Evening star., 1918-02-20
The OTHER ANGLE
Those British F1iers :
BY KIRK MILLER.

Back in the good old days when you
could get a slice of bacon; in your club
sandwich without n search warrant,
when spinning wheels didn't observe
heatless Mondays and when coal was
sold by the ton instead of the carat,
Paul Revere was given credit for being
the best all-round rider who ever
stepped into a motordome.
Then again in those golden days
when women bought their hats by the
pint and quart instead of by the acre,
when straw bonnets were worn in sum-
mer. not February, and when hoop
skirts were frequent, not freakish, old
Phil Sheridan got on the front page of
all the big dailies by doing twenty
miles to Winchester in three whispers
less than nothing fiat
Still and ALL at another epoch in our
transportation evolution, Lady Godiva
caused some lifting of eyebrows and
Struggling of shoulders wnen she won
the cross-country championship as
bareback equestrian of the universe by
sauntering through the streets of Cow
entry on milk-white steed. For that
she had all the theatrical managers
camping in her wake with offers of
nrty-two weeks engagements and 40
per cent of the picture royalties as an
extra inducement.
Also, ana what is more. Young Loch-
invarJ gave some of the ancient mar
atboners something to fret about when
he limped out of the west with his war
bride, but-and here is the only oint-
ment on the fiy-what chance would Z.
Revere, p Sheridan, Nine. Godiva and
Lochinvar have il they skidded back to
life today and risked a mean eye on
Col Charlie Lee and Lieut.. Sully OF the
British Flying Corps, who are. giving
almost daily Exhibitions in Washing
ton of what fool the field lark has
been making of mankind since Noah
dropped anchor-up until now?
Flying. according TO these British
gents. is easier than one of those
thirty-day shorthand courses and
much more lofty profession. Until Col.
Lee and Lieut.. Sully scared into town
Washing tons wings had been clipped
as far as downright. honest-to-good-
ness. bare-fisted flying is concerned,
and every day at noon. even those who
brought their lunches, park their
broken arches in Pennsylvania avenue
and crane their necks at the falling
4eai aia grapevine twIne.
Those birds can noSe-dive toward
ground and then fall away from the
earth so serenely that you Instinctively
ask for waivers on your breath. If
yo0 think it's easy to fall away from
terra firma just try making your feet
ask for a divorce from the ground;
tempted to knit with set OF boxing
gloves.
Col. Lee and Lieut.. Sully were intro
duced to Washington as the eminent
British fiiers. but the best name we can
for them is plain English spar
rows. Anyway, they've got all the Eng
lish sparrows we know looking like
sphinxes at an Egyptian wake.
Fact is, Washington won't have many
sparrows this year, for they've all got
jealous and gone out of the flying busi-
ness.
There isn't a sparrow left in town,
nor a wren, nor a mud lark, but is sore
as telephone subscriber, and if Lee
and Sully don't stay out of their golf
course they're going to leave Wash
ington with no more birds than the
w. K. & L. Co. has ears.
A farmer up in Maryland has planted
his early crops Oh the strength OF see
ing SO many birds go north since Sully
and Lee started their noon-day matt
nees.
Yep, times have changed since Loch-
invar crawled out OF the west, and
he and Revere and Sheridan ct al.
would break out with a rash of in
dignation if they should stage a ninth
inning come back against Messrs. Lee
and Sully of London. f. c.