Grand Forks daily herald., 1914-09-16
ZEPPELIN. CREW
like SUPERnE|y
Witness Of Sky Bornbard-
nent Tells Of Terror Of
People at Night.
(By William a. shepherd. )

(by Wllllam GS Snepner0.) q
Antwerp, Sept. (By mail to New
York. before this war; experts used
to say perfection OF terrible instru-
ments of killing would only tend to
make war impossible. It doesn't do
that, though. I watched tho Zeppelin
dropping bombs upon Antwerp last
night and such perfection only makes
war more terrible. g.
The widest flights Of Imagination
couldn't approach what happened at
Antwerp twelve hours ago. Early in
his company stationed in the center Of
the city. The men, were divided into
small squads in a dozen streets. They
were sitting on the sidewalks with
their backs against the building walls,
drinking hot coffee which had been
brought to them in an automobile. 1t
seemed that the men were pretty we'll
spread out in case Of an attack by the
Germans, but the captain said there
were $4,000 soldiers scattered over
the city in the same way. Later the
reason was apparent.
All In Pitch Darkness.
Not until l a. m. did the big red
harvest moon begin to sink. It left
the streets in pitch darkness.
An hour and a. half later I was
awakened by soldiers talking excited
ly in the street beneath my window
But above the sound of their voices
was another noise.a g. terrifying Whir-
ring. high in the sky. / jumped from
upward. There was terrific explos-
Ion, Tar away. a deep booming roar.
moment later q spark came whirl-
Ing and circling through the air like
shooting star gone mad. It sank
into the skyline Of roofs and another
explosion doomed out.
Zeppelin q Mile High.
And then, up against the stars, I
saw the Zeppelin, perhaps a mile high
and out over the outskirts Of the
town. There's a sickenine feeling Of
utter helplessness in witnessing such
sight and mingled with this feeling
that such a thing Is not superhuman;
that up there in the sky are men, hu-
man beings. working, carrying out or
ders, watching maps Of the city, trav-
cling the streets, pulling levers, adjust
ing greasy machinery. turning steer
Ing wheels and lighting fuses Of bombs
that are intended to kill.
Another spark fell and, there was a
third explosion. Then a new sound
filled the air. 1t began far away. It
was the rattle Of rifles. thousands Of
them. The firing grew nearer and
louder. There were sharp orders, I'm
der my window the soldiers began to
shoot. the flashes lighting my room.
They held their rifles straight upward.
The sound grew louder and louder.
Within minute thsn2ln was indescrib-
shooting, each as Vas he could fire
with his ma gazins FEhe. RE cor orders lei :
We're not to try to init the Zeppelin
unless it was overhead. Every mans
duty was to shoot straight up.
FIJI Air With Death
They were filling the air with steel.
Ihey were putting up fence Of metal
a mile high around. tho city and pal
ace. They filled the air with death
to any thing that entered the zone
above Antwerp. The big guns in the
forts around the city began to COON.
Aeroplane machine guns mounted on
automobiles, dashed about the streets.
adding their burning, rafting sound
to the din. It was million Fourths
Of July rolled into one.
In the midst Of It all there were
eight more OF the big bass booms, the
voice Of the Zeppelin bombs. in quick
succession. To the last. in the midst
Of the bullets and superhuman confu-
sion. the supermen in the Zeppelin
had tried to stick to the job. Two Of
the eight bombs fell within 20 ana 50
meters Of the Red Cross hospitals; the
other six beat tattoo on fields
around the wireless station. which the
airmen were evidently trying to de-
stroy. The holes in the earth about
the station were the size and shape OF
cistern.
People Eide In Cellars.
AS the last batch of bombs wont
| over the sides Of the car, the balloon
arose and sped away from tho city.
The firing died out slowly. HAN an
hour later the Zeppelin was reported
at point - miles away. Two chil.
dren, three women and five men had
been tn5ured-though mono seriously
and three houses destroyed. Nearly
all the terrified families Of the city
had taken refuge in the cellars for 4
week before the Same Zeppelin had
| bombarded the town and killed II
persons. The bullets flred BY the
soldiers came falling from the sky
but aside from breaking skylights.
they caused no injury. Folks going to
work this morning picked them up
Tor souvenirs. =
ASSERTS GERMANS