The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1915-02-12
French AIRMAN IS
,PUZzLING MYSTERY
Engages In Daring Exploits
but Keeps Identity
Secret.

New York Feb. Past the cur
tain of the censorship which hides
the battlefelds of Europe there occa-
sionally comes some fragment of ro-
nance, some broken recital of Ho-
merle deeds, which lights up for the
moment the somber record of terri
flying casualties in this war of me-
chanics, says the New York Herald.
Such a tale was brought i'm a let
ter from a French aviator to his sis
ter in New York. in which he tells
of an attack from monoplanes on a
German supply train. The attack,
made at twilight. was led by "X"-
Frances man % the air, whose iden-
tity. is a mystery but exploits are
trench and campfire talk. Day after
day in his great, swift monoplane,
which he cares for as men care for
their dearest things, he cruises
through the air, defying German
marksmen. automobile guns and the
elements.
Through his daring he has become
the most famous scout of the French
aviation corps, to whom is intrusted
the most difficult and dangerous of
reconnaissance missions. This is
the story of one of his exploits told
by brother aviator:
"a bitter wind lashes the clouds
until they are like drunken things
in their twistings. A somber veil
of darkness that chokes the light
slowly adds to the grim hostility of
the heavens.
zone by one from the four points
of this grumbling turmoil. now
clutched by night. the aviators are
coming back to their resting place.
From a point on the horizon marked
by pillows of clouds that seem to
weigh downward until they touch the
earth afar off they come in a long,
shivering line.
High above the sullen wind which
seems to snarl and bite at them,
sounds the song of their motors
piercing, raucous, defiant. They are
above the hangers now. The en-
gineS are shut off. Silently. like
monstrous birds whose wings are
taut. they descend, swinging and
dipping in ever decreasing circles.
las the monoplanes skid along the
rough. frozen earth the aviators and
the passengers fall to the ground,
where they lie exhausted, burning
with languor of exhaustion from
which they feel they will never re-
cover. To move. it seems, is to die.
A numbness that is cold and that is
utter WEAKNESS encompasses them.
Yet they know,as know, lying there,
that tomorrow morning at break of
day, we will begin again this mon
strous business of war; that we will
scurry forth into the angry skies
again, seeking men we may kill or to
whom we may direct others that
they may kill them.
"HaTk--a faint buzzing reaches
our ears. All raise their heads. Is
II a German in his taube? There
he is! There he isl The cries
come from all. Darling from the
confused mass of gray clouds which
brood beyond us, there comes a
trim. sleek monoplane. In moment
of clear light we recognize it. So
neat it is and so clean even at that
distance that we know it. Little by
little this monoplane, which flies so
daringly. so surely. comes down. 1t
is Y.
1--WE all greet him with pleasure
and admiration, for X we love for his
daring, his sangfroid. Every day he
roams through the air. careless of
the German taubes. He lives on
high and comes down only to tell
what he has seen.
Quickly he tells us that he has
come down for purpose. An i'm
portant German convoy of munitions
and supplies is to pass along a rail-
road fifty kilometers to the north
east. The languor which oppressed
us flies like magic. With a word we
are up testing our motors. calling
for petrol. The commander tele-
phones the general. One by one the
aviators rise into the air. One by
one they fall into line behind the
chief of the squadron. Ahead of us
all is X flying high, gayly leading us
on our way, At a high altitude and
a fast speed We went on our way.
our eyes fixed on our leader.