of those on the pat- 

 tern, beginning at the 

 center (line 18) and work- 

 ing each way, using the 

 marks on the edges as 

 guides. Along these cross 

 lines are to be sewed the 

 stays, which give addi- 

 tional strength to the 

 balloon. After marking 

 half of the layers from 

 tip to neck, the remain- 

 der must be turned over 

 and marked on the re- 

 verse side. 



The breadths are now 

 ready for sewing into 

 gores, each gore being 

 two breadths in width. 

 The cross lines represent 

 the interior of the bal- 

 loon, and a breadth taken 

 from the first and another 

 from the second set of 

 markings are matched, 

 when their straight edges 

 are to be sewed together 

 with the cross lines inside 

 facing each other. The 

 seam is made by first 

 sewing through the two 

 thicknesses about half an 

 inch from the edge, then 

 the breadths are opened, 

 the seam laid over to 

 the right, tucked in, and 

 hemmed down. The sew- 

 ing must always be done 

 from the tip downward. 



Having joined all the 

 pairs of the upper set by 

 sewing their selvages to- 

 gether, do the same by 

 the lower set ; but in this 

 case begin the sewing al- 

 ways at the broad end, 

 working toward the neck. 

 The gores may then be 

 sewed together by adding 

 one gore after another, 

 until half of them have 

 been joined, then put the 

 others together in the 

 same way, always begin- 

 ning at the tip end for 

 the upper part, and at the 

 broad end of the lower 

 part. This will result in 

 two upper and two lower 



parts. The sewing on of stays and collapsing 

 cord are next in order. The stays are made from 

 strips of the balloon material folded to three 

 thicknesses, forming a tape about half an inch in 

 width. These tapes are sewed along the marks 

 prepared for them ; but care must be taken not 

 to vary the relative position of the balloon while 

 sewing, otherwise the ends of the stays will not 

 match on the opposite sides. Keep the tip of the 

 top parts to the right hand, and the broad or 

 butt end of the lower parts to the right. The 

 " collapsing cord," or " rip line," is made by sew- 

 ing a strong cotton cord about one eighth of an 

 inch thick to a strip of the balloon material about 

 4 inches wide and several yards in length, ac- 

 cording to the size of the balloon. About 7 

 yards will answer for a balloon of 25,000 cubic 

 feet capacity. The cord is sewed along the mid- 

 dle of the strip to within an inch or two of 

 either end, the surplus cord remaining attached. 

 The sewing of the cord to the strip should be 

 made with No. 8 cotton, well waxed, doubled, 

 and back-stitched on, for this stitching is de- 

 pended upon for tearing the strip when occasion 

 requires. The strip is to cover the cord and to 

 be sewed on the outside of the balloon, beginning 

 at the butts and running upward along the side 

 of one of the straight seams. Both edges and 

 the two ends of the strip are to be sewed down ; 

 but before the upper end is closed the surplus 

 cord must be passed through a hole to be made 

 for the purpose, to the inner side of the balloon. 

 A portion of the surplus cord is sewed zigzag in 

 a bag or pocket 6 inches wide and 3 feet long, 

 which is to be stitched on the inside of the 

 balloon just above the hole made to admit the 

 cord. The cord, suspended from this bag, can 

 hang loosely or be slightly tacked along one of 

 the seams down through the neck of the balloon. 

 The zigzag cord in the bag diminishes the dan- 

 ger of any accidental jerk tearing the balloon, 

 as the cord must tear entirely from the bag be- 

 fore a rupture takes place. 



Both the stays and the collapsing cord may 

 be dispensed with by those who choose to take 

 the risk, for they are not in general use; but 

 the stays prevent any accidental tear extending 

 the whole length of the balloon, while the col- 

 lapsing cord, though seldom needed, is a remark- 

 ably good thing when the necessity for its use 

 occurs. 



If ornamentation is intended, this is next in 

 order. Letters, stripes, scrolls, festoons, pictures 

 anything may be painted on without the least 

 injury to the fabric, and any kind of ornamenta- 

 tion is far more agreeable to the eye than the 

 naked cloth. The colors should be well selected, 

 and may consist of stains or finely ground pig- 

 ments. Carmine makes the finest crimson, and 

 should be dissolved in water with the addition 

 of a little ammonia. Soluble blue gives light or 

 dark shades. Ultramarine blue is a very bright 

 color, and mixed with other pigments is useful, 

 particularly in forming a stable purple with In- 

 dian red. Chrome yellow, chrome green, raw 

 and burnt sienna, lamp-black, and well-powdered 

 bone-black, may all be used to produce the 

 tints required ; but care must be taken never to 

 use vermilion, on account of its decomposing 

 action upon the oil varnish. Umber should be 

 used very sparingly, if at all, as it becomes hard 



