Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1918-04-23
In m Air Raid on Paris.

C6I0 ItOm mIbB w iuiLI0O VI OWN VI
Minneapolis, who is chemist In . Red
Cross hospital in Paris. These two let
tors have not had to do directly with Wal
activities, though incidental to them
But some time since Miss Swift had the
operations Of war brought pretty close to
her BY an air raid. No, 1t isn't war, 1t IL
murder, just 90 that bombardment with
long range guns is murder. However,
here ID Miss Swift's description OF the
raid, which was first publishod In the
Minneapolis Journal:
81 had just dropped OF to Sleep" she
wrote, "When the siren shrek registered
air raid on my brain, sleepy - 1t was.
| II You hear that sound once In Paris and
get Its full meaning you can never hear
the same sound again, anywhere 10 the
world, without getting the same sensa.
tion. The sirens on fire engines which
60 tearing through every section Of the
city mean that the enemy planes have
crossed the outer defences and No. 2,
do-sol, do-sol ad infinitum, means that
they are actually upon Us.
STARS AND PLANES MINeLE.
81 began to hear No. and people
chattering on the cobblestones below my
window. crawled out of bed and put
on my coat to 60 ont on my balcony
for q look. The stars were 80 thick
that I couldn't tell the planes from the
stars; they look exactly the same, but
move along perceptibly with now and
then q glimpse of q red or blue side
light. l stood on the balcony and lis
tened.
"First there was the clatter Of crowds
the distant swapping, bang, bang, bang
of the antisircraft guns that are set on
the outskirts 80 that their noses CON.
verge over Paris.
"Then heard new sound, an inter-
mittent engine overhead. I knew by
Intuition 1t was q boche plane and not
a second after the engine stopped itf
rythm for one breath and / saw q flash,
something leaving the body Of this spot
In the sky, and felt rather than heard
an awful boom. I watched the skies
several minutes longer and could see
only signal lights, star shells that drop
and break, drop and break from the
French planes. The booming continued,
sometimes near and sometimes far of.
The all clear alarm sounded at 2:30
A. n.
APARTMENT DEMOLISHED.
"The next morning learned that not
300 yards from our apartment, q big five
story building was utterly demolished
down to the second floor, not piece OF
stone as large as paving block left
unbroken. The shell evidently exploded
at the contact, but there's not thing
left worth saving. A grand piano is
standing on one leg under burden OF
debris and the piano stool Is down In
the street. Curtains, pictures and even
q pocket handkerchief are caught in the
trees and wires on the opposite side OF
the avenue. Several were killed or
wounded there.
"Auotber bomb fell on q garage just
back of our court. The wall looks ss
though crew of laborers bad been hired
to punch out bricks at close intervals all
over 1t. It is very evident that they
were trying for the Arc de TrIomphe.
II feel now that living In Paris rather
than the front may hold some real war
experiences for me after all. A French
aviator dropped not far away and q call
was sent to our hospital. he was found
to be very seriously hurt. His presence
of mind In controlling bis machine was
wonderful. A man who understands 1t
all said he couldn't have made lighter
landing. Even 80 part Of one of the
big statues at Place de ls Concorde is
broken off and the pillars are spattered
with his blood. A young aviator I
know OF who was on leave went back to
camp that night saying that as long as q
comrade bad been put out of action be
felt be must do what he could and re-
turned at once to replace the man who
fell. His leave had not expired. he
was q writer and had intended to write
his experiences during that leave.
FRENCH GRIM, DETERMINED.
"It is great experience. Such q
grim lot of people as one sees on the
streets here. People who have given all
they possess In sons and money for
three years now see their children and
homes destroyed by these murderous
bombs.
"We all have talked of the advisability
of cabling our parents that We were safe
after the raid, but decided that as the
raids will recur It would be poor to
h1fah n ~rooalonk For 20 -o didn't