Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1918-11-21
HERE'S HUN STORY
OF LONDON RAID
German Airship Commander
Says Aeroplanes Are Best
Defense Against Pirates.
by Reciprocal New. Service.


London.-(by mail.)-The following
account Of an air raid on London is an
unabridged translation of an article by
a German airship commander in a re-
cent issue of the Koelnische Volks-
zeitung:
AS soon as we arrived at the coast
we saw signs of animation down be-
low. Searchlights Sent out their rays
sweeping the sky in every direction.
On these occasions we make a dash to
try to get out of the way, for the Eng
llsh cannot possibly send out search
lights all over the sky, and 1t is most
annoying to be picked out by one of
these lights. and to be fired on by the
batteries belonging to 1t.
Il kept a straight course from VIM
terton to London, and during the whole
voyage over English territory l did not
see a single light. although the air was
quite clear.
Directly the airship reached the
rounded by any number Of searchlights,
and covered by the fire of their batter
les. l have on a occasion counted
from "a to 80 huge s~earchilghts, Of
enormous power. apart from innumer-
able smaller lights. The airship is dis
covered Immediately the searchlights
begin. Generally the whole of the lights
are turned on to one airship, so that 1t
Is brilliantly Illuminated, and it is so
light in h gondola that one can easily
read a paper. This is a great advan-
tage as we are able to study the maps.
Defensive Fire Annoying.
simultaneously with the search
lights a tremendous defensive fire from
guns OF every caliber up to the SO
gun begins. None but those who have
experienced it can imagine the amount
OF material hurled at us. The most
~disagreeaple thing in connection with
the shooting is the 30 called incendiary
shells. things like rockets, which one
sees in the distance like balls of fire
Which approach comparatA ely slowly,
until they reach their highest point,
and then suddenly fall.
THE city Of London is naturally our
chief objective. because there there is
the greatest traffic and there the most
important civic buildings are situated.
when the airship arrives in the
center Of the city the commander Or
ders bombs to be thrown out. This is
done by the wachoffizier, at regular
intervals. a bomb falling every three
to five seconds. roughly speaking.
When he first 300 kilogram bombs
enormous crash. which even shakes
the ship, flying thousands Of yards
higher in the air. In between these
explosive bombs numerous ~incendiary
DOmOS are thrown down, SO mat all
that h former destroy may be burned
by the latter.
Departure Difficult.
1.-THE departure from the town is
rendered extremely difficult by the
enemy. for he begins a kind Of barrage
fire in the east, and makes fresh use
OF the incendiary shells l have de-
scribed. Only when we have passed
the zon OF searchlights have we time
to look at what we have accomplished
down below.
Now the enemy is employing a
means Of defense which has been very
much strengthened Of late and to which
several Of our airships have fallen VIC
tims-I mean airplanes. An airplane
Is a disagreeable opponent. because
sees it seldom. Inc then only with
difficulty, while the airplane can easily
find the airship.
after the attack we. Of course. make
for home as quickly as possible. with
the wind behind us. The fires Of the
coast of Holland are generally taken
as the points toward which to steer for
the German blight. We may not cross
Dutch territory for, as we know. the
neutral Dutch even shoot at airships
which are simply skirting Holland"