This article was published in the daily newspaper The Chicago Times-Herald, Chicago, Illinois, USA, Sunday, April 11, 1897.
Warning: the airship stories must not be taken at face value as "UFO sightings." Evaluation of such stories is under way here.
Burlington, April 10. – In order to test the credulity of the people on the airship question, members of the Hawkeye's staff sent up a common tissue paper hot-air balloon outside the city tonight so that the wind would carry it over the town. The test was eminently satisfactory, and the Hawkeye's telephone has been kept busy all evening with messages describing the airship. Some people swore they saw red and green lights, and one perfectly sober and reputable citizen offered to make affidavit that he heard voices. The experiment satisfies the Hawkeye that the Nebraska – Iowa – Illinois air ship is a pure fake.
