American Falls press. [volume] (American Falls, Idaho) 1907-1937, 1917-06-29

with very opportunity for the latter
10 take proper counter measures.
II is not necessary to fall back on
imagination for "a picture OF what
8 ,0OU American aviators would mean
iu the wars decisive battle. for. on q
small scale, the British army enjoyed
practical control OF the air al the re-
cent battle Of Messines. The intrepid
airnen OF the Royal Flying corps. We
read, did not stop at their usual tasks
OF reconnaissance. artillery spOttin8
and combating hostile machines; they
carried on systematic raids far behind
the German lines, dropped bombs on
railroads with demOralizing effect. at
tackled general-staff automobiles with
deadly machine-gun fire, attacked m-
fantry on the march and In the
trenches. dropped bombs on German
airdromes, and In every possible way
Inflicted heavy losses on an enemy al
ready fully occupied with land forces
employing every machinery known 10
the modern soldier. So. basing our
Judgment on what the British airmen
accomplished at Messinea. IL is not
difficult to speculate as TO the results
of a battle In which ten, twenty or
thirty timessa JAS many aerOplanes would
take a part.
Not so much Is II troops that our
allies require a. present as IL is aero
planes and airmen. for given absolute
control OF the air. a decisive defeat
could be inflicted right now on the
German forces by the entente troops.
with his artillery obliged TO shoot at
unseen. elusive targets, with his every
move known instantly 10 the opposing
generals. with his batteries. machine
gun positions. supply stations. ammu-
milton dumps and other military estab-
lishmenta subjected 20 "a hurricane of
accurate. devastating fire, with his
men tn constant terror of a%erOplanes
dropping out OF the skies and flying
less than 100 feet above the earth.
pouring streams OF accurate machine
gun lire into their ranks; with reliev-
ing troops attacked with machine-gun
IRE by ayiators before they even reach
ed the tronches-lndeed. just as they
we're leaving the troop trains, with
his communications. both rail and
road. utterly d-lsorganized by continu-
GUS bombing and bursts OF machine
gun lire and accurate shelling' and
with his utter lack OF knowledge Of
what the enemy Nes preparing for him
back Of his owu lines, the German
commander ON any given sector would
he in "a %perilous, hopeless position.
surely he would be unable to with
stand the Onslaught of a half million
fresh infantry, OF whose presence he
had no previous knowledge and there
fore no corresponding forces of de
tenders.
An this can be accomplished by
5000 American airmen. We have the
manufacturing facilities ready for the
undertaking. and We have the invalu-
able fund of knowledge of the great
est aeronautical constructors In the
allied countries at our disposal, on
surfing an American product In the
future that will be the equal of any
the world over. We have the facilities
for training the men and we have sut-
hclent volunteers for aviation service
to prepare an army of flyers several
times that required.
Are we going 20 miss this II op-
p|ortunity or winning a speedy victory !
That Is the question which must be
answered By congress Ina the imme-
diate uture-Scientihc American.