THE Falling Cone is a device for thrill seekers:
“Those in search of new sensations will be interested in this project of Mr. Carron, of Grenoble. It is an immense cone, designed to carry a cargo of fifteen passengers, and to fall from a lofty tower into a well of water. The tower is 300 yards high, and the swiftness of the descent is more than double that of the most rapid express train; the well is about 60 yards deep. the illustrations show the system of cones and springs, which serve to deaden the shock on striking the water”
The “contraption that allowed humans to experience the sensation of a free fall of 300m! To achieve this, he conceived a bullet-like capsule with a height of approximately 10m, that contained a round room, 4m high and with a diameter of 3m. In this room, 15 comfortable chairs were to be placed in a circle so that Victorian daredevils would suffer no inconvience from the fall. The floor of the room would consist of a mattress of steel springs, about 50cm high, and the lower part of the capsule would be a series of concentric metal layers. The whole capsule should weigh about 10 tonnes. According to Mr. Carron, this device would be hauled up to the top of the Eiffel Tower, from which it then could be dropped. To break the shock of the impact, a superficial pond would be dug out in the form of a champagne glass, with a depth of 55m and a width of 50m. Mr. assured doubters that the water, in combination with the shockbreakers aboard the capsule, would guarantee that the impact will not be inconvenient at all!”
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