The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1915-01-21
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
BEST STORIES OF
HOW PLUCK IS
Aviator Describes Feelings
When SWooped at by
Winged Enemy.

narrated Dy Il Russian AVIATOR.
His opinions about certain pic
torial representa- tons of aviators blaz-
ing away with revolvers led to some
interesting information.
Very little has been published about
the Russian aviators in war. Russia.
however, is very we'll supplied with
this auxiliary-quite as we'll as Ger
many. The majority Of the aviators
are officers who have learned flying.
but some Of the best are civilian vol
unteers. NJ. Agathonoff, the Russian
aviator referred to, is barely Of age, but
has already won the coveted decora-
ton of the Order Of st. George for
valor, as well as a special badge of
honor given by the commander In
chief. Before the war he took the cup
for the Petrograd- Moscow Sebastopol
fight.
you could not hit anything with
revolver from an aeroplane," he said.
i Vibration alone would battle you, and
a revolver is very uncertain thing
anyway. Hand bombs make sure work
provided you can get above the other
man, as we always can with German
ayiators. If you have no bombs you
rise above your enemy, taking care he
sees you plainly, and then you make a
dive upon him. No; you don't really
intend to ram him, and he knows very
well you don't, because that would be
certain death for both, and it is not
worth while to throw yourself away
for one hostile aeroplane.
Too Much For Human Courage.
1--WE tried once how it felt on Moth
er Earth when an aeroplane threatens
to ram you. A dozen of us stood
while our best flier went up and came
I sweeping down on us. Every man
took to his heels. The feeling is much
stronger up in the air.
But fighting, after all, is not our
real business. We are scouts. Of
course we can drop bombs, but it is
extremely difficult to hit anything sat
isfactorily when you are going fifty
miles an hour. On the other hand,
nothing is easier than to hit another
aeroplane when you are chasing above
him.
"Of course you are mark for ev-
cry one. We used to mount in the
usual way with short run, but we
soon dropped that. Now we get up
and circle around a few times to get
our own fellows accustomed to us and
to show exactly where we are starting
from; otherwise they would shoot be-
cause it is impossible to tell whose
aeroplane it is unless the starting
place has been marked.
1.-THE Germans always send up rock
cts when they sight us, and then the
fun begins. They had no special guns
where was, but trained ordinary field
batteries upward. They take two
points on your course, and the six
guns of the battery divide wide area
among them, firing as rapidly as pos
slble."
"A Sausage Grinder"
Colonel Webb G. Hayes, U. s. A..
son of former President Hayes, who
has returned to this country, has been
on the firing line in Europe has visit
ed the sacked city of Louvain as the
guest of Germans in an armored car:
he has been in Aix-la- Chapelle to see
the havoc Of war there and has seen
, some of the fighting in the historic
Aisne struggle.
1T is sausage grinder" he declar-
ed. lon one side are the French and
allies, apparently willing to sacrifice
their last man in defense of France;
on the other are the Germans, seem
-ingly prodigal Of their millions of men
and money and throwing man after
man into the war.
There can be but one outcome, but
it will be long time ending" he said
England won't begin to fight really
, until spring.
THE battlefront these days is far
different from what it used to be-
There are few men to be seen and
practically no guns. All are concealed
Shrapnel flies through the air and
bursts. That is the scene most of the
time. In the hand to hand fighting
bayonets are used much by the French
while the Turkos use knives"
Wars Awful Desolation.
An eyewitness describes the state of
affairs existing in that portion of Lyu-
Din province which was the scene of
recent severe fighting between the
Russian and Austrian troops.
IN hransostav and in Zamost few
dozen houses remain unscathed. The
remainder form a mass of impenetra.
BILE ruins. There is not trace left of
the neighboring villages. Once fertile
and poisoning fields are now cemeter
les. -.s.-
Along the whole road one sees moth
ing but improvised graves decorated
with modest wooden crosses. Among
them figure conspicuously the large
common graves Of Austrian and Ger
man soldiers with projecting black and
yellow flags. From quickly excavated.
nurrledly filled pits one sees here and
tnere hands and legs sticking out.