John La Mountain, the aeronaut, has offered his services to the general government in the capacity of a scout. He proposes to inflate his balloon, and, accompanied by an engineer, to ascend to any desirable elevation, taking notes of the country, the situation and and strength of the enemy, &c. This idea is by no means novel. It occurred to the first Napoleon, when the art of ballooning was but little understood. During the Crimean War the allies frequently made use of those instrumentalities to ascertain the preparations by the enemy.
But it was in the great plain of Northern Italy the campaign of 1859, that their utility became most apparent. Before the battles of Magenta and Solferino, Louis Napoleon had employed æronaunts to survey the grounds ; and while the Austrians were in retreat every motion made by them was noticed by these genii of the upper atmosphere and reported to the victorious allies.
Smyrna Times, Smyrna, DE
John LaMountain
John LaMountain balloonist who briefly worked for the U.S. Army as an aerial scout. He fought with Chief Aeronaut Thaddeus S. C. Lowe, vying for Lowe’s position, and was dismissed from service by Gen. McClellan.