Bill Barnes Air Adventurer, July 1935 — page 87: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

AIR ADVENTURER 85 The machine gun in the top of the bomber became silent. The starboard swivel gun swung down, unmanned. His powerful bullets raked the length of the big ship as it yawed wildly. The forward gunner fell dead over his gun. The big ship tried galantly to right it- self. Then it rolled over lazily. The nose dropped and it began a dizzy de- scent to earth. The Scarlet Stormer bounced upward a hundred feet when the big ship struck the ground and its two thousand pounds of bombs exploded. It tore a great hole in the earth far to the left of the column of trucks. Bill and Sandy could see hundreds of faces turned upward. Their mouths were open and their arms waving in the air to acknowledge his victory. But Bill didn’t pay any attention to them. He drew his map shelf toward him and made an outline on a piece of paper as he held the Stormer steady. Underneath it he wrote: Above map will give you an _ idea where passable road to fort on plateau joins Tananarivo-Maevatanana road. You will probably have to take heavy strafing as you approach fort. It is well armed and fortified. Will bomb fort from air. Would advise abandon- ing trucks halfway up and_ proceeding carefully. Native troops well armed and trained. Would lay down barrage. Will observe your fire and drop corrections. Bill Barnes He flew low over the head of the col- umn of trucks and dropped the weighted note out in a miniature parachute. <A French colonel leaped from an armored car and picked it up, waving his arm in acknowledgment. Bill circled overhead for a matter of fifteen minutes while the column came to a halt. A half dozen French officers stood in the road waving their arms. At last one of them looked up and waved an arm at Bill. Bill flew low above them. The officer pointed to himself and to the trucks and then pointed a hand toward the plateau to the north- west. Bill flipped a hand into the air to show that he understood. He hoped the Frenchmen would have enough sense to send an advance guard up that road in front of their main force. He knew that they could be ambushed and wiped out if they were careless. But that was their business. He kicked the rudder of the Stormer and pulled back on the stick. Then he flipped over the radio- phone switch and began to chant Cy Hawkins’ code initials. “Cy answering, Bill,’ came back over the phone. “Cy answering.” “Get up above that fort and see what you can do with your bombs,” Bill or- dered. ‘‘Keep away from those shells. I'll be there to protect you in a few minutes. The French have sent three companies of infantry, a machine-gun detachment and some 75s to take the place. They'll begin pounding it with their 75s before long.” “They'll have to do a lot of pounding and take a: lot im return, . Cy Said: “That place is no set-up.” “T told ’em,” Bill said, shortly. “Stay away from those anti-aircraft shells.” “O. K., Bill. Signing off,” Cy said. XIV—HEILNER’S STAND BILL spiraled upward until he could see in every direction, as far as the eye could reach. He watched the French find the road that led to the plateau northwest of the main motor road. When they were three quarters of the way in, a salvo of the guns in the fort above sprayed them with shrapnel and shells. The roar of the guns from be- low became deafening as the French un- limbered their 75s and sent them into action. Men in the sky-blue uniform of oO MICLOO® CO < CO