midday
Could it have passed away in electric sheets , as is sometimes the case with regard to the typhoons of the Indian Ocean ? But at the same time , it was also evident that the balloon was again slowly descending with a regular movement . It appeared as if it were , little by little , collapsing , and that its case was lengthening and extending , passing from a spherical to an oval form . Towards midday the balloon was hovering above the sea at a height of only 2,000 feet . It contained 50,000 cubic feet of gas , and , thanks to its capacity , it could maintain itself a long time in the air , although it should reach a great altitude or might be thrown into a horizontal position . Perceiving their danger , the passengers cast away the last articles which still weighed down the car , the few provisions they had kept , everything , even to their pocket-knives , and one of them , having hoisted himself on to the circles which united the cords of the net , tried to secure more firmly the lower point of the balloon . It was , however , evident to the voyagers that the gas was failing , and that the balloon could no longer be sustained in the higher regions .