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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.
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