El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1916-04-27
AVIATORS BURN
BIPLANE WRECK
Capt. Willis Tells of Fall in
Mexico and of Wander
ings on the Desert.

Capt. r. H. willis, who with Lieut..
II. a. Dargue, dashed into the side OF
q mountain while riding in an aeroplane
in Mexico on wednesday. April 1s. ara
rived in El Paso Wednesday afternoon
from Columbus. n. NJ. He left at 10
o'clock Wednesday night for San An
tonic, where a scalp wound and a badly
lacerated left leg viii be treated in the
army hospital. Capt. Willis explains
the accident to the army air plane as
being due 70 insufficient power to make
q rise above several rugged peaks.
Fell on Turn.
THE machine fell" he said. while
Lieut.. Dargue was attempting to make
n turn. We were passing at the time
above a ravine between mountain sides
when We saw ahead OF US a peak that
we knew we could not make. Lieut..
DarEue attempted to make a turn and
try a landing. but the motor dropped
Off and we went headfirst into the side
OF the mountain.
Both OF Us were knocked uncon-
sciOua and when I came too I called for
Dargue. but he did not answer. was
pinned under a lot OF wire and plane
debris I thought he had probably
thought me dead or gone off for help.
After a time ! heard him groan. It
was on the FAR side from mo and
could not see. Then he orawled over to
where T lay beneath the entanRlements
and together we worked for a long
while cutting the wires. It was fully
fhree-quarters OF an hour before I was
free.
Scalp wound.
NY head was aching from a scalp
wound which Dargue dressed the best
he could to stop the flow OF blood. After
that we started off to find help. The
machine was a total wreck so we did
not feel much concern about It. We
burned what was left and set out with
what rations we possessed.
I'VE walked all OF wednesday, the
18th. and all Of that night, resting only
for a brief while. II was not until the
fourth day afterwards, or Saturday.
that we came TO an American camp OF
soldiers. when our wounds were treated.
"Our greatest suffering was from the
want OF water Now and then In our
course we would come across a murky
pool Of water from which we scrapec
or the TOP and got at the allrali stained
water below. 1t was not the best OF
drinking water, but II Quenched our
thirst
I'VE avoided any places where Mexi-
cans might be living or camping, fear
ing that we should come upon bandits
or Viliista sympathizers, and once,
while lodging away from detection py /
several Mexicans. we found a spring OF |
water when we were about tagged out |
with thirst"
Lieut. Dargue. whose injuries were |
slight has recovered from them and is /
now at Columbus
Both Capt. Willis and Lieut.. Dargue /
were delirious from the strain Of the |
four davs' privation when they reached /
the army camp where they were pro- I
vided for and had many strange halluci- /
nations. They arrived Tuesday night AZ 4
Columbus. coming mp from the scene /
OF their M luck in a motor truck
Was with sixth Infantry.
Cart willis is well known in FL Paso, /
having formerly been a lieutenant in |
the Sixth infantry before he entered |
into the aviation corps. He was travel |
ing with Lieut. Dargue at the time the |
accident occurred as an observer. and |
the accident occurred some four hours |
after the two airmen had set forth on I
their expedition.