The farmer and mechanic., 1915-10-19
BR|MLEY TELLS Of
ZEPPELIN RAIDS
Brother Of Raleigh Man Writes
About Air Attacks On
London Suburb

The following extracts rel4tlrx to
the Zeppelin raids IN London ".
taken from a letter which Nr e. :
brlmley has recently received from
ms brother, Mr.. r. J. Rrsm.,v who
lives At Leytonstone = suburb II f.n-
don:
You may like TO hear aoout the a.-
raids on London. These hax. been
TOUR altogether. The frst on Mav a.
was very minor affair as r CARDS THIS
neighborhood. although much dam
age and some loss OF life Vas caused
IN the east end and some 81 the north
ern districts. The second. ahout III.
| middle OF last month. Was much mar.
serious Al ten O'Clock that rE.ht
Florence, Arthur. and myself w.r.
| sitting quietly in our front room
| when there came curious ratflinc or
the NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. because the
| night was quite windlcss Then W.
| neard two or three explosions. NOT
Very loud and we rushed outside 10
see what was up. Directly after
wards there was u brilliant fash Ike
sheet lightning and loud detonation
lt seems that bomb had fallen on
| Wanstead Flats ,our big Common
and had scooped out II large hol. hut
had done no harm beyond the smash
ing or some windows quarter of
mile away. Some parts or Leyton
= =
OFF SO easily. In Ashvine Road !
poor road about mile from here an
explosive bomb wrought terrible
havoc killing and wounding auit. a
number of people and wrecking AT
least thirty houses ] myself counted
as many. Some Of them nigh, he de-
scrlbed as "Completely blown out
st. Ausustine's Church. not far away.
was set on fire by inCendiary bombs
and made quite unusable FOR the time.
"On the night of the 18th Sept.
think that was the date, | was reused
from sound sleep by the screechinG
. Of police whistles, and Florence and
: Arthur who had not gone TO bed
:, rushed up to tell me that Zeppelins
had been sighted. | put on one OF
two things and came down but We
y heard nothing apart from a few re-
I ports In the distance and soon retired
No bombs fell in our neishborhood
{ that night but much damage was done
Il In southeast London. and I personally
> knew Of one poor home where both
II parents and three children lost their
e lives through an incendiary bomb
. ION the following evening people
IS were all feeling very secure and gay
II ing to one another that a raid on two
consecutive nights was not 20 bs
l. thought. Yet that very evening a,
e about a quarter TO Il ! heard reports
and the patrol whistles sounded i'm
/. mediately afterwards. Florence and
II | went to the door and We We're soor
II looking at the strangest sight / have
ever seen. The sky was lit up h.
y searChlights, Converging at the poinr
= where they showed the balloon Of +
e Zeppelin moving along with apparent
U slOwnesS some miles away. with shells
e from our anti-aircraft guns BURSTING
1t all round it. IT looked 70 me some
I thing like a yellow cigar, although
n some one called it q silver sausage
e After about ten minutes 1t disappeared
rather suddenly. 1t may have beer
hidden by the shell smoke, but at
cordng TO some observers IL dis
charged a quantity OF Opaque gas anc
lg vanished in cloud of its own making
What with the darkoned streets be
low, the thunder and flashing or th'
&c guns, the airship moving through II
ul minous skies, and dropping bombs oC
ld casionally. the sight was most awe
le inspiring and suggested scene from
al Revelations, rather than one from tn
le life of peaceful London su burb "
le were not on Count Zeppelin's visitint
Id list that night, but his craft did grea
e deal of damage elsewhere, in Liver
at pool for instance q bus was blown :
s. pieces and nine people were Killed ar
x II INJURED Il