The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1917-08-30
Fits TO HAVE /
FIGHTING PLANE
says Demand for Young Men
In Aviation Service Is
Great
OLDER MEN HANDLE
TRANSPORT WORK
Liner on Which He Sailed Escaped from
Submarine by Using Smoke Screen =
Thinks Question of Endurance Will
Determine Result.

STANLEY {. Fits, who has been in the
mi nitions transport service in France for
the French government since last May,
ar ived at his home in Brattleboro
ye 'terday afternoon. He went this
af ,ernoon to Watertown, Mass. to see
his brother, Sergt Robert L. Fits. who
IL in the ordnance department and who
win sail soon for France with Mai. Gen.
Clarence r. Edwards. commander OF the
|: 9th division.
Mr.. Fits is still under the French gov
ernment, but he intends to enter the
aviation service of the American govern
ment, and as soon as he signs up with
America he will be released by France
! The French liner on which he returned
, to America had an experience with a
German U-boat on this trip. and foiled the
undersea craft with a smoke screen. She
was ploughing her way through rolling
sea when cannon shot was heard
Simultaneously the vessel began zigZag
course and passengers on deck were sure
they spied periscope in the distance
Several members OF the crew rushed
to the side OF the vessel nearest the
enemy and swung out wooden frames on
(which were fastened huge bombs. looking
much like bandboXes. These were ignited
I'm succession, making dense cloud of
smoke that it was impossible for anyone
ION the vessel to see the periscope. The
lFrenchman, on which We're l76 passen-
gers, turned her stern to the cloud, and
iputting on full steam, was soon some
distance away.
After visiting his brother Mr. Fits
, will return to Brattleboro to undergo
an operation in the Memorial hospital
and he expects to be ready to return to
France in about six weeks, unless he de-
cdes to enter an aviation school here
: His present intention is to enter an
American school in France He saws
there is great demand for aviators and
a large proportion of the young men who
. went from America to take up the trans
: port work have left it, as the work can
be done by older men.
= While there was always danger in the
l.; transport service, as has been apparent
II from letters from Mr.. Fits which have
! been published in The Reformer, there is
: !, more danger i'll the aviation service. "a
|, the machines are made targets for enemy
u fire, both from ground batteries and from
II machine guns attached to enemy air
y planes. The machine gun fire is much
more effective than the shell fire, and it i.
from machine guns that a large proper.
a tion of the French airmen have beer
III killed off.
I. An airpane such a. Mr.. Fits expect.
N to have is. equipped with a machine gun
above the operator, so adjusted that tn,
bullets pass between the revolving planes
1t flies above battery and gives signal
to show whether the guns have the cor
ID rect range on the enemy's works, The at
tacks of opposing machines take plac
usually about 1000 yards above tn
I'll earth.
q. Mr. Fits believes that a general mill
,r tary victory by one side or the other
or practically impossible and that the out
is come of the war is a question of whic
tn side can hold out the longest.
on The only Brattleboro boy whom Nj
ra Fits has seen in France is Joseph {
.re Estey, whom he saw once when he wa
located about l. miles from the cam
do with which Mr. Fits was connected.