The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1916-08-29
OVER BATTLE LINES
IN AN AER0PLAnf

London, Aug. 28.--Writing from
British army headquarters in France.
a special correspondent of a London
newspaper describes a trip in an aero-
plane over the battle area as follows:
Under any conditions, ones first
flight In an aeroplane must. pre-.
sumably, be a thrilling experiences:
but 1t Is not given to many to make
their first flight under such time
and amid such surroundings
TT was day of bright sunshine.
with little haze, with deep blue
sky, across which little clouds float
ed, sending their shadows curiously
small and distinct, chasing across the
unlit land below us. We kept below
the clouds-barely scraping one, a.
1t were, now and again-at from 5000
to 1000 feet up, both because extra
height would have meant less visibility
and because. IL we were likely to meet
company anywhere II would be at
higher levels. and II was not an occa-
sion when an air fight in the upper
sky was being invited So we flew
comfortably low. and below us spread
oil the beautiful land OF Picardy. 1t II
really much more beautiful world
as the birds and the angels see it.
Next to the ncatness and beauty
of IT all, I marvelled most at the
emptiness Of the roads For some
four weeks now I have spent many
hours each day upon these roads, ana
nothing could have seemed more pre-
posterous than to call them empty.
From above / saw all the usual things
the long trains of lorries and horse
transport and the columns of march- q
ing men (with much more space be-
tween the ranks than "ou would sup
pose until you look down on them
from above). and the individual veri-
cles-but what was so surprising was
the immense extent of white road lett,
on which there were no vehicles or
men.
I'VE did not. Of course. cross the
lines nor even go near enough to
tempt the possible fire OF an enemy
gun. Parallel to the line we passed
from north to south and again from
south to north. There was no clean
cut edge to the belt OF desolation: only
the patchwork of ripening grain and
flaming mustard and growing crops
ceased. There was an intermediates
country OF indeterminnate greens and
browns, and then the waste. Beyond
was the terrible belt of smoke. Smoke,
too, rose here and there on this Aid0
of the belt. and from where we were
shrapnl and high explosive shells
alike seemed to be bursting on the
ground. No sound of gunfire or shell
explosion reached one through tho
noise of ones own propeller and the
whistle OF the wind. Like the farm
land and the villages, 1t was all part
of painted picture. -, N
"One thing which the experiences
made me- understand as I had not I'M
derstood before, was the amazing
value OF aeropiane observation. Proof
of IL one has in many stories which
one hears. and in the beautiful photo
graphs with which our Flying Corr1
keep the army supplied. Those pho
tographs are wonderful In their detail;
but still more wonderful In the clear.
ness with which each detail down be-
low stands out before the eyes
Another thing which 1t taught me
also was the Joy of flight
MY trip was only a trivial incident
But 1t has increased tenfold my al~
ready admiration of the men who
handle these machines as my pilot
handled mine. who take them up to
three and four times the height to
which / went. and do not stay on this
side of that dreadful line Of deso1a-
ton, but pierce 1t, and keep patrols
ing. day by day. those upper regiOna
over the enemy's country to find him
when he rises there above the cloudA
War nowadays in most OF its aspects
is terrible. sordid thing. But this y
fighting of the airmen Is more than
the fighting of our ancient heroes
and comes nearer to the battling Of
the old gods than anything that msn
have done or dreamed"