The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-04-18

3 lallO'u IN ' tTt '.luL w 80 bll' "a l'lt
machines together and | made sew
eral exhibition flights for Gen. Car
rama. He wis delighted. Soon We
were ordered to Canpechp. H. the
junglcs 81 Yucatan. The Carranzistas
were fighting here in a hostile country
with a small force. and our troops did
not know the country nor the positions
uf the enemy.
The only possible way to map the
country or locate the enemy WI. 10y
aeroplane. We had three noncompliance
built at the old Molshnt factory here.
We had flown in different parts o.
the Carranzista territory with good
results. but here was to be the real
test Of the efficiency Of the aeroplane
in Mexican warfare.
The only possible space to fiy from
was small square IN the centre o.
the town, surrounded by adobe
houses. For miles around there was
nothing but rocks and jungles and
not u possible place to land and IN
addition most Of the country was oc-
cupied by the enemy. told Alberto
Salinas that IL would be possible to
fly out OF the town square but that I
would not be able to land again with
out piling up the machine although I
thought | could do It without ipiuriny
myself.
He ordered me 10 go aheaI | few
out over the enemy's country. iocnt-
ing several of their strong positions
and batteries. AZ ! had calculated, |
had TO pile UP he machine - land i
IN the small square. hu, got OF
without even a broken nose.
THE next day they blew up sew
eral houses and levelled off small
flying field for us Then took up
Alberto Salinas and we few twenty
miles out over the hostile country
dropping circulars. These men who
were fighting us here had been told
by their generals that they were fight
| ing for Gen. Carranza. When they
learned from our circulars thai they
had been deceived. 1000 Of them de-
! serted and Joined our force.
some time after this an incident
happened which caused me - ~cs.gn
and return To the states Salinas or
dered me to take up heavy plssCu-
ger as an observer. | pointed - a
hacienda not far off and asked him
If II belonged Ia MS. He said Il al.
I knew that with the heavy passenger
/ would not no able To get high enough
TO avoid bullets 10y the time We Were
over the hacienda.
We no sooner got into the air
than bullets from machine guns am
rifles began To tear through the wings
from the direction Of this hacienda
We got back all right but the plane
was badly ridd'cd and had Ia pile
II up n landing This left Us ~,
one machine. The incident slow hcN
little the leaders know about their own
positions and who is fighting for ard
| who against them.
The next day Salinas ordered me
to go up again N a high wind.
told him 1t would he Impossible to &c;
down without smashing our last ma
chine.
Its the Generals orders he said
81 refuse to fly | said, and |
resign
MY Original contract had run ou'
some time before and ! had refused
to renew i except on week to week
basis. | had consistently refused t
b. made an officer IN the army 50
that | would be compelled to obc,.
impossible orders.
- few days after this / let Tor
Vera cruz. hadr Gen. CurrauHt rnud-bN
| and came t. New Orleans.
This incident m Iucatdn WAS but
! the elimination Of many such things
| So that | was beginning To- hay,
/ enough Of Mexico and MeNiCans. Tn"
/ experience was novel and | got my
salary promptly every month In a
/ New York bank draft. But | ives
/ ever anxious to grt into tho noIn
/ operations In IN north. where VIA
had fine Wright b.planes tylnI
! against rs Gen. Carranza for some
/ reason preferred to keep his lilors IN
/ the jungle country
II had many opportunities To try
, bomb dropping In actual warfare. GU.
I bombs each CARR q twenty-four sticks
+ of dynamite and weighed twenty No
pounds. We could carry eight o. them
/ at a time on the machine. They WEI
3 specially rf'Ctiv" in destroying the
/ railroads on which the enemy was
! bringing up supply trains and troop
1T vas easy To fly along a railroad
releasing bomb after bomb. each on"
, of which would blow mp At l,aSt
B twenty-five feet of track. often
tried To hit the railroad stations. but
! i was Impossible to hit as small
! mark as a building from a safe
! height except 10y combination of acci-
/ dent and good luck
The moral effect of the bomb drop
ping was great. hut | doubt whether
, many persons were actually killed
W were too high To see the effect bat
| when We flew over town we could
see the people running to cover either
/ IN the jungle or N the adobe huus :
. II was impossible to see tn" soldiers
in the jungle. They We're completely
! hidden by the underbruSh. II VS.
, never safe TO ny low. Bullets were
always coming toward the machine
| when | was over the cnCmN's COun-
/ try, but most often the only way
, knew II was from the puifs OF Smok,
below. ! found that ! was absolutely
safe AT a height Of 1000 feet.
but flying over spray of hull"3
is by no means the greatest danger
10 he encountered in Mexico. even
| when onr spends most Of his tim
AZ the army headquarters ana has
, tho best the country affords. OF
course do not consider flying an
! extra hazardous risk and the danger
| from bullets was almost Nil
Time after time | was sent ont :.
! ny over towns occupied 10y hostil.