Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-08-31

American international polo team In addition.
he was famous steeplechase rider and a master
of hounds. (This year Mr.. Hitchcock, ST.. has
been conditioning the ponies that will be used
in the matches with England.) Tommy'S mother
is a master of hounds in her own right and his
two sisters shared the family taste for hard
riding and for excelling in the steeplechase. To
these other members of his family add his
younger brother who also Is polo enthusiast.
That is the family background of polo's great
est star. 1t can be said t.uly Of him that he
was to the saddle born and it wasn't long be-
fore he began picking up the rudiments of
polo. By the time he was 16 he a national
star. That was his age when he played on the
Meadow Brook team that won the national
junior and national senior championships In
one of these matches the 16-year-old youth
made an off-side drive that equaled IN length
the record drive of Devereux Milburn the
greatest back and, with the exception of Tom
N.Y. the hardest hitter the game has ever
known.
A triumphant career of mallet swinging
seemed to stretch ahead of the boy wonder
But America entered the World War and inter-
rupted lot of thingS-among them Tommy's
career on the polo field. Though he was only
IT, young Hitchcock decided that he would have
to get into the fighting. With a group of his
classmates he left preparatory school and
sought to enlist in the United States Army
They were rejected. TOO young" said the
authorities. Teddy Roosevelt came to their
assistance, and, through him, they were en-
abled to join the Lafayette Escadrille. They
bought their own uniforms, paid for their own
transportation-and went to France
There Tommy learned to fly by the danger
Gus expedient of teaching himself. When he
was able to pilot pursuit plane, it then re-
manned for him to be patient until the death
OF an experienced aviator created a vacancy
that had to be filled. The wait was not long
Soon he underwent his baptism of fire-and
came through 1t handsomely. Twice he brought
down German planes; thrice he received the
Croix de Guerre. He was the youngest Ameri-
can aviator to destroy an enemy plane
IL was while he was returning to headuuar-
terS after having shot down his first German
that he had his first serious accident The
plane ran short of gas and Tommy had to
make desperate forced landing on a narrow
strip Of road. Down he came with a rending
crash and everything went black before his
eyes. French soldiers extricated the dazed
young American from the wreckage
Tommy, however, was not seriously injured
and soon he was back in the air. bringing his
second German plane to earth. Then occurred
his most thrilling, and what came near being
his last, experience in the war. Wheeling above
the clouds one day, he caught sight of two
German pursuit planes OF he darted in at
tack, but so intent was he upon the battle that
ne failed to notice the arrival upon the scene
OF third German. Young Hitchcock felt the
sting Of q bullet in his hip. Holding his side
with one hand, he attempted to guide his shin
with the other, but the German newcomer tax
ing advantage of his opportunity shot away the
steering controls of the plane. The ship wabbled
unsteadily-it was almost out of control-but