The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1945-03-09
CHAPTER XVII

miles from the bomber. It was sup
posed to be fighter, being smaller,
and it had burned upon crashing. l
therefore received credit for two en-
envy planes destroyed on July 81. It
had been my first aerial combat,
felt very proud indeed.
We found the reported prisoner,
but he was dead. While being ques-
toned he had tried to escape, had
killed several Chinese, had wound
ed others, and in turn had been
MORALLY wounded. Lieutenant Chuck
got to him before he died, but was I'M
able to get any valuable information.
My first aerial engagement start
ed story in Delhi found out
about it four months later. The
story told there was to the effect
that I had engaged an enemy bomb
er over China, and regardless of its
escort of two Zeros, had shot it
down. 1t had crashed into the
ground, and when they located it,
they also found the two Zeros, which
had dived into the rice paddles
at the tail of the bomber, one on
each side. Thus had the embar-
raised pilots committed hara-kiri,
for they had lost face by having the
ship that they were escorting de-
stroyed.
Well, it was a laugh. But I'm
fairly certain the one Zero didn't
commit suicide-I'm prone to be-
ieve that some good, honest lead
poisoning from six fifty calibre
American machine guns had lot
to do with it.
Major Tex Fill was the Squadron
commander of the outfit that I had
come to live with at Hengyang. He
was blue-eyed Texan, lean and
lanky, six-feet-two of fighting blood.
I imagine if he had lived in the
frontier days of the American West,
he would have been a gunman over
there around the Pecos River-but
a gunman on the side of the Law. I
used to shut my eyes out there, sit
ting on the alert in Human, and
think about him. I could picture
that drawing Texan walking slow
ly through border town with two
pearl-handled ass swinging low at
his hips. Walking with his arms
stiff at his sides, and watching with
his cold, blue eyes some william"
that was approaching the other way
I could almost hear the hot lead
splitting from those guns as the two
shot it out, and I could always see
the villain fall, with Tex standing
there looking at his smoking guns.
Tex would always have won, for he
was the greatest fighter that I ever
saw, the most loyal officer, and the
best friend.
I'd seen Tex shoot down Japs in
the sky, and I had followed on his
wing to learn the tactics of the
AVG. I know that if there is any
man I owe my life to during the
months I fought in China, it is Maj.
Tex Hill. Seeing what he did in
combat, and how he handled his
ship; seeing his GOODNESS on the
alert, and his keen desire for action.
I can hear Tex now, after he had
studied the plotting board that the
interpreters were covering with little
red flags showing the positions Of
the approaching Jap fighter ships. I
can hear him saying: "Well, gentle
men, think we'll take off," And he
would smile as he pulled on his he'll
met and goggles.
Tex was the son of the Chaplain
of the Texas Rangers. Before the
AVG days he had been Navy pilot
flying off carrier decks, and in the
Flying Tigers he had been second
only to Bob Neal as the leading ace.
Tex was the most truthful man I
ever met-even his subconscious
thoughts were truthful. He used to
tell me that one day after Madame
Chang Kai-shek had pinned q med
al on him for shooting down some
Japanese planes over Toungoo, she
had asked him the next time he shot
down one of those Japanese planes
to please think of her and dedicate
it to the people of China. Tex Of
course said, eyes, Ma'am :"
imagine that most any man
among us would have said eyes" to
the Madame, and the next time we
shot down a Jap we would have told
the great lady all about it. We
would have remembered after the
fight what we had promised her, and
we would have gone in with ro-
mantle story of how we had met the
barbaric Japanese and had seen the
Madame's face in the skies as we
shot the enemy down ). and had
thought of her and the people of
China. But not Tex Hill-he was
too honest for that. He told me,
Colonel, promised her that, and
1 really meant it. And I've shot
down about twelve Japs since that
promisenfournmonths agossrBut you
know Inever~can remembentn think
about her when I'm in battle-rm
too busy"