The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-03-23
WAR THROBS
OVER HUN LINES
Kansas Man Takes Photo of
German Trenches.
Hated To Start but Was Sorry
To Come Down.
COUNTRY LOOKED LIKE MAP
Ninety Miles an Hour in Aero
plane Is Chilling.
Dressed in Furs and Fastened
to Swivel Seat.
COUNTRY LOOKED LIKE MAP
BY EARL D. KEILMANN.


(Lieutenant American C. A. C. in France
back in kansas)
We were in front of a long row of
flat low lying sheds before which a
long line of bat like machines were
resting, their wings tilted as tho about
TO take the air. In and out of one of
the sheds a constantly moving group
of men in a variety of costumes, was
coming and going. Some were in that
natty SKY blue uniform of the French
army. some were, in the khaki overalls
of the mechanics and still others were
in the Esquimo Like costume of the
pilots and observers about to take the
air.
Now and then a machine would
come creling down from above and
again q group of mechanics would
grab one of the waiting machines and
clad figures would Chamber in and
there would be a pause. Slowly the
machine would move across the
bumpy ground. make a few skipping
leaps and soar away. The machines
always took long low glide that car
ried them mile away before they
started that spiral that carried them
up and out of sight.
His Coaxing Rewarded.
Sergeant Focht. hardly recognizable,
touched me on the arm The COM
mandant says that it is all right.
IN seau" My heart jumped 1 had
made extra efforts to get permission to
accompany the sergeant on this oc-
casion, but now that l had it, 1 was
not so sure / was glad after all. There
was no time to back out now as the
machine was already being trundled
out into the open. 1t was one of the
neatest affairs of it's kind on the field.
Its silver paint, which up above cam
ouflaged it against the dazzle of the
heavens, nearly blinded ones eyes
when viewed against the green of the
ever green trees that lined the road
way half mile away.
.clambered in, feeling mighty
awkward bundled up as L was in furs,
even to my feet Inside the car L
found a stool that was fixed on
swivel In front of the stool was a
SQUARE hole in the floor of the car.
Someone reached in and pulling a
broad strap across my lap tightly
buclled mo into the vehicle. Another
arm carne in and a box was thrust
down thru the square hole. 1t had a
hardlt that came up near my right
knee and beside the handle were a
crsrk and trigger like arrangement.
Another arm came inside the car and
beside me on bracket was placed
ar arrangement that looked like q
stear1 gauge on a locomotive. l had
been told how to read the height we
were flying from the dial on this.
The same arm that placed the instru-
ment or its bracket slid a picture
map between two pieces of celluloid in
front of my eyes.
Up They Go.
A questioning shout 'Pret" (ready)
came to me and l saw Sergeant Focht
ahead &C me grinning thru the small
aperture that was left for him to see
and brcat the thru. l waved my arm
and the men { bout the machine fell
away. There were a few bumps and
then no feeling of motion, tho the
wind that blew against my face was
the same as If I were in a racing
auto. 1 looked over the side of the
car ard found that already we were
circling about and climbing. Off our
left wing where 1 knew the aero
drome had been, 1 could see nothing
except few planes, so completely
did the notified green and dark
brown paint hide thu location of the
Building.
There was a swoop like that felt
when one starts in an auto up a steep
hill. Sergeant Focht was looking
back at me, grinning again. We had