The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-07-21


 THE GALLANT OFFICER FELL WITH BULL
 LET THROUGH HIS BRAIN.
 the hand of the leader who had spoken flashed, with the wicked smack of the modern arm of precision, not audible a dozen rods away, and the gallant of ficer fell with a bullet through his brain. It was all over in half min ute Captain Phelan was dead, and his eight men, including the engineer and steersman, were helpless prison CTS on their own deck. The element of surprise had played even a greater part in this brief tragedy than the commissioner had expected. Alfonso Payton had begun to turn the tables on his foes with his usual elan. But as yet he had by no means finished the job.
 "Aboard" he commanded sharply.
 His men sprang upon the Chameleon, and she was away in flash. Running low again, she headed down the river fora second piece of woods, where an- other of the hidden aeros foated among the treetops. Here a similar scene was enacted. Even more utter 1y unprepared than their unfortunate comrades, these policemen were taking an early breakfast. Some of them were knocked over with the cups in their hands.
 Captain Billings, their commander, was seized from behind by Payton be- fore he even knew that an enemy was aboard. Not a man had a weapon ready, and not shot was fired. The captives were gagged and bound like the others, and the Chameleon was off side of the river.
 This time there was fight, but a most unequal one, because the surprise was virtually as complete as in the first two cases. The Chameleon had indeed been seen quarter of minute before the attack, but unluckily she was mistaken by Captain Campbell for one of his consorts, and while he was beating his brains to understand what she wanted there Payton and his men leape< board almost unopposed.
 Eve- then Campbell probably never eomprehended that it was the famous Sky Pirate who had attacked him. sHe had no time to think of anything except the fact there was an attack and, having his pistol in his hand, he shot the first man who put his foot on his deck
 Immediately a bullet passed through his own heart His men rallied gal lantly, but only three of them suc- ceeded in getting hold of their weap- ons.
 Payton pushed the assault like a demon. His pistol leveled two of these men with shots so nearly simul- taneous that their reports blended. The third was brained with his own weapon by one of the Chameleon's crew, who showed the strength and agility of an acrobat. In the mean time the other five, being unable to reach their weapons. were easily over powered, gagged and bound.
 Not a sound of this struggle reached the fourth aero, something less than third of a mile distant. Indeed, the shots could not have been heard as far as the edge of the little woodland in which the fight occurred. This, by the way, is one of the disadvantages of our modern firearms-if they do not betray ones location to the ene- my. they equally fail to convey infor- nation to friends.
 The fourth aero. under Captain Burns, was situated westward from the bluff. Payton once more ran the Chameleon near the ground until he reached the edge of the woods, then rose quickly above the trees, located his prey in spite of its fancied securi- ty and was upon it without the slight est warming having been given. Here again the men we've at breakfast. and