The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1918-03-25

sky. 1t was little larger than big
fly, but as it came nearer its outlines
were more marked, and we recognized
it as bi-plane. The little Belgian
VINO marched by my side was more
keen-sighted than any of US. He
| said it was an Allied machine, and
British at that.
German Officer Afraid to Face Avia-
tors Bombs
Something of the truth seemed to
nave dawned on our escort, for they
were now more nervous than ever and
looked as though they wanted to bolt.
| mere was a moment of great sus-
pense. Everybody was looking sky
ward in expectation. Something fell
in the middle of the road. 1t was
only brick or a tile which had been
dilodged from roof over which
man was passing to get a clearer
view of the visitor. 1t was enough
for the Germans. The officer who
had been so ready to abuse his men
for cowardness was the first to run
He made for a house to the left, and
the men followed him, leaving US to
! look after ourselves.
! We took shelter in the doorways
around, and got a fine view of the
show. A bomb dropped in the road
way. There was terrific explosion.
The front part of the house in which
| the German officer and his men were
sheltering was blown to bits and the
roadway was full of the wreckage of
human bodies.
| From the other side of the town
oh
Again my keen-sighted Belgian came
to the rescue. He told me that two
of the new arrivals were British and
the rest German.
The British machines were sur
rounded by the enemy planes but
they were fighting gamely and even
succeeded in making their way over
the railway station in spite of the
the heavy gun fire.
The Results of the Raid
For about twenty minutes they
lowered about the station, dropping
bombs and fighting the enemy ma
chimes. two of which were forced to
descend. A third enemy machine
passed right over the spot we were
sheltering in, and made for the Brit
ish machine which we had seen first
| The two were, at once engaged in
| sharp fighting at a low altitude. We
could hear the rattle of the machine
guns where we stood, and we saw the
| two airmen maneuvering for better
| positions. We saw the British ma
chine rise high above the Hun plane,
and we saw the latter try to rise, too.
We saw also the British airman drop
something from his machine. There
was red flash across the sky and the
Hun machine began to descend earth
ward at a terrific rate. To our ears
came the sounds of repeated explo-
sions, and from the streets near by
we heard the cries of wounded NOR
tails. Then all became silent again,
and when we ventured out of cover we
were joined by all that was left of our
escort. Out of the 80 men, 40 had
been killed and % injured. We pass
ed back to camp through the streets,
and at several points we saw signs
of damage done by our airman. There
were wrecked houses, and the station
buildings were all smashed up. Two
trains had been hit in the sidings, and
as those trains were waiting to con-
vey large drafts to the western front,
it is obvious that the Germans were
badly put out by what happened.
Just when we were passing the sta
ton the Huns seemed to have a fit of
nerves, for their guns opened fire
again, and shells began to fall near US.
One burst just ahead and a splinter
caught me, with the result that the
Hun doctor certified that I was no
longer fit for service as a soldier, and
might therefore be put down for ex-
change with other wounded prison
ers. That might have meant another
year, but one man on the list died, and
I was stuck in at the last minute
(By The International News Bureau,
Inc, Boston, Mass.)