The Skyland post. [volume] (West Jefferson, N.C.) 193?-1988, 1945-07-12

on the shoulder to the leader of
the guerrillas, he slipped down
behind the last row of rocks to the
drop-off. In a moment he was
racing down the steep path to-
ward the field.
There the second German plane
had just landed and swung it.
self around.
Laura waited tensely, keeping
her gun always on the first two
Nazis, who now sauntered to-
ward the other plane as it came
to stop. Then something hap
pened. Something made the first
pilot stop quickly and put up a
warning hand.
He was looking toward the
American plane at the end Of the
field. There had been something
there some movement. Was it
in the trees nearby, or in the
plane itself? Laura did not know.
The pilot shouted something,
and fired his revolver in the di-
rection of the plane. The second
pilot, still in his plane with the
motor going, opened fire with his
crafts machine guns. =.
The roar of the short burst of
fire rang in Laura's ears and she
looked in desperate fear at their
big plane. No-the Nazis were
not firing at it! She saw leaves
of branches off to the left cut
down by the machine gun fire.
But the burst from the Ger
mans guns was over almost be-
fore it started. 1t was stopped
by a larger burst of fire, from the
guns of the Frenchmen hiding in
the woods around the field.
The pilots and their observers
slumped-all apparently hit.
In a few minutes, men were
ripping the poles and branches
from the American plane. Some
of the Frenchmen had rushed
from the woods and were fran
tically pulling and hauling to get
the second German plane away
from the center of the field.
Then Laura realized there were
no further sounds of firing from
the hilltop! 1t had ceased!
Jerry" she cried aloud.
! Laura" voice answered,
from behind her, in the woods,
| And there was Jerry, running
toward her. He had come dash
ing down the path just in time
to hear her frantic cry. She was
sobbing slightly as he threw his
arms around her.
, 1.-THE plane-why hasn't it TAX
en- off YETI" Jerry cried, looking
toward the other end of the field
He was answered by the roal
of the motors from the big craft
Running to the edge of the field
he and Laura saw Blaiston anc
Chance in the cockpit. The pro
pellers were whirling and the
: motors purred with sweet, ever
sound.
Jerry stepped farther out into
the field and waved his arms
| frantically at Blaiston, ordering
| him to take off at once. Blaistor
: gunned the motors of the big
! craft and it rolled forward, pick.
: ing up speed rapidly. Jerry
stepped back beside Laura, close
! to the first German plane at the
edge of the field.
He watched the ambulance
plane. It's engines were roaring
} with all their power, the propel-
lers biting into the air with vi
5 cious grab to pull that heavy
: craft along swiftly, give lift tt
it's wings in the shortest space.
l It was three feet in the air over
= the fake brook, eight feet in the
air at the edge of the field where
the trees had been felled.
; "Couldn't have made it without
: those trees down." Jerry mutter-
ed. And then, Good! Good! He's
getting his wheels up already
They'll be up by the time he gets
to the tall trees! Laura! He's made
it! Made it!'
Then, at the northern edge of
the field, they heard the roar of
a machine gun. They saw three
German soldiers there, firing af-
ter the departing plane.
'Laura-this plane here" Jer-
ry said. "Was it fired at-damag-
ed?"
"No-not this one," Laura re-
piled, and knew Jerry's thought
at once.
In flash she was into the cock
pit and Jerry was right behind
her. It was only when the motor
roared that the Germans at the
other end of the field became
aware of them. They had been
! commemorative thoir attaption on