The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1944-08-04

room. It's like bird dog pointing
quail, with his tail tip quivering.
Only, after half a second, I'm q
man again and can think, can re-
member we haven't any bombs
swinging on their shackles in our
bomb bays-nothing we can drop on
this beautiful target but the high
ranking passenger who is riding with
us.
'Then comes reaction number
two. No bombs, but what about the
carriers covering fighters? You talk
about mother tiger fighting for her
young-that's nothing to the way a
patrolling carrier fighter will defend
its mother ship. Because every car
rier-based fighter knows that once
his carrier is hit and the waves be-
gin to sweep over that long flight
deck, and one end of her hoists UP in
the air, then he's out in the big sky
by his lonesome-no pontoons, moth
ing to do but sink into the sea when
his tanks are dry. Those Zeres will
come screaming in to hit me from
almost any cloud. Since can't
make bomb run, must get away
quick!
"But now, over the interphones,
comes shout-they've spotted an
other carrier. / look and see it too.
Then another! And now-my God, it
can't be, but it is-fourl It makes us
frantic we haven't got something to
PUNK through those smooth flight
decks into their engine rooms, and
maybe blow a few square yards out
Of the bottom of their hullsl
"Only we now grow cold, because
where are the escorting fighters? We
can't speed up, because they should
be up ahead, but they might show
up any place-come leaping up at
us out of this fleecy blanket Of over
cast like dolphins jumping through
the foam.
"Down there are not only four
carriers but gang Of other stuff
fog of destroyers, at least fifteen
cruisers, and one laundering big bat
tleship. Only as bomber pilot I'm
fixed on those carriers, enormous
brutes. Too enormous. Say, what's
going on? Because Jap carriers are
little devils-you can hardly pack
forty planes into them, while these
might hold double that, like our best
ones. Now wait. Maybe we're too
low and these just look big, but
mol glance at the altimeter and
we're at $500.
$50 they're ours! This big parade
of surface strength is us Ameri-
cansl I change course just the same
80 degrees, swinging wide of this
big naval parade, because we can
take no chances on their air patrol.
Even an American carrier fighter,
when he sees bomber over his
mother ship, should shoot first and
ask questions later. We don't want
to tangle with Grummans.
''We swing out wide and away,
but with what different feelingl
'sWell, guess that's about all,
except on our homeward trip, we
cracked the trans-Pacific record
wide open. The old Swoose, with
her war-worn motors, made it from
Brisbane to San Francisco in thirty
six hours ten minutes flying time,
the only one of the original IS on
Clark Field to see home again."
"When they said long distance
was calling from San Francisco, Of
course that didn't mean anything to
me-" said Mango. with two broth
ers in the Air Corps, one in bonn
bardment and one in pursuit, it
might be either one. Then I heard
Franks own voice saying 'Margo?'
Because I hadn't heard any over
seas operators, or any censor click
ing in, I knew he must be here in
the States. For the first time could
cry on the phone {. It's nice to
be strong, but so much more fun to
let down when you can, and did,"
(THE END)