Show I AERONAUT DROPS INTO THE OCEAN OFF OFFS SAN S N PEDRO CAL AND LOSES HIS LIFE San Pedro Cal Cat March llarch S While hun bun hundreds watched his frantic efforts to con control control control a great gas bag which waa was swiftly bearing him out over the Pacific ocean this afternoon Lester Elkins an ama amateur leur 22 years old soared with the balloon to a height of more than 4 feet before he lIe cut loose hi hl his parachute and ad dropped Into tho the waters of the lie outer harbor barbor to his Ms death As AI 9 the tIme stiff wind blowing off oft the land carried him out to sea boatmen hastily left the tho inner harbor in launches to res rescue rescue cue him when he came down should be bebej bebo bej bo sable ablo to guide the balloon back over oer overt t p e and The Th Tb launch laun ll Emeline was already In the outer harbor when Elkins cut loose but owing oving to the high wind was waa unable to Judge correctly tile point where he would strike the tho water and before It could race thither Elkins had disappeared Elkins who was employed formerly on the Los Angeles aqueduct as a 1 traction engineer came to San Pedro this morn i 14 ing inS and proposed this afternoon to at tempt a balloon ascension An attempt was made to deter him as the wind ind was as blowing steadily from the north and di toward the bay from the point where the balloon was as moored Elkins however ho eer was determined to make the flight night As the huge hUle bag arose It careened care nd and was as carried rapidly out over oer the water Elkins began frantic efforts to guide it back to the land swinging from the bar below bolow but almost before the spectators could realize he hEr was waa In danger the bag was far out at sea soo When hen It suddenly arose and reached feet the aero aeronaut aeronaut aeronaut ms seen to leave time the bag and drop like a rocket toward the ocean The par parachute filled as he had fallen a 1 short distance but was caught by the wind and carried still farther out and fell In tt tJ oceana ocean II a mile beyond Deadmans Islan Elkins came to California a few months ago a o from San Antonio Tex where his mother now nom lives His body bod has not yet et been recovered f V |