Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-03-13
The Baub1e
Continued from page 5


climbing upward into the heavens as if bent
| on forever leaving the earth.
The firing had almost ceased. We were en-
veloped in hazy world of our own. The noise
| of angry cries died away. Above us the clouds
lightened to pallid gray, and then in mo-
| ment more we leaped beyond them into moon
| lit world. The fog banks through which we
had passed had become a white and crested
sea which rolled in stately, slow pillows as far
as the eye could reach. The stars seemed near
| and clear and bright. 1t was as if we had in
vaded mystic realm of peaceful beauty and
| left war and its panoplies OF horror or glory
behind. The machine perceptIbly r1ghted and
swung out toward the north, that north in
| which lay the legions of France-and friends!
I HURRIED back to the figure which had al
most collapsed beside the sputtering motors
Now could see his face quite plainly. 1t was
white, GRIM and hard set. Captain Brownelle
was swaying dizzily and working on nothing
but sheer nerve and resolution. / got down be-
side him and asked him if Villalon and Leopard
could come amidshps. He nodded assent
| gave him big drink of brandy, and he re-
vlved and gave hurried expana tons to N1lalon
how to guide the big cigar shaped bag that
swung in wrinkled streaks above us.
If go out the American said, keep the
engines going, and if she settles elevate the
planes We've got to win! tell you we've got
to VIM
I've ripped the coat from his back up there
in the air, lust above that white moonlt field
and as best we could bound his wounds. He
tlinched now and then under our hurried minis
trations, and all the time | heard the good
Leopard curSing the Germans and the who
had aimed that bullet. | put my own coat over
his shoulders, and Leopard held him up when he
began to direct Villalon how to handle the
levers for descent.
I'VE CROPPED slowly downward into the fog
again, certain now that we were above the
armies of France. The sounds of camp came
to US; but this time the shouts were in the
tongue of our beloved land. | leaned far over
and warned them against shooting. We had
been shot at enough for one night Gradually |
we slipped downward to the ground which came
gently up to meet us.
Shut her off, VilIalon! There-that lever
sol heard Brownelle call, and then leaned |
toward him as we struck
He had doubled over into Lepards arms |
unconscious. His splendid fight was over. We
had won! From the turmoil of cheers the in |
rush of officers, the shouts of congratulation, |
and the sudden chorus of song howled exuber !
antly from some of my old men of the ohdsSenrS
TAfr1qne, the American derived no citation.
For him the whole world had swept out as
silent sea as that bank of white over which
we had flown to the victorious end of our adj
venture.
WE broke the crowd around us and followed
" the stretcher on which lay our gallant
companion as it was carried to the hospital.
There found that another bullet he had not
mentioned had caught HIM IN the body. We
three comrades, SCARED and gray in the service
of many fields and many hazardous enter
prises stood above the surgeons who dressed
his wounds, desperately anxious for some
reassuring word They told US that he would
probably live. and went to the tent of Cen
eral Merther to report.
We tramped together in strange and
downcast silence. For the moment the fact
that we had dealt the hardest conceivable blow
to the enemy not uppermost. Our minds
and sympathies with the white faced
flotsam from foreign army who had brought
to this point of achievement, the silent.
pallid hulk of man resting on hospital cot
our new comTade!
We declined the praise the General in
volube outburst of enthusiasm started to
bestow upon
1.-The man to whom the thanks are due
mon General Villalon said quietly. is an Amer
lean. Back therein a hospital tent He
ierked thumb over his shoulder as if the vision
of the cot was discernible.
81 don't know how we three ever gave clear
account of that story, for it was one of broken
sentences; but before halting, laundering
speech through old Merthier. grim and
wise, had the story of the man who had ren-
pushed a commission for honor's sake and
knew that without him we could not have de-
lvered SO sturdy blow for country's cause.
HAVE you ever seen the cross of the Legion
of Honor pinned on a mans breast in front
of an army parade? 1t is stirring sight,