The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1918-07-10

broke down altogether and | was forced
whedxsS AaaNAAtftaiided by stone vevtAi
on the top of hill. Very difficult as |
didn't know the country at all nor my |
plane either Made it. O. X however, |
though ! jumped a stone wall and a
group of bushes, but my engine was
ruined while in the air | was a little
scared by its tremendous explosions, but
you don't have time to think of it until
you get down This can scarcely happen
again and | know all the fields around
here now for 80 miles.
| was fred at and hit for the first time
a few days ago by an anti-aircraft bat
terry from the ground, but of course
didn't know of it until we got back to-
camp.
| flew over the Swiss frontier and
followed it for fifteen miles south with
an observer, at pretty good altitude,
early one morning. We passed over the
French advance forts at height of
| nearly 1900 metres, at which height a
| hill of 1000 feet looks level with the
country below it. Wantastiquet would
simply look like a patch Of dark green
woods with the river and town on same
level The Retreat tower would look like
a tiny white circle, but the island would
stand out well. I could land very well
on the island if the wind was blowing
up the river as | could skim the sur
face of the river a half mile or so not
higher than 10 feet and stop finally right
up on the bah diamond
II Anyway we drew some fire from either
our. own or a Swiss fort and later found
|, IL. L I Il l.
wing way out on the tip. Where it was
fired and how many shots of course wei
never know, and I've got it patched now
We have French markings ON the plane
but as the Germans come over with the
same at times they can't be seen from
the ground.
4 wonderful flight that day with
superb view Of the snow-covered Alp
= far away to the southeast of us will
: Mt Blanc standing out sharply w
. landed on a hillside beside small q
: mile) narrow lake just in France ant
some miles south of the absinthe town
Another plane was with me and none ha
4 ever been seen in this little village be
: fore We stayed all day there and fe1
: back after supper in 25 minutes, di,
! lance of 60 kilometres. Some town CIR
had placed huge bouquets of flowers
the seats of our planes for us and | hav
: mine still in my room. Each one had
!, little note in French-mine was signe
: Gabrielle
of The entire town was up on the ere
OF this hill to watch us take off, as v
Nv call it. When they heard us tuning |
of the big motors you should have seen Il
y crowd back away The wind from Il
I propeIlers will blow off hats 80 feet al
n more behind the plane, and man car
ed stand directly behind them without hol
Va ing on to some part of the plane
ds To get away | had to roll full spe
ON down this hill and then lift her up in
90 the air and over the lake which W
i've right below us. | got off first a
mr. circled the Hill few times until s.
cot the other plane leave far below u.s. Til
a are hard to see from above. being pal
Il ed green and brown to resemble tr
,qb and grass
un- Went up 1900 metres right over
in own field Saturday a. m. for some
the tillery spotting work and circled aror
for an hour with an T. S. F. (telegrs
up sans fiD sending down corrections
,ay, fire. We have ground signals put