The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1918-10-31

Rome.-One bright morning of the
summer just ending an enemy hydro
plane bearing the black cross of Aus
tria appeared In the heavens over
The anti-aircraft batteries prepared
to shoot. The seaplane alighted on the
shore at --. Soon after it was
known that the pilot and his COM
panion were both ~Irredentists who had
fled from Austria.
The two had come from the island
of Lussin, at the entrance of the Gulf
of Quaranero, opposite the shores of
and of --.
The pilot cannot give his name
told me about their escape.
"From the outbreak Of the war"
he said, "my companion and / had
been Joined with others from Irreden-
ia at the aviation station of Lussin Is
land as motormen. The life had be-
come insuppOrtable. Seeing that
every means of flight would be impos-
sible we decided, since neither of us
was skilled In aviation, to risk flight
In a hydroplane.
There was nothing to do but to get
ready and trust to God. The night OF
July / we went to bed with all our
clothes on at midnight, without at
tracing notice. At five in the morn
ing we ran under the shadows of the
wall from our quarters toward the
hangar, where the sentinel paced his
beat.
Prepare for Flight.
Entering the hangar coolly, as If
we were going to carry out orders,
we dismantled the planes attached
to the station of their guns and placed
them in the apparatus destined for es-
cape.
after locking the telephone opera
tor In his cabin, we opened the heavy
doors of the hangar. We got ready for
immediate flight and tested the cyTfn-
ders.
"When all was ready we whispered
that there was nothing left but to take
the risk.
W. toiitL " locAtu bOtts ANObVog
was near. He cut the telephone wires
while i, with a strong push against
the levers, slid the apparatus out on
the sea. We mounted the plane, which
was soon blown by a gust of wind In
front Of the Austrian barracks, the
bow pointed toward the shore. 1t took
us an anxious hour to turn 1t toward
the open sea. Finally we started the
motors, but with an explosion and a
rumble that would awaken even the
dead.
THE officers, the commandant and
the soldiers of the station appeared
at the windows of the barracks and
watched us with surprise, but with
out suspicion, as we took our mysteri-
Gus leave, no doubt thinking we had
secret orders from some one higher
up.
For several yards the ~hydroplane
glided along the surface of the wa
ter, unwilling to rise a second time,
apparently. before the wind which
blew from behind, and possibly on &C
count Of the new pilot, who was as In
experienced as he was audacious. AT
last, however, we succeeded in rising
from the sea.
Face Many Perils.
"While we were intent on u man
euvers we found ourselves suddenly
opposite Mount Veli-Strasa, where the
Austrians have anti-aircraft batteries,
We made a terrific effort, with the
bow pointed upward and u souls
commended to- God.
1--WE crossed the ridge of the noun
tain not ten yards above the batteries
on its summit.
after half an hour Of flight, rising
to 1000 meters, we ran into a thick
cloud bank which shut off all view OF
the Austrian and Italian coasts and OF
the sea. We could not find our way
Moreover, the pilot was without hei
met or glasses and could not steer be
cause his eyes filled with tears. We
suffered an attack Of nerves. All the
while the apparatus vas following the
Italian coast and, discovering this, We
recovered our calm In an instant.
MY comrade, who was acting a:
lookout, tied a white cloth to a gur
barrel and tried to signal the shore
our surrender. We % alighted ant