with which they were entirely unfamiliar. They decided to land,
and they were greatly surprised to find that they had reached
Weilburg, in Nassau, Germany. The whole journey of 500 miles had
been made in eighteen hours.

Probably no British aeronaut has made more daring and exciting
ascents than Mr. Green--unless it be a member of the famous
Spencer family, of whom we speak in another chapter. It is said
that Mr. Green went aloft over a thousand times, and in later
years he was accompanied by various passengers who were making
ascents for scientific purposes. His skill was so great that
though he had numerous hairbreadth escapes he seldom suffered
much bodily harm. He lived to the ripe old age of eighty-five.



CHAPTER VI
The Parachute

No doubt many of those who read this book have seen an aeronaut
descend from a balloon by the aid of a parachute. For many years
this performance has been one of the most attractive items on the
programmes of fetes, galas, and various other outdoor
exhibitions.

The word "parachute" has been almost bodily taken from the French
language. It is derived from the French parer to parry, and
chute a fall. In appearance a parachute is very similar to an
enormous umbrella.