The failed ascent

This original fiction passage is set in the nineteenth century.

At Mercer's signal, the men released the ropes. The balloon rose no higher than the elm trees. For one breath it hung there, bright and immense; then its patched envelope folded inward and the empty basket struck the meadow with a soft, humiliating thud. A cheer had been prepared by the crowd, and its sudden absence seemed louder than any shout. Dr Mercer remained beside the tethering post, one gloved hand still raised, as though the machine might obey a command delivered too late.

Someone laughed. Mercer lowered his hand and bowed to the spectators. He even smiled while the field emptied, accepting each consoling phrase as carefully as a coin of doubtful value. Only when the final carriage turned onto the road did he cross to the fallen balloon. He knelt, found the torn seam and pressed it between finger and thumb. “Half an inch,” he said to his assistant. Then he asked for the tool case.

Analyse how the writer uses language and structure to present Dr Mercer's response when the balloon fails. Support your answer with references to the passage.