The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1918-08-13
SAUSAGE STRAIT INC PARTY
AN ADDED ATTRACTION

Copyright 1918 by the United Press)
WITH THE AMERICAN AIRMEN
IN FRANCE. July 10 CBy Man)-A
sausage strafing party is about as
much fun as a zeal hun fight among
bunch OF aviators Our last one
was decidedly a success We followed
the plan OF soaring Heinie TO death.
said Eddie Rickenbacker. all American
ace and erstwhile auto racer
He says:
This was an organized strahng par
~ and was extra on our bill along the
front We did It voluntarily. and for
the fun OF 1t. 1t wasn't exactly work
We organized the strahng party in
TO two groups. One started out early
and got high altitude by flying back
and forth twenty minutes or more
before the second group started up
That first group was the strafng party.
The second party went up and
crossed the lines at a low altitude.
The Germans were evidently surprised.
Their establishment turned into amaze
ment when the low-hying group Of
Americans began doing stunts right
over the German guns. Loops. side
slips and all safe stunts
Ii was as big an insult as the Ger
man mind could stand and they turn
ed loose with vengeance Black puffs
We're all around us but we kept on with
motors at full speed diving looping,
turning and making them still madden.
Meantime the group which went up
first crossed lines at high altitude with
motors OFF. gliding along. They were
unnoticed on account OF the racket
OF the motors OF the stunt groups. and
succeeded in getting positions above
half a dozen balloons before Heinie
was the wiser.
Then they dived. each man straight
tor balloon shooting as he came. the
guns being loaded with ircendaries.
Out OF every sausage there came
an observer hanging on a parachute
and the machines on the ground fran
tically hauled in the boche sausages.
The whole flock OF American planes
sped across the line. having cleaned
the sector OF German balloons with
one general dive.
Heinie won't forget that little sur
prise party for while. It wasn't as
dangerous as 1t sounded. for his guns
are set for high altitude. AS gen
eral rule the German arches are more
TO scare you than to bring you down
II Is the shots from an opponent that
are more dangerous.
There is one gimper IN the CROWD.
who is the most punished OF US all.
He never failed to draw IRE. for soma
reason or other He has rather poor
eyesight and cant see the boche IN
time. AS & result they're always
picquing on him.
One day he came down with seven
bullet holes in his fuselege and an
other raked his rudder control. When
he landed he Jumped out OF his plane
and hoped around like a chicken to
see what damage was done TO the
plane. thinking nothing about himself.
Just then an alert came in. He
jumped in his place in jiffy and shout
ed: Let me at en-. Ill get 'em
the sons OF Boches Then he was of
in a minute and drove the Germans
home. but not until he had some more
bullets planted in his machine
1t takes courage OF a special sort
TO stand the arches and bullets. Cap
tain Norman Hall who IS now pris-
oner in Germany was an. ideal aviator
in this respect. AS the boys say. He
wasn't scared OF Heir
He was en- rtealist through and
through and was wounded seriously
one time while flying at the British
front He concluded that he owed his
life TO the fact that the bullet was
not an incendiary.
After he refused to use incendiary
bullets. he said he never wanted to
land a Boche II h could not do it
fairly. One OF his favorite games was
doing stunts to make the arches
shoot at him. He maintained it vast
ed valuable ammunition since 1t takes
thousands or shots to hit his plane