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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 1944 THE BEAUFORT NEWS. BEAUFORT. N. C. PAGE THREE (SdDB IS MY CO-PILOT Col. Robert- L.Scott Wlta RELEASE, The story thai far: Robert Scott, elf-made West Point graduate, wins bit wings at Kely field, Texas, and marries a f lrl from Georgia. From Mltchel Field, N. T., ha la sent to Panama where his real pursuit tralnint 1 be (an la a P-123. Be la give a Job constructing Bring fields which would tome day protect tha Canal. He begins to train other pilots. The war Is getting closer and be Is un happy becaasa be realises ba I getting farther and farther from actual combat duty. As director of training in a twin- engine school In California he writes to General 'after General asking tor a j chance to fight. When that chance comes ha realizes that his wife and child meant America for him. CHAPTER VI Doug was an ideal flying officer, and it was to him that I first turned tor advice on how I should make myself acquainted with this big air plane. Doug had learned to fly at the period when I had been instruct- j ing. I bad taught his class to fly; now the tables were turned and he would have to be the instructor for a while. Don't forget that as yet I tudn't flown a B-17E. Introducing myself to my co-pilot, I said, "How about showing me how to fly this ship I want to see how to work these turbos and such." He merely grinned at me in disbelief. "Aw, Colonel," he said, "you can fly the thing why, you taught me to fly." I finally got him to give me some cockpit Instruction by explain- i ing that though I had many thou- j sand hours in PT's, BT's, and other ' trainers, and knew lots about single seaters and fast twin-engine medi um bombers, I knew nothing about such planes as this big devil. i He showed me the approved meth od of starting the four engines, when to use the booster switches, how to set the turbos, how to lock the tail wheel and generally, how to pick up that fifty-seven thousand pounds of flying dynamite and take it around the field. I flew it for two landings that afternoon, and that night I climbed all over the Fortress, read the entire maintenance manual, and learned from scratch what made the big ship go. Next day I soloed it (or over four hours, and after the twentieth landing I felt as If I was ready to start for war. Then we tested everything fired all guns at targets in the everglades, and the cordite from all those roar ing fifty calibres gave even the swampy "glades" a sweet aroma. My gunners were eager to be on the way, and I soon found that they knew exactly what they were doing. Private Motley was my .faH gun ner During the entire trip I think he stayed in the tail ninety per cent of the time, Just to get used to the way to handle the tail turret I used to say of Motley that he Just didn't care where he was going he want ed to see where he had been. Sergeant Aaltonen, the engineer, was charged with keeping the en gines functioning properly, and in general the entire enlisted personnel was under him. He was a diligent Finn and one of the bravest men I have ever seen. I can see Aalto nen now, standing there behind my seat and the co-pilot's seat, unper turbed in the roughest of storms, from the violent currents of the equatorial front of the Hamadans to the Shimals of Africa and Ara bia. Eternally watching the many Instruments, waiting to correct the slightest trouble even before it hap pened. When we were lost over trackless seas he was never ruffled, but ready at all times with Informa tion as to fuel consumption and the best RPM's for cruising. Once when he was told that we would probably have to land in the Atlantic there was no change in the expression on his face; he simply began to move the provisions to a point where they could be quickly placed in the rub ber boats. His job in case of attack was to man the top turret with Its twin Fifties. Sergeant Baldbridge was the head radioman. His secondary duty was to handle one of the waist guns back aft of midships. Corporal Cobb was second radioman; he would leave that to enter the lower turret. The other waist gun on this flight was to be handled by a radio officer, Lieutenant Hershey. The navigator was a Lieutenant whom I'll call Jack. He was a nervy kid who liked his job. I know that after our mission he made many raids as navigator to bomb the Japs in Rangoon. We tested the bombardier and the bombsight, tuo, before we started the flight. Lean, lanky, six-foot-three Bombardier George I never did see how he managed to wiggle Into the nose of the Fortress. I can see him there now, tense over his sight, waiting for the bombs to goever with the cross-hairs on the tAfget George had a couple of fifty calibre guns up there in the nose with him, too. He was just the op posite of the tail gunner he never did know where he had been but always got there first. And so the eight of them made up my crew eight good soldiers who had volunteered and who want ed to hurt the enemy. None of them worried about whether or not he'd get home for he knew of big ger things that had to be done. We had to test everything, for it aas over sixteen thousand miles to Japan the way we were having to go; there couldn't be a slip-up on (his mission, and so we didn't take b.chaaee. WUeii-finally all was set I was about nervous enough to bite my nails off, for my ship was to be last to leave the States. I had worried every minute of the time we had been waiting for fear that some brass hat would get my orders changed before I could get on my way. The other twelve ships bad gone, with Colonel Haynes leading in his B-24. They all made their way to the East separately, with instructions to meet in Karachi, In dia, for final orders. And Karachi was 12,000 miles away. As soon as we could leave the West coast of Florida, we loaded up and crossed the State. Going on East over West Palm Beach, I rang the alarm bell, putting all men on the alert, and we dropped down, with the crew firing at the white caps out over the Gulf Stream. The guns were wr.rklng fine but we couldn't take a chance. I had to learn right now whether the crew could work as a team, for once we started It would be too late. As we came back towards the last field we were to land on in the U. S. A., something strange met my sight, something that made the blood pound a little harder in my temples. . There, along the entire beach of Flerida, was a jagged black line the clean sand of Flor ida's beaches had been made black and terrible-looking by the oil from many tankers sunk by the Axis sub marine war. It gave me a queer feeling, for along the beaches there if 24$$ ill Li I Col. Scott's superior officers. Gen. Joseph Stilwell, left, and Gen. Claire Chennault. was also the beached wreckage of several ships. This war was mean ing more and more to us as we pre pared to shove off for the first stop out of America. Now we were poised for our flight to Puerto Rico. In our two-day wait for technical changes on the engines I worried more than ever, for the other twelve ships were gone and I was getting frantic lest some thing might change the orders. Fi nally, after having to wait during days of perfect weather, we took off in heavy rain for Borinquen Field, P. R. The take-off and first two hours of the flight were "instrument," as we were flying through a moderate tropical front. We finally broke into clearing weather over Long Island Key, British West Indies. This was on March 31, 1942. Just after noon we sighted His paniola at the point of Cape Frances Viejo. Sergeant Aaltonen passed out some hot coffee from the thermos jugs. Our spirits were high, for now that we had passed the bad weather this was like a picnic. The big ship was handling like a single seater. We turned from the dark, mysterious Hispaniola, crossed Mo na Passage, and landed at Borin quen Field at 15:07, just three min utes off our E.T.A. (Estimated Time of Arrival). Two of our flight's Fortresses were waiting In Puerto Rico for minor re pairs, so we felt a little less lone some. Just in case the authorities In Washington decided to stop the last ship or the last two ships In our mission, I got my crew up long before daylight next morning, and we soon were heading South for Trinidad, ahead of the other two. A real night take-off from Trini dad we were airborne in the dark ness at 5:20 a. m. As the wheels left the ground I realized very quick ly how great a load we were lifting. This was the first time we had tak en off with full load of fuel, and it seemed to me that I almost had to break my arms to keep the tail from going all the way back to the jungle for all practical purposes the Fortress tried a loop. (It must have been that case of Scotch, add ed suddenly to the other sixty thou sand pounds.) Finally we got the ship rigged properly and climbed on top of the clouds at eight thou sand feet. Later we had to go high er to keep from going through the heavy tropical thunderheads; with our overload, neither Doug nor I wanted to risk the turbulence that we knew was there. As the sun came up we could look down through holes at intervals and see the dark Atlantic near the Gul anas. Over Devil's Island at 9:20, I saw by our chart that we were only five degrees North of the equator. Com ing down lower to look at the French penal colony, we found that although Improvtd Uniform International the temperature was comfortable on top of the haze at six thousand feet, down in the soup near the water we had difficulty breathing. Pass ing on over another river Identified as the Rio Oyapok, we went out over the Guiana s into Brazil at 9.W a. m. Cruising low at eight hundred feet, we got some unforgetable views of the steaming Brazilian jun gle. Looking out to sea, we noticed that the blue color already was changing to the murkiness of the Amazon, though we were about a hundred miles from its mouth. Fly ing low, I noted that the hump of Brazil near the coast was flat and green and hot as hell temperature ninety-six and humidity about ninety-nine per cent at 10:55 a. m. We reached the mouth of the greatest river In the world at 11:35 E.W.T. Here the width of the Amazon is about one hundred and fifty miles. Boys will have their fun too, no matter if you are flying low over the greatest of rivers. As we crossed the equator old Zero Degrees Lat. at 11:56 a. m., at West Longitude 49 degrees 32 minutes I saw those of my crew who had been in the South latitudes before take paper cups of water and drop them on the heads of those who were unini tiated, thus making them subjects of the sacred realm of Jupiter Rex as identified from the realm of Neptune Rex on the sea. We crossed the Ama zon, from just West of Point Grossa over Bahia Santa Rosa to Mixiana Is land, thence to Isla da Marajo. This last island in the mouth of the river Is one hundred miles wide and reputedly has more cattle on the single ranch than any ether ranch in the world. Soon we came to Rio Para, crossed it in a thunderstorm. and were over Belem, where we landed in the blackness of a tropical rain at 12:40 E.W.T. On April 4, we left Belem for Na tal at 6:55 a. m., and climbed to ten thousand feet in order to top as much of the cumulus as possible. We had to skirt one great anvil-head reaching up into the sub-stratosphere near Bahia San Luiz. This storm covered about fifty miles, but we got around it without going into its turbulence. As we went on South of the equator the haze di minished gradually and the country became dry, making us think we were over western Texas. We land ed at Natal, our jump-off point for the South Atlantic crossing, at 12:25 E.W.T. This was to be a real day's flight. For we were not to be able to spend the night at Natal. Our run from Belem to Natal of nine hundred miles, then the crossing of nineteen hundred miles to Liberia, plus the run down the hump of Africa to a Pan-American base on the Gold Coast this last almost nine hun dred miles had to be made with out stops, except short ones for fuel. For all practical purposes, then, we had thirty-seven hundred miles to make In one day. We got the big ship serviced and ready for the trip, then went to the Ferry Command Hotel. There we found two more crews of our thir teen heavy bombers. One group of these had turned back the night before with one engine out. The other, piloted by Col. Gerry Mason, had nearly come to grief on the way in from Belem. The rubber life-rafts in the Forts are carried In two compartments where the wing of the B-17 joins the big fuselage. This is to facilitate their automatic release upon contact with the wa ter should the ship have to land at sea. They are of course tied to the airplane with strong manila rope, and it Is on this hemp that the present tale hangs. In the flight down the coast some malfunction had caused one of these compart ments to spring open and out came the heavy, five-man boat. At the speed of two hundred miles an hour with which it struck the tail section as it went back on its rope in the slipstream of two engines, it nearly took the entire horizontal stabilizer off. Only by very skillful piloting had Gerry Mason managed to get the Fort and his crew of ten to Na tal. Just the same, In my attempted nap that afternoon, I grinned at the thought that we in old "Hades Ab Altar" were passing ahead of two more ships of the flight. Boy, I dreamed, they'll have a hell of a Job getting me back there into the training center nowl It's four thou sand miles back to Florida and in the morning I'll be across the At lantic. We climbed out of the Fortress and stepped upon Africa at 11:05 G.M.T. Our crossing from Natal had been made in thirteen hours. Leaving the natives at work under Royal Air Force bosses, we hurried on to Operations, where we ar ranged for clearance down the coast. Then we were led Into a thatch-roofed dining hall for good hot food. If I hadn't been so hungry and tired from the extra tension I had been subjected to, I think I'd have "gawked" at those wild-looking tribesmen who were serving us. In one night we'd left the hotels of South America, and here we were, having our plates brought by jet black bush Negroes with rings in their ears and noses, jabbering away in a West Coast dialect. To them we were "Bwana," the food was "chop," and dessert was "sweet" (TO BE CONTINUE! ' SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON By HAROLD L. LUNDQUIST. D. D. Of The Moody Bible Institute of Chicago. Released by Western Newspaper Union. Lesson for November 26 Lesson subjects and Scripture texts se lected and copyrighted by International Council of Religious Education; used by permission. THE CHRISTIAN VIEW OF INDUSTRY LESSON TEXT Luke 19:13-28; H Theasalonlans 3:10-13. GOLDEN TEXT Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labor, working with his hands tha thing that Is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. Ephesians 4:28. Work is a blessing, and the proper attitude toward it is an important part of the life of a Christian. Indus try has found its best and most de pendable workers among those who believe in Christ It has also come to realize that the strengthening of the faith of its workers makes them better workmen; hence we see ail over the land the interesting devel opment of chaplains In industrial plants. That activity rightly planned and properly conducted can be of great value to both the individual and to industry. Our lesson rightly deals with the individual. Christianity is a person al matter, a life rather than a the ory. It deals with the man rather than the mass. I. We Are Accountable for Oppor tunity (Luke 19:15). The king in this parable Is Christ who has now gone away, to return when God is ready for Him to set up His kingdom on earth. In the mean time His servants have been given that which they should be using for Him. Two things stand out in this story. First the fact that Jesus is coming again. There are many scoffers who deny that blessed truth (II Pet 3:3, 4). There are many believers to whom the promise has become but a formal truth In a confession of faith or a creed. But the failure of men to recognize truth and their un willingness to hold it precious, do not alter the fact Jesus is coming again! When He comes, He will have many things to accomplish, but and this is our second fact one of the most Important Is that there shall be an accounting with His fol lowers (who are supposed to be His servants) regarding the life they have lived. What will your answer and mine be In that day? It depends on what we are and what we are doing right now. The basis of His Judgment ap pears In the following verses, where we learn that: II. We Are to Be Rewarded for Faithfulness (Luke 19:16-26). When believers stand In the pres ence of Christ to answer for the deeds done In the flesh (our sins were Judged at Calvary!), it will not be a question of what church you belong to, or what family name you bear, or how much money you have amassed. No, the only ques tion asked will be, "Have you been faithful in trading with the gifts, the abilities and the opportunities which God has given you?" Note that there are three different judgments here, but all on the one ground of faithfulness. The first man represents those who with all dili gence and zeal seek to grow spiritu ally and to serve the Lord with glad abandon. All that they have and are they give to Him for His glory and for the winning of others to Him. They will be commended by the Lord and great will be their reward! The second man, with equal op portunity, did accomplish something, but not too much. He represents those who do want to serve the Lord but with no special zeal, no great measure of sacrificial endeavor Just "average" (what an unfortu nate standard!) Christians. The Lord is fair. He does not de prive them of their reward. In the measure that they have been faith ful, they too shall find Joyous service for Him. But observe that there is no special word of commendation in this case, and there is a limited reward. The third man represents those who profess to be in fear of God. He seems to demand so much of them and they are not ready to give it. After all, they say, we want to enjoy life. Why should the Lord ex pect so much of usT Not only do they lose all reward, but the Lord must take away even that which He has already given. III. We Are Commanded to Work (II Thess. 3:10-12). From the day that God put Adam In the garden of Eden to care for it, honest work has been the lot of all mankind yes, and his honor. There is no place in the economy of God for the man or woman who Is able to work but Is not willing to do so. "If any will not work, neither let him eat" (v. 10). Apparently there were some In the church at Thessalonlca who per verted the teaching of the Lord's return, who said that if Jesus were coming any day there was no use working. They had turned the truth completely around. The point is that, since Jesus may come at any time, wis should all be doing our ut most to accomplish all we can so that we may stand in His presence with Joy, and not with shame. - Password By STUART M. LONG McClure Newspaper Syndicate Released by WNU 'H ALT! Who's there?" The sentry's cry, ringing out in the still cold night broke into Laura's thoughts as she was hurry ing home. How silly it was to have planned a surprise visit to the ma rine base without a telegram in ad vance! And here was a silly guard who would make her stop to give a password she did not know. "I'm Laura Archer, Colonel Arch er's daughter," she told the grim faced leatherneck who was barring her path with rifle at the ready. "Advance and be recognized," he ordered and, as Laura approached, she saw that he was lean, tanned and tall. She fumbled in her purse for her identification card, then real ized that it was In her traveling bag at the station. "I'm sorry I haven't my I.D. card, but I am Colonel Archer's daugh ter . . ." "Any other proof? Otherwise, you don't move on," the guard broke in. Laura knew she was wrong, but she wouldn't let a boot get away with turning her from the post where her father was commanding officer. "You Just caU the colonel," she ordered curtly. "Look, lady, don't you know any one less than the Skipper?" the guard asked. "I can't be waking him up at O-one-hundred to ask him to come out here." "If you don't you'll be up for office hours tomorrow," Laura threatened. "Corporal of the Guard, Number Seven," the marine sang out and, when the shouts for him had echoed down the line from sentry to sentry, out of the shadows on the double came the husky noncom. "This lady says she's Colonel Archer's daughter, Corporal, but she has no identification," the sen try reported. "She threatened me with office hours if I don't call the Skipper." "I wouldn't call him out In this storm for another stripe," the cor poral vowed. Turning to Laura he asked, "Are you really Colonel Arch er's daughter? I've been here seven months and I've never seen you around." "I've been off to school. Please let me in," Laura pleaded. An hour later, having been grilled by the men on duty, a tired yet fuming Laura was sent to her fa ther's quarters, where she was ad mitted on assurance from the sleepy colonel that she really was his daughter. Next morning, when Lrura came tripping down to her father's car, she found that square-jawed, lean and hated face behind the wheel. "Where to. Miss Archer?" Private Gillespie queried. "My father will be out in a min ute," she answered. "The colonel will tell you where to drive." Private Gillespie's neck reddened. He offered weakly, "I'm sorry about last night, Miss Archer, but you know the General Orders." She turned her upturned nose to ward the parade ground and began a close inspection of a platoon which was drilling there. Private Gilles pie watched in the mirror. "Nice looking platoon," he ventured. "That D.I. was my bunkie in boot camp. He sure does put them through, doesn't he?" He continued his mono logue, his warm drawl melting the icicles from his listener. He told her his name and about his ranch back In Texas. Then he brought up the sore subject again. "I said I was sorry about last night Miss Archer," he began, but Just then he had to spring out to open the door for Colonel Archer. He was ordered to drive to the parade ground where the colonel was to in spect the recruits completing basic training that morning. Laura decided to see the review from the car. Private Gillespie returned to the front seat and resumed his watch. "Today's pay day, Miss Archer, and I have liberty tonight, will you have dinner and go to a show with me?" he suggested. "It would kind of make up. . . ." Just then the rear of a tank bang ing along the drive halted the one way conversation. From the pa rade ground, a thousand frozen faced recruits, waiting at attention, saw the man in the turret swept to the ground by a low-hanging limb. His left foot, straining unconscious ly for a toehold, nudged the left shoulder of the driver, who was operating the massive iron monster by signals. The tank swung to the left, the guide lying unconscious in the road. The colonel's car leaped ahead, its motor screaming, as Private Gil lespie turned the key, touched the starter and let out the clutch. It pulled to one side and stopped as the clanging tank roared past. Colonel Archer and his aides ran toward the car. "Are you all right, Laura?" her father panted. "Of course," she smiled, "because your driver knows how to use a rear-view mirror. Father, please ask him to dine with us tonight." Check Cleaner Bag If your vacuum cleaner refuses to pick up the dirt, check the cleaner bag. It may need emptying. When you empty the bag, turn it wrong side out and brush it clean. Per haps the nozzle or cleaner brush Is improperly adjusted, or it may be a broken belt or the belt not re volving. . -. " .. - SEW1XG CIRCLE NEEDLECRAFT Sailor Doll Everyone's Favorite -f - na ii t - a ia i h r HERE'S fun! Get busy sewing this sailor doll. He's the fa vorite of young and old everyone who sees him wants to own him. e e e Needlework you'll hate to put down. Pat tern 933 contains a transfer pattern tor doll and clothes; complete directions. A little skim milk rubbed over leather chairs several times a year will keep the leather soft and prevent cracking. a In order not to scorch milk, rinse the pan with water for sev eral minutes before heating the milk. a When sending a book through the mails, cut the corners from several heavy envelopes and place over the four corners of the book to protect them. To clean under the piano, place an old sock moistened with polish over a yardstick. a Add salt to the water in which eggs are to be cooked. This makes the shells more brittle and easier to remove. If there is a suggestion of rust on your refrigerator shelves, wash them with a mild scouring powder and hot water, dry well with a soft clean cloth, and apply a thin ooating of hot melted paraf fin. If candles are soiled, rub them with a cloth dipped in alcohol. Or they may be rubbed with lard or other fats. Wax your book shelves. This will permit books to slide in and out easier and cause less wear on them. Due to an unusually large demand and current war conditions, slightly more time is required in filling orders for a few of the most popular pattern numbers. Send your order to: Sewing Circle Needlecraft Dept. 82 Eighth Ave. New York Enclose IS cents for Pattern No Address 'I'll Take You Home Again, Kathleen To Germany Although frequently played on programs of Irish songs, "I'll Take You Home Again, Kathleen" has no Gaelic connection. It was written about 70 years ago by the American composer, Thomas Westendorf, as a musical confir mation of a promise made to his wife, Kathleen, that he would take her back to visit her old home in Germany. HEARTBURN Relieved la 5 sxasatsaarnouW awaeyfcack Whan axaaaa stomach add esusea i Jural, aaffoeat tnar ffaa. aour atomach and haartbom. doctors usually preaenb tha fastaat-actine medidnea Known for rmptomatJe relief mecHcinetlikathoealo Ball ana ablcta. No laxative, bell-ana brings comfort in jiff 7 or doable roar aaoncy Back on return of bottle to oe. S5o at all dniaviata. Jones Found There Were Not Enough Comers -In! Jones decided to enter business, and so he bought an establishment from an agent. After some months he failed, and, meeting the agent some time later, he said: "Do you remember selling me a business a few months ago?" "Yes," replied the agent. "But what's the trouble? Isn't it as I .represented it to be?" "Oh, yes," said the other. "You said it was in a busy locality where there were plenty of passers-by." "Well!" queried the agent. 'What's wrong with that?" "There were too many passers-by." Hi) j-Hsyi UzBcm 1. Deadly flamethrowers are blazing the road to Victory 1 Each of these efficient weapons depends upon dry batteries to spark the flame for instant action. The batteries you do without mean more fire-power for front line fighting men. Use your available bat teries sparingly.. .keep them cool and dry... rest them as often as possible. For Free Battery Hints - Write Dept. U-4, Burgess Battery Company, Freeport, Illinois. M Ai feoif one exfro for the SIXTH I ... - , BURGESS BATTERIES IN THE NATION'S SERVICE ailMaMaaWaS Bp ill m l' 1 SCNGWEITEES Poems Melodiet Lyrics HOLLYWOOD SHEET MUSIC PUBLISHER NOW EXAMINING ORIGINAL MATERIAL Talented Writers of new material submit your original poems and songs now FOR OUR FREE EXAMINATION YOU WILL RECEIVE A liberal offer to publish In 2 color SHEET MUSIC ready for sale. A criticism of your work and its return, if not accepted at no cost to you. REMEMBER NO OBLIGATION. We will examine and report to you our staff's decision on your song or poem promptly! Send Your Original Material NOWI NORDYKE PUBLISHING COMPANY Publishers of sheet music for salt Nordyks Building, 6607 Sunset Boulevard Hollywood 28, California Flavor Delights Millions! "The Or.lns ere Crest Feeds"- jfatitedy Kellogg's Corn Flakes bring you nearly all the protective food elements of the whole grain declared essential to human nutrition. (rui -a 0 eLfu Lru FIJI Lill TftAVE Don't talk-doo'l Spread rumors. Don't cough don't spread (terms. Smith Brae. Cough Drops, Black or Menthol, are still as soothing and delicious as everand they still cost only a nickel. SMITH BROS. COUGH DROPS " HACK OR MENTjtOL-5 inn "UU
The Beaufort News (Beaufort, N.C.)
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Nov. 23, 1944, edition 1
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