The Kansas City sun. (Kansas City, Mo.) 1908-1924, 1918-05-11

often happened, there were no witnesses and notn%
ing to confirm his success from an official point OF
view. In the afternoon he went up again, and,
by no means discouraged with his mornings e-
perience, he went to look for the enemy in the
neighborhood of the reservoir.
He was not long in appearing. Soulier soon saw
In his path an albatross biplane with three MI
trailleuses. Following his usual tactics, Souner
dropped from the altitude In which he was ny
ing, always very high, and swiftly pursued the
enemy. The albatross sought to escape from at
tack, but was overtaken by a light charge, and
fell, spreading itself out on the earth and taking
fire. The deed was done, but again the pilot look
ed about him for spectators who might supply the
confirmation necessary to his official recognition.
Unfortunately again there was no one who had
seen his triumph.
Soulier, however, hardly had time to indulge
in bitter reflections before a new danger and a
new opportunity presented itself.
Some kilometers further on he perceived a mag
nifcent observation balloon, lighted by the rays
of the setting sun.
Where the Drachens are there are also the
bursts of shrapnel, and toward the middle of these
clouds of black smoke Soulier guided his machine,
carrying it through the marvellous evolutions Of
which he is master. Again fate was against him,
for as he fred his twentieth cartridge his mi
trailleuse stopped, and there was nothing for the
pilot to do but to return to his own camp.
Turning with the object of making for home
quarters, Soulier saw himself beset by new enc
mics.
Two thousand meters above his head four en-
envy a%irplanes circled.
One of them came on at full speed and at 200
meters opened fire on him.
1t is at such moments as these that the aero
battle flyer finds himself at the height of his glory.
With every nerve taut, with every bit of skill
in play, he turns, twists and circles his
way out of such difficulties, and when he
l-a,-A - -
moment a glory almost unknown to other men.
A slide down the wing, a loop, then all the ga
NUT of beautifully executed maneuvers-whose
most valuable quality is their faculty of keeping
the enemy guessing where the machine will be in
the next secondhand Soulier had succeeded in
showing his heels to the enemy. Then, guiding
himself with one hand and repairing his mitrail-
leuse with the other, while at the same time he
continued his series of acrobatics, Soullier winged
his way to the French lines, succeeding in throw
ing off the first one and then another of his ad-
versarles.
To complete his mischance his motor weakened.
He had only one resource-to do the death drop.
he let himself fall in spirals, and the Bosches
believing that he had been sent down, beat their
wings as If in a dance of Joy.
Then suddenly the dead" French aviator right.
ed himself, began to arm anew his mitrailleuse
and with a last shot at his enemy, regained his
lines, able at last to say "alone."
The tolls and dangers of this terrible day had
counted for nothing, however, on the official rec
ord of the young aviator, but the following day
although his activities were by no means so con
tinuous, was to bring him the substantial recogni
ton that every war aviator longs for.
By the same bright star as that of the day be
fore he started on a morning flight, passing rapid
ly over the enemy trenches. Presently perceivinl
a D. F. w. scout machine, he attacked it vigor
ously.
In these single combats in which only two ma
chimes take part the fight is usually very soor
over. In three minutes the enemy had been beat
en-, the machine fell in flames and the two avia
tors were crushed on the ground. On this occa
sion observers in a balloon and some infantry
troops had been able to follow the duel and re
ported official confirmation so eagerly desired
That very night at the Bonne-Maison farm in 6
friendly ceremony the new ace was baptized IL
champagne.