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beneath was clearly visible on account of its phosphorescence. The wind
was from the East all night, and gave us the brightest omen of success.
We suffered no little from cold, and the dampness of the atmosphere was
most unpleasant; but the ample space in the car enabled us to lie down,
and by means of cloaks and a few blankets, we did sufficiently well.
"P.S. (by Mr. Ainsworth.) The last nine hours have been unquestionably
the most exciting of my life. I can conceive nothing more sublimating
than the strange peril and novelty of an adventure such as this. May
God grant that we succeed! I ask not success for mere safety to my
insignificant person, but for the sake of human knowledge and--for the
vastness of the triumph. And yet the feat is only so evidently feasible
that the sole wonder is why men have scrupled to attempt it before. One
single gale such as now befriends us--let such a tempest whirl forward
a balloon for four or five days (these gales often last longer) and the
voyager will be easily borne, in that period, from coast to coast. In
view of such a gale the broad Atlantic becomes a mere lake. I am more
struck, just now, with the supreme silence which reigns in the
sea beneath us, notwithstanding its agitation, than with any other
phenomenon presenting itself. The waters give up no voice to
the heavens. The immense flaming ocean writhes and is tortured
uncomplainingly. The mountainous surges suggest the idea of innumerable
dumb gigantic fiends struggling in impotent agony. In a night such as is
this to me, a man lives--lives a whole century of ordinary life--nor
would I forego this rapturous delight for that of a whole century of
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