This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1810 Excerpt: ...of inflammable air, de-of b.die- termining it to be at least seven times lighter than rising in the common air. Soon after which, it occurred to Dr13' Black, that perhaps a thin bag filled with inflammable jjiack air might be buoyed up by the common atmosphere; MrCavailo. and he thought of having the allantoisof a calf prepared for this purpose: but his other avocations prevented him from prolecuting the experiment. The fame thought occurred some years afterwards to Mr Cavallo; and he has the honour of being the first who made experiments on the subject. He lirfl tried bladders; but the thinnest of these, however well scraped and prepared, were found too heavy. He then tried Chinese paper; but that proved so permeable, that the vapour passed through it like water through a sieve. His experiments, therefore, made in the year 1782, proceed1 ed As..station discovered by Mons. Montgolfier. ed no fnrthrr tbitiu blowing up soap-bubbles with in-flammable air, which ascended rapidly to the ceiling, 7 and broke against it. But while the discovery os the art of aerostation seemed thus on the point of being made in Britain, it was all at once announced in France, and that from a quarter whrrce nothing of the kind was to have been and finely decorated, expected. Two brothers, Stephen and John Mont-golfier, natives of Annonay, and mailers of a consider-able pEp.T-manuf.'.ctory there, had turned their thoughts towards this project as early as the middle of the year 1782. The idea was iiril suggested by the natural ascent of the smoke and clouds in the atmosphere; and their design was to form an artificial cloud, by inclosing the smoke in a bag, and making it carry up the cover-ing al ng with it-.Towards the middle of Novt-mber 8 that year, the experiment was made at...