New-York tribune., 1918-06-16

foe. His tracer bullets were passing
throughout the enemy plane. I
Climbed little higher and was diving
down ON this second Hun, and about
10 nrc when l saw tho German plane
60 mp in flames and crash to earth.
Doug had sent his Hun plane down
one minute after I had shot down
mine.
mind you, the fight took place only
earee tn e9, hundred n are metres up, in full view
by town; and it took place directly
above our aviation field. Furth ermore.
mine dropped about one hundred yards
TO the right, and 'Doug's' one hundred
yards TO the left of our field. These
are remarkable facts, for one of our
majors, who: with the French armv
since 1915, has shot down seventeen
machines, never had one land in
France,and here we go, right off the
bat and stage fight over our aero
drome and bring down two Huns right
on IL. 1t was an opportunity Of life
time-a great chance.
Crowd Turns Out
"Wnen we landed only our respective
mechanics were left in the 'dromc' to
help. US out of our flying clothes. The
whole camp was pouring out, flying by
on foot, bicycles, side cars, automo-
biles; soldiers, women, children.
majors, colonels, French and American
all poured out of the city. In ten
minutes several thousand people must
have. gathered. Doug and l congratu-
lated each other, and my mechanic, no
longer military, jumping up and down,
back instead of saluting, and yelled: ::
Damn it! That's the stuff, old kid!
Then Campbell and rushed to our
respective Hun wrecks.
"On the way there-it was only half
mile-I ran into crowd of soldiers
blue and khaki-pressing about one
man. l pushed my way through the
crowd, and heard somebody triumph
antly say to the surrounded man in
French: There he is; now you will
believe he is an American l looked
at the mana scrawny, poorly clad,
little devil dressed in rotten Ger
man uniform. 1t was the Hun pilot
of the machine had shot down.
Needless to say. ! felt rather naughty
to come face to face with my victim,
now a prisoner, but did not know
what to say. 1t seems he would not
believe that an American officer had
brought him down. He looked me all
over and then asked me in good
French if l was an American. When
| answered, Yes he had no more to
say,
"There was great crowd around
the wrecked plane and the first man
ran into was our major, the COM
manding officer. He was the happiest
man in tho world outside of Dong
and me. A French and an American
general came up in a limousine ia
congratulate us-coloncls, majors, all
the pilots, all the French officers, me.
chanics- everybody in the town and
camp. All had seen the fight. One
woman, an innkeeper, told nc she
could sleep we'll from now on. anc
held up her baby for me to kiss.
looked at the baby and then felt CRATE
full to my major. who pulled nc away
in the nick of time.
"1 had my mechanics take off every
thing available the machine was
wreck-but got some splendic
souvenirs. The big black German
crosses from the wings, his rudder
pieces of canvas with holes from my
bullets in them, all his spark plugs
his magnetos, his mirror, clock, com
pass. altimeter, his clumsy signal re
voiver, etc.--it is a great collection
"They got much valuable irforma
tion from my man--the other couldn't
speak. He was Pole, said he was
not an officer because he was q Pole
although he had been an 'aspirant
and a pilot at the front for two
years.