Newark evening star and Newark advertiser., 1916-01-10
CONTINUED from Saturday,


AS I look back upon the weary
months which preceded the success
sion of events as unforeseen as they
were rapid and tragic, which launched
me forth into the sky in quest of the
pirates stronghold with but a single
clue to guide me, l can see nothing
but disappointment and failure meet
ing my colleagues and myself at
every step. My first plans of the
aeroplane, in which when the time
should come | meant to attempt to
hunt down the pirates i'm their strong
hold. proved a failure after the ma
chine was completed, and | was
obliged TO map out new plans and
start all over again. Even worse than
that was our utter failure in all at
tempts to locate the agents whom the
outlaws undoubtedly had throughout
the country. Whoever they were
they baflled the best detectives. and,
though my suspicious of Colmslie and
estrada were never lulled to rest.
was totally unable to produce a shred
of tangible evidence against them or
TO induce my colleagues TO share my
suspicions. Yet it was through the
pirates undiscoverable agents alone
that we could hope to learn whence
they flew on their errands of destruc-
ton. But one definite step had been
taken toward carrying out our plans
when the aeroplane which l was
building should be ready, and that
step rested solely upon conjecture
Believing that wherever the pirates
c sDt7rT TI,F,l1 ff,1,t 10 -
where to the south. we had
established, through American agents.
depots in the Southern States,
in Mexico and i'm South America,
where supplies of gasoline could be
obtained upon which motive power
depended, and where repairs could
he made, if necessary. That and the
ceroplane at last completed. repre-
sented the sum total of our actual
accomplishment
But if we had accomplished little.
the feVerish, nation wide, panicky ac-
tivity in the pursuit of the pirates.
which had, succeeded the ineXplicable
lethargy displayed during Eahe first
twelve months of their depledations,
appeared to be accomplishing even
less; in fact, was proving a hindrance
rather than help to the formation
and prosecution of any effective plan
u.
ally swarmed in the sky. In addition
to the patrols established by the fed
eral government there were State and
municipal patrols. Every city of suf-
lcient size and wealth to apprehend
attack had its aeroplane patrol; every
State had its air fleet. In addition to
all these there were hundreds of vol
unteer adYenturers, like myself, flying
without the trifiing formality of TAX
indeed, federal and State governments
had not as yet provided. The prac-
tice of the art of flying received an
impetIs which equaled in a few short
months a dozen years of normal
growth. There We're monoplanes, BIZ
planes, hydro-aeroplanes. dirigibles.
hundreds of them, in the midst of
which the pirates prosecuted their
destructive raids with contemptuous
daring and insolent success. The uni
VerSal vigilance caused a change in
their tactics that was all They now
new two and three together, instead
Of singiy, and used bombs of more de-
structive fo'ce than formerly. Swoop-
ing down from attitudes unattainabe
save to a very few of their opponents,
one or two of the pirate craft with
their formidable armament of machine
guns would sweep from their path any
patrols which opposed them as easily
as a royal eagle might scatter flock
of pigeons, clearing the sky for their
bomio-laden consort; then, wheeling
in air above the point of at
tack they would effectually block
all attempts at interference on
the part of re-enforcements hurry
ing to the rescue. Twice within
as many months the swarming pa
trolls gave battle with a valor as
heroic as Intellectual, and the whole
nation thrilled with horror as it read
of bloody defeats at New York and
Baltimore, and waited in hourly dread
for news that the nations capital
itself had fallen a prey to the marau-
ders.
AS a general rule, however, the
pirates did not give battle. Acting
always ON the offensive, and evidently
receiving sure intelligence of the
movements of their adversaries. they
could always choose when and where
to strike, and so could easily avoid
encountering overwhelming forces.
In short, our American air men, in
addition to being vastly inferior to
the foe in the speed, armament and
stability of their craft, had to contend
with more than the ordinary disad-
yantages of defensive war.
CHAPTER VII.
The White Falcon.