To The Klondyke In Balloons

Dr. Rufus Cí. Wells, whose home is at No. 1020 North Sixteentn street, St. Louis, is another of the many victima of the Alaska gold fever. He has begun work on a gigantic balloon in which he proposes to start for the Klondyke regton next spring. His balloon will consist of a clgar-shaped bag fllled wlth gas, sustaining a basket and propeller. The gas will be sufflcient to sustain the weight of flfty men and their necessary baggage. Dr. Wells is offering round trip tickets on his airship for $300. Dr. Wells claims to be the greatest aeronaut of the age. He tells marvelous stories of his exploits - how he once crossed the Appenlnes from Rome in seven houra, and another time crossed the Indian Ocean. He says that he can go around the world in thirty days, and consequently such a little matter as a trip to Klondyke is hardly worth talking about. Dr. James Charles, of Richmond, Ind., is another medical man who has devoted much attention to aerial navigation. As a result of his thinking he has applied for a patent on an airship which is designed to fly like a bird, without the use of gas or other buoyant matter. He has constructed a tin model of a machine something like Langley's flying machine, but fittec} with various propelling wheels which can be turned so that they will exërt either a liftiug or a horizontal power that will move the machine forward. Dr. Charles is organizing a stock company to bulld his machines and contemplatea a trip through the air to Alaska in the spring.