New Britain herald., 1930-09-22
NEW BRITAIN DAILY HERALD MONDAY SEPTEMBER 22 193o

Tt would only have been harder for him." said Dagger. "Partings are best gotten over with. Nobody says anything particular on a flying field when a ship goes up. If they did-''
 T hope you are reconciled to abandon flying, Alexandra" oo- served her mother-in-law.
 ,'Is it necessary" asked Dagger. T was able to be of some assist ance to war work in TeXas-' This is not Texas. And flying is dangerous business. Also, you have position to maintain here, and at your age you must consider decorum above all things. These flying fields-'
 An upward glance conveyed the worst. Dagger smiled.
 "They are tough places" she ad- mitted, although a girl pilot would probably be safer in hangar than anywhere - unless it was a ship. I won't bother you, Mrs. Vaneering. If you seriously object, I'll stay on the ground"
 That is my wish" Mrs. Vaneer- ing answered haughtily.
 "Oh. bother' exclaimed Kitty, who had dried her eyes. T was hoping Dagger would take me up."
 Alexandra, if you please" cor rected her mother.
 We shan't have to worry about Alexandra's responsibility" MT. Vaneering intervened mildly. Sup pose we all go to the theater? We shall be better off this evening with our thoughts occupied"
 Tt would be impossible for me 10 enjoy theatrical entertainment while my Jack was sailing for France" returned his wife. The day passed quicker than Dagger had expected. If her moth er-in-law remained distant and hos | file, MT. Vaneering was at pains to | be attentive, and Kitty gave her companionship and saw to it that she met people and had sufficient i entertainment.
 But the bulk of the people she met had nothing in common with her.
 Always, too, she had Jack upon her mind. The night MT. Vaneer- ing had knocked upon her door, unwontedly excited - "Alix, Alix! Washington just called me. Jacks convoy is safe, ,"-she had buried her face in her pillow, biting the linen to restrain the sobs that strug- gled for utterance.
 Jack went to the Front; he was assigned to a Pursuit Group-down came the curtain.
 St. Mihiel, and brief announce ment from First Army Headquar- ters: Tn combat over the enemy line, Captain John Vaneering, D. FC., D.SC., shot down his tenth plane" Next a letter from Jack - hes received the Legion of Honor and a Belgian decoration. More weeks of strain. The Argonne. A second communique, terse and mat ter r-of-fact: Captain John Naneer- 1 ing yesterday and the day before | shot down in flames his eleventh and twelfth enemy planes Today he destroyed an enemy observation ! balloon over Mont Sec.' 1 Like every other American, Dag ger was swept off her feet by the rush of events that Fall. the steady | ~. l., i,l1 were chopping the German resist ance apart.
 Indeed, as the tide of victory swelled, and the daily communiques | increased the totals of prisoners and guns taken and ground gained, she became superstitious about her own investment in the titanic melee. With so many men dying, with millions grappling in death- battle from the Alps to the Channel coast, with the skies constantly full of buzzing, man. driven killer-wasps, cial safety for her Jack? And she wasn't surprised when doom struck, telegram from the Red Cross: i Captain John Naneering is in Neuilly Hospital with shattered kneecap.'
 What a day that was in the Van eering household. Telephones jang- ling, telegraph messengers coming
 and going in a steady stream. Mir.
 Vaneering pulled every wire he
 could reach, and the next morning
 brought a cable from Jack, himself:
 Don't worry, Knee troublesome
 but safe. Nice blighty' At least,
 as Kitty pointed out, Jack was safe
 now from worse harm. And that
 vas something to be thankful for.