XII

THE WAR IN THE AIR

Mr. H.G.  Wells did not long anticipate the sensations of an aerial conflict between the nations.  Six years after the publication of his War in the Air the thing has become an accomplished fact, and for the first time in history the great nations are fighting for the mastery not only upon land but in the air and under the sea.

Fine as have been the adventures of airmen in times of peace, and startling as spectators have found the acrobatic performance of “looping the loop,” these tricks of the air appear feeble exploits compared with the new sensation of an actual battle in the clouds.  Soldiers, scribbling their letters in the trenches, have been fascinated by the sudden appearance at dusk of a hostile aeroplane, and have gazed with pleasurable agitation as out of the dim, mysterious distance a British aviator shot up in pursuit.

“It is thrilling and magnificent,” says one officer, “and I was filled with rapture at the spectacle of the first fight in the clouds.  The German maneuvered for position and prepared to attack, but our fellow was too quick for him, and darted into a higher plane.  The German tried to circle round and follow, and so in short spurts they fought for mastery, firing at each other all the time, the machines swaying and oscillating violently.  The British airman, however, well maintained his ascendency.  Then suddenly there was a pause, the German machine began to reel, the wounded pilot had lost control, and with a dive the aeroplane came to earth half a mile away.  Our man hovered about for a time, and then calmly glided away over the German lines to reconnoiter.”

Nothing could excel the skill and daring shown by the men of the Royal Flying Corps.  They stop at nothing.  Some of their machines have been so badly damaged by rifle and shell fire that on descending they have had to be destroyed.

“Fired at constantly both by friend and foe,” Sir John French writes, “and not hesitating to fly in every kind of weather, they have remained undaunted throughout.”  The highest praise is bestowed upon Brigadier-General Sir David Henderson, in command of the Corps, for the high state of efficiency this young branch of the service has attained.  It has been on its trial, and has already covered itself with glory.  General Joffre, the French Commander-in-Chief, has sent a special message singling out the British Flying Corps “most particularly” for his highest eulogies.  Several English airmen have already been made Chevaliers of the Legion of Honor.