COCKING'S PARACHUTE
The parachute which Garnerin and the early aeronauts used in their experiments was fashioned to resemble an umbrella. As the aeronaut descended and the swift current of air caused by the fall rushed up under this canopy, it tended to hold it in the air much as the wind supports a kite, and thus the force of the descent was broken. In the year 1837 an Englishman named Cocking, who had been studying the principles of the parachute, came forward with an idea which differed greatly from this. The parachute he invented resembled an umbrella that had been blown inside out by the wind,—it was in other words an inverted cone, with a basket for the aeronaut hung from the cone's apex. The upper rim of the cone was made of tin to strengthen it, and the sides were of cloth.
Copyright Underwood and Underwood
A GERMAN ZEPPELIN
Cocking was very enthusiastic over his invention, for he believed that his inverted parachute would descend more smoothly through the air than the old kind, which, while it supported the aviator, had a tendency to rock and pitch in the air after the manner of a kite. He sought an opportunity of giving his idea a public trial, but experienced aeronauts advised him not to do so, as they did not trust the safety of his apparatus. However, he insisted, and he finally persuaded the famous aeronaut Green to take him up.
On July 24th, 1837, the famous experiment was made. Green ascended in the great Nassau balloon, with Cocking's parachute suspended beneath it. Thousands of spectators had gathered to watch the ascent, but as the balloon was carried away by the breeze it was finally lost to their view, and so they were spared witnessing the accident which followed.