Part 12 (1/2)
But he had taken the gla.s.ses himself, and while he held one hand on the steering rudder he made a long and attentive examination of the place, and of low works about it, which he knew contained emplacements for cannon.
”It's a fortified town and a center for mobilization,” he said. ”All day long the recruits have been pouring in here, responding to the call.
They receive their uniforms, arms and ammunition at that big barracks on the hill, and tomorrow they take the trains to join the giant army which will be hurled on my France.”
John heard a sigh. Lannes was afraid after all that the mighty German war machine, the like of which the world had never seen before would crush everything.
”It will be hard to stop that army,” he could not keep from saying.
”So it will. The Germans have prepared for war. The French have not.
John, John, I wish I knew the secrets of our foes! For more than forty years they've been using their best minds and best energies for this. We don't even know their weapons. I've heard strange tales of monster cannon that the Krupps have sent out of Essen, and of new explosives of unimagined power, I don't know whether to believe these tales or not.
But I do know that the Germans will be ready to the last cartridge.”
”But something in the machine may go wrong, Phil.”
”That's our hope. We've got to smash some of the wheels, or rods or levers. If we compel them to change their plan they won't have time to organize a perfect new one.”
”The old simile of the watch, I suppose. It'll run a hundred years if all the works are kept right. But if a single one of them goes wrong it's done forever.”
”It's as you say. Sit steady, now. We're going to take another upward swoop. I've seen enough of that town and its forts, and I don't want to linger so close to the earth that they'll see us.”
The machine rose like a mighty bird, but shortly after it reached the top of its flight John felt a slight jerk. It was a sudden movement of Lannes' hand on the steering rudder that had caused it.
”John,” he said, and the voice shook a little, ”take the gla.s.ses. Look off there in the northwest, and see if you can't make out a black object hanging in the sky?”
John took the gla.s.ses and put them to his eyes.
CHAPTER V
THE FIGHT IN THE BLUE
John turned his gla.s.ses toward the northwest, where cloud wrack hung. At first he could see nothing, as the dark blue sky was obscured by the darker mists and vapors, but he presently discovered in the very midst of them an object that looked jet black. It was moving, and slowly it took the shape of an aeroplane. He wondered at the keenness of Lannes'
vision, when he was able to pick out so distant an object with the naked eye.
”What do you make of it?” asked Lannes.
”It's an aeroplane, or some other kind of flying machine.”
”And which way do you think it's going?”
”The same way that we are. No, it seems to be nearer now.”
”Likely it's running parallel with us in a sense; that is we two are moving down the sides of a triangle, and if we continue long enough we'd meet at the point.”
”Perhaps it's Castelneau and Mery in the other plane?”
”Impossible! They would certainly stay on the mountains far behind us.
They would never disobey orders. We're back into a bank of fine air now and the machine almost sails itself. Let me have the gla.s.ses a moment.”