When they were about four miles high
Mr. Glaisher found the beating of his heart become very distinct, his
hands and lips turned to a dark bluish colour, and he could hardly
read the instruments. Between four and five miles high he felt a kind
of sea sickness.
Mr. Coxwell began to think they might be getting too near the Wash for
safety, and they therefore came down quickly, and reached the earth
with such force that the scientific instruments were nearly all
broken. In their descent they passed through a cloud 8000 feet (or
over a mile and a half) thick!
On the 5th of September, 1862, Mr. Glaisher and Mr. Coxwell made one
of the most remarkable ascents in the history of ballooning. It nearly
proved fatal to both.
Up to the time they reached the fifth mile Mr. Glaisher felt pretty
well. What happened afterwards is best described by himself.
"When at the height of 26,000 feet I could not see the fine column of
the mercury in the tube; then the fine divisions on the scale of the
instrument became invisible. At that time I asked Mr. Coxwell to help
me to read the instruments, as I experienced a difficulty in seeing
them.
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