At my departure from the meadow the
sun had sunk to the people of the valleys; soon he shone for me
alone, and came again to pour his rays upon the balloon and the
car. I was the only creature in the horizon in sunshine--all the
rest of nature was in shade. Ere long, however, the sun
disappeared, and thus I had the pleasure of seeing him set twice
in the same day. I contemplated for some moments the mists and
vapours that rose from the valley and the rivers The clouds
seemed to come forth from the earth, and to accumulate the one
upon the other. Their colour was a monotonous grey--a natural
effect, for there was no light save that of the moon.
"I observed that I had tacked round twice, and I felt currents
which called me to my senses. I found with surprise the effect
of the wind, and saw the cloth of my flag: extended horizontally.
"In the midst of the inexpressible pleasure of this state of
ecstatic contemplation, I was recalled to myself by a most
extraordinary pain which I felt in the interior of the ears and
in the maxillary glands. This I attributed to the dilation of
the air contained in the cellular tissue of the organ as much as
to the cold outside. I was in my vest, with my head uncovered.
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