Evening star., 1936-10-11
Teeth Of the Dragon
Continued from pogs five

plane ceased its first steep climb and
settled into steady fight.
San Francisco. as whitley beautiful
as circling sea gull seen against an
azure sky. was stretched out in a
never-to-be-forgotten panorama. The
piers of the Bay bridge thrust upward
like huge reaching fingers. Workers
on the cat-walk paused to stare at the
giant airship roaring its way toward
the Orient. Their upturned faces were
little blobs of white. A moment more
and the bridge faded astem.
The docks which lined San Fran
cisco's water front were thrust out
into the blue of the Bay like bits Of a
jig-saw puzzle. Tied up to these docks
we're ean-going ships, which hailed
from the far corners of the world.
Alcatraz Island came into view and
slipped beneath and astern. The red
steel work of the Golden Gate Bridge
seemed to rise almost as high in the
air as the plane itself One of the big
N.Y.K. liners from the Orient was
just coming in through the Golden
Gate. The vast terraced bulk of Sutro
Baths hulkec below.
Seal Rocks showed as white spots
in an ocean which had now taken on
a dark blue hue; the white lines of
surf were as snowy scallops ornament
ing the coast line. Suddenly. the only
thing which Burke could see. was
the blue black of the ocean, a vast,
empty waste of water stretching far
ahead Of the plane. terminating in the
white mantle of low-flung fog bank
which was drifting in on the wings of a
westerly wind.
The motors droued on in a rhythmic
song Of steady power. Passengers
settled back in their seats. Suddenly
it seemed as though the great ship
had struck a snag in mid-air. A giant
hand dealt it a blow. The Clipper
jumped upward, then went into
drop. only to be checked by another
impact, and rocked from side to side.
Tracy had flown enough to know
that this was merely rough air, due
probably to some change in tempera-
ture far below. His eyes sought the
portfolio, as he instinctively realized
the ship must have reached the edge
Of the fog bank which had been slowly
creeping in toward the Bay district.
There was no sign of blue water
now. only a white floor of silvery
clouds rejecting the sunlight in such
dazzling splendor that it made the
eyes ache. The shadow of the ship
showed on the cloud bank as it slipped
silently over the glstening surface.
Burke knew that this bank of fog,
so white from above, was drab mass
Of beaded moisture, where it rested
on the surface of the ocean. Ships
coming in to San Francisco would be
crawling along at half speed, the deep
booming notes of their fog horns
laundering forth at regular intervals.
But high overhead, the Clipper Ship
roared on its way to the Orient at a
speed far in excess of that ever
visioned in the widest dreams of
shippers who had commanded it's
predecessors, the old Clipper ships of
the Pacific.
The steady roar of the motors,
muff1ed through the insulation of the
hull, were, nevertheless, loud enough
to furnish rhythmic undertone of
sound which had soporific effect.
Burke settled back against the seat
cushions and yielded to the delicious
sense of drowsy warmth which per-
meated his consciousness. The feeling
of dangerous adventure which had
gripped him when he had first heard
the motors throb into action had
given way to peaceful repose.