Show I I ADEVILINSIT 5 5 Italian Peasants Have a Hot Time With a Balloon London Globe The Balloon Corps of the Italian army has been exercising in Rome recently re-cently and experienced the following curious and unpleasant interruption on Aug 24 I appears that 3 sudden gust of wind swept away the balloon made of silk and the soldiers holdimr it by ropes had to let them go for fear of being carried off by the balloon whifh at once rose and made for the hillside district Toward evening it came to earth at the village of Palom bare and then its troubles really began be-gan The whole population of the neighborhood ran to meet the beautiful ful silvery shining balloon and soon took it a prisoner I To their great astonishment the women and maidens of Palombaro discovered I dis-covered that the balloon was made of I pure silk and naturally they all sought I to get as large a piece of it as possible to make into dresses But despite all their efforts the simple minded peas ants could not empty the balloon which with every puff of wind bounded hither and thither and threatened I finally to escape from them into the I clouds The matter became serious I ana at last a rumor ran among the crowd that the balloon was a monster I escaped from hell and that the devil was hiding inside it How to get rid 1 of the devil was the next question That will be simple enough said act a-ct peasant Let u drag the hal loon into the church I the devil really is inside he will then have to out of the balloon of his come baloon own accord ac-cord since no devil can remain inside a church f No sooner said than done The balloon bal-loon was dragged to the church and the large entrance door was thrown open but the unwieldy monster resisted re-sisted all efforts to cram It through the church door Then arose a squabble squab-ble among the peasants some of them maintained that the balloon was too huge with others said that the devil was the cause of their failure to force the balloon through the door because he resisted with all his strength the efforts ef-forts being made to make him enter the church by force A final attempt was made and by dint of pushing squeezing squeez-ing and dragging the balloon it was got Inside the church In the church all was darkness Some candles were at once brought as the I villagers desired to observe closely the I demeanor of the suspicious balloon inside in-side their church Once specially in ij f M J > 1 quisitive peasant went up quite close to the balloon and held a candle to the silk at a part from which there was a small escape of gas All at once 8 bluish flame sprang from the balloon then in succession fearful came quick sccP on a l loud calls roar a terrible stench and I for help as the people half suffocated and many of them singed ran blimtiy from the church clurch Pale and trembling from their fright the good folks of Palombaro assembled on the square iT front of the church I Of course nearly all of them had seen the devil as with a blue flame and n I fearful stench he had escaped from the balloon and out of the church When I the smell had passed away in the 1 course of half an hour a couple Qf ooU hardy young men ventured to enter thQ ente1t1 I church again There r no evident i signs that the liberated devil had I wrought any great havoc But thp I i beautiful silk from which the fair rex of Palombaro had intended to make mat fine raiment was utterly destroyed I and lay black and charred a on the flagstones |