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Page 75
"For good reasons too. The air here is chiefly in the German sphere of
influence, and if I were in his place I'd take to my heels too at a
single glance."
"That's what he's doing now. He's flying past the flag just as one of
the Germans did. He leans over to take a look at it, can't make out what
it means, glances back apprehensively toward the German quarter of the
heavens, and now he's sliding like a streak through the blue for French
air."
"So near and yet so far! A friend in the air just over our heads, and we
had to let him go. Well, he couldn't have done us any good."
"No, he couldn't, and he's gone back so fast that he's out of sight
already, but another and different inhabitant of the air is coming out
of the south. See, the shape off there, Mr. Scott. Wait until it comes
nearer, and I think I can tell you what it is. Now it's made out the
flag and is steering for it."
"What class of plane is it, Weber? Can you tell that yet?"
"Yes. It's an Esnault-Pelterie, an invention of a young Frenchman. It's
a monoplane with flexible, warped wings. It's made of steel tubes,
welded together, and it has two wheels, one behind the other for contact
with the ground."
"I noticed something queer in its appearance. It's the wheels. I don't
call this machine any great beauty, but it seems to cut the air well. I
suppose we'd better treat it as we did the Bleriot--let it go as it
came, none the worse and none the wiser?"
"I think so. But we have no other choice! That flyer is a suspicious
fellow and he isn't taking any chances. He's come fairly close to the
flag, and now he's sheering off at an angle."
"I don't blame him. He probably has something more important to do than
to unravel the meaning of a flag in a tree top."
"Nor I either. But whatever comes we'll wait for Lannes, always for
Lannes. The heavens here, Mr. Scott, are peopled with strange birds, but
of all the lot there is one particular bird for which we are looking."
"Right again. My eyes have grown a little weary of watching the skies.
For a long stare, blue isn't as soft and easy a sight as green, and I
think I'll look at the grass and leaves for a little while."
"Then while you rest I'll keep an outlook and when I'm tired you can
relieve me."
"Good enough."
John lay down in the grass and rested his body while he eased his worn
eyes. Weber commented now and then on the new birds in the heavens,
aeroplanes of all kinds, but they kept their distance.
"The air over us is not held now by either French or Germans," said
Weber, "and I imagine that only the more daring make incursions into it.
Perhaps, too, they are kept busy elsewhere, because, as my ears
distinctly tell me, the battle is increasing in volume."
"I noticed the swelling fire when I lay down here," said John. "It seems
a strange thing, but for a while I had forgotten all about the battle."
Presently Weber took his eyes from the heavens, moved about and looked
uneasy.
"If I'm not mistaken," he said, "I caught a glimpse of steel down the
river. I think it was a lance head glittering in the sun, and Uhlans may
be near."
"How far away do you think it was."
"A half-mile or more. I must take a look in that direction. I'm a good
scout, Mr. Scott, and I'll see what's up. Watch here will you, until I
come back? It may be some time."
"All right, but don't get yourself captured, Weber. I'd be mighty
lonesome without you."
"Don't fear for me. Of course, as I told you, I'll be gone for some
time, and if I may suggest, Mr. Scott, I wouldn't move from among the
vines."
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