Norwich bulletin., 1915-02-24
When a British Cruiser Arrived.

Tho panic of the Turkish garrison and population of a small port near Beirut over the arrival of British cruiser and it's accompanying aerop!ane is described in a letter from a young woman missionary.
 "A two-funneled cruiser came in sight from the south at nine o'clock this morning. she writes At once there was great excitement. Every body who had roof went up on 1t and crowds lined tine seashore. Panic stricken Moslem women, carrying bundles and babies, ran for the orange groves Carts belonging to an orange man tore up the street loaded with dishevelled, distracted soldiers, while their officers galloped alongside.
 War in this corner of the world is like opera bouffe. Sections of Bedouin calvary in sWirling groups of thirty or fourty, pranced by, yelling vociferously. Then the High Com out of his vehicle, dashed past in his carriage, recently 'captured' from an English lady resident in the city. All were making for the trenches to the south among the sand hills.
 Meanwhile, however, the cruiser had passed the southern end of the city and was opposite the northern suburbs That was most troublesome, for the Commander, the RedouinS, and the soldiers all had to rush back down the streets and frignten her away from the north end of the town. Their tactics were evidently effective, for the cruiser turned slowly and came back again to the south. Of course they all followed her there. The boat stopped and anchored opposite the northern end of the town.
 Then came new development. A neat. small thing, like 9 brown bird, dropped over the side of tine cruiser into the sea, skinned the water, and gracefully rose up into the air. The soldiers hid nnder cactus hedges and fired their rifles at it, the Bedouins galloped about, shouting and firing the Commander himself fired at it, but it paid no attention. It hovered over the town a. feW moments and then disappeared towards the interior.
 'HThe town waited and watched the motioniess warship. An hour and a half passed and the seaplane returned. around a group of English buildings to which the Commander had trans ferred his household at the beginning of the war. That was trying coin cidence, so immediately more orange carts were brought and the Com nander's baggage, every scrap of it, including also some things -captured' from the former English occupants, was taken away off inland to a place of safety.
 "On flew the threatening brown bird, circEnE the German colony. the colony was evacuated at once. But the aeroplarie scared harmlessly back again, southwards towards it's nest, on which everybody thought it was going to drop.
 Tt dropped. A shout of joy went up from the soldiers in ambush under the cactus trees, for it had dropped into the sea, instead Now 1t would sink. lost forever. The shouting, tine shooting, the imprecations, were talk ing effect, and the Commander ordered more of it, to complete the destruction of the brown bird,
 But the aeroplane was darting like an arrow straight through the water, leaving a shiny track behind it. IL stretched out it's long arm and gently drew it up, and in a few minutes if
 '''Now. what next? wondered the onlookers. Why, nothing, replied the cruiser. Her tunnels began to smoke furiousis-, she turned her back on us all. and very slowly moved of could not get over the marvel of the aeroplane. Tn the air 1t can fly, or the water it can walk, said g, tall MosIen1. What can you do with a thing like that? Let us go home. But disaster followed close on the heels of the brown birds visit. fol that very afternoon several people mander. It had been a day of hot sunshine, and some had, unfortunately put their sunshades up But the Con- nander was a bright man, and he knew at once that they had been sig. mailing to the aeroplane. So they were