Page Four
THJt Uk CKANDE EVENING OBSERVER, LA GRANDE, OREGON
Friday, June 15, 19-J5 '
Thin la a true Rnrr uf the
nm wlto fly the 4huiii" currying-
pni(ntfiri mid Clirffo uvr
lb IiIk.i H.iuu.nyn uHwvrn
luilln mid Clilim. P... full il
Iba ttiugfacNI nlrl.ti mule In -lb
wurld.
ST. ELMO'S FIRE
in
VOU miss crashing like that once
, In a lifetime, and when you
do, you. lean back and. say,
"Thanks, God." After that, If you
have time, you say It again and
aialn.. and then again. . But
didn't have time for more than
the first one.
. I keot the motors at full throt
tie and took the highest altitude
the shiD would take, 21,000 feet
then I motioned Fox to take off
his mask. I put on my own and
took a couple of deep draughts. I
looked back at Tsui and saw the
blueness filtering through his yel
low skin. He was out cold.
Even while we were gaining
altitude I had begun to correct
our course, pulling the ship hard
off to the southwest,, and the
flight became a battle not only
against the winds blowing north
but against the ice . mat Kepi
dragging us down. We could hold
only to 21,100-feet even ai run
throttle for a matter of 10 or. 15
minutes; then the altimeter began
to show a steady decline. Our
only hope was to get out of the
high mountain ranges before we
were dragged too low.
At the time of that flight, In
February of 1943, Bill Fox had
only been with . us a couple of
months. He still hadn't checked
out as a full pilot, and there wero
a' lot of things, he hadn't seen
that most of us with C. N, A. C.
were more or less accustomed to
and I say "more or less" ad
visedly. 3t. Elmo's Fire, for Instance. I
don't care how many times a man
thing to him, Ginglss, PrJvensal
Johnson, "Skippy" Lune, all the
boys I flew with in China, they all
felt the sume way.
Wb pulled through those Tibe
tan peaks by the grace of God-
there's no other wuy of account
ing for it una got ourselves well
soutli of the heavy ice. But when
the ice began to thin, it turned
into just pluin ice water, then this
phenomenon of St. Elmo's began
' .
T HAD been riding with it for
- some 10 minutes Fox was
only semi-conscious . in the co
pilot's scat and the blue flame
licking at the windshield and
along the leading edges of the
wings wasn't bothering me at all.
That is, I had overcome that ini
tial fright tliut It always brings
with it.
But I reached out to set the
evrocomDass and thut was when
Fox first noticed it. My hand was
still two inches away from the in
strument when the blue flame
leaped across liko an arc light,
throwing a dim blue flash through
the cockpit. Fox screamed I
know he did, although he al
ways denied It and I laughed. I
felt as though I had pulled a trick
that he couldn't understand. 1
was delighted in the way, of
course, that only a man with too
little oxygen In his lungs can be
delighted. And for all the tung
sten I had carried from China to
India I couldn't have explained
to poor Fox then that St. Elmo's
Fire was a phenomenon of static
electricity, generated by the rain
beating against the plane, under
peculiar climatic conditions that
exist in only a few parts of the
world, Tho flre is truly danger
ous because It's real flre. If you
were carrying a cargo of gasoline
it could easily mean an explosion
In mid-air. Our cargo was not
combustible, so I was not worried
on that score, but Bill Fox passed
sees that, It always does some
Copyright, 1945, J. C. Winston Co.; Distributed NEA SERVICE. INC.
completely out the moment he had
finished his hysterical scream,
QUR emergence from that Hlm
alayan storm was one of the
most abrupt things I've ever en
countered in the air, in either
fog-bound England or in China.
It was Just as if a window shads
had snapped up to let in the sun
shine. We were out of the storm.
The grayness of the windows
turned to silver light. From that
brilliant gleam they took on the
myriad hues of a rainbow. India's
sun, even at 18,000 feet, was
turning our world of ice into
water.
I took the ship down at 1000'
feet per minute and at 10,000 feet
I reached over and pushed with
gigantic effort to open the side
window and get a breath of air.
At 6000 feet we swept out of the
clouds. Below us I could see the
Brahmaputra River running its
smooth blue ribbon through the
deep green blanket of India's As
sam Valley. Fox had come around
and was sheepishly reorganizing
himself at the auxiliary controls;
Tsui was stirring behind us, and
he and the passengers would soon
be all right.
As we came In over the airfield
at Dinjan and Tsui went back to
tell our passengers to get ready
to land, I said to Fox, "I'm going
to make It this time, Bill. I'm go
ing to set her down neat as a pin,
and Captain Brldgit, that old dog,
won't have a chance to wash me
out this time."
Fox, of course, didn't know
what I was talking about. I
hadn't seen Captain Bridglt for
years. He had nothing whatever
to say about me or about anything
I did or did not do now. He was
in the Army Air Corps and I was
a civilian pilot for the China Na
tional Aviation Corporation.- But
what I was thinking about, was
all the trouble I had gone through
to get Into Randolph Field back
In 1938 and then that last flight
of mino as a cadet when Brldgit
(a darned nice guy. I had always
thought before) washed me out
as an Army pilot with the remark
on my final papers. "A dangerous
flyer."
(To Be Continued)
New Pajamas!
'5899 fejll
By MRS. ANNE CABOT
The shortage of children's un
derwear and sleeping garments
has been a very real problem to
mothers of small children. How
ever the mutter can be cosily tak
en care of if you know how to
scwl. And even if you don't it's
no trick at ull to cut out, baste,
seam and finish a simple pajiima.
The one illustrated can be worn
by boys or girls of two, three or
four years.
To obtain complete pattern and
finishing instructions for the pa
jama suit (pattern No, 5809) size
2, 3, 4 years included, send 15
cents in coin, plus 1 cent postage,
your name, address and the put
tern number to Anne Cubot, La
Grande Evening Observe! 709
Mission St., Sun Francisco, Calif.
Official Records
Water turned on:
Carlos E. Easley, 507 Fourth
street; Mrs. Elizabeth Ricker, 905
Division street; Ed Klassert, 2221
Jofferson avenue; Mrs. W. C.
Bruce, 2112 Walnut avenue.
Water turned off;
Mis. A. G. Nerry, 900 Main
street; Mrs. Glenn Peck, 2007 Ouk
street.
miiissjitP a
For Tots
1 ' AZ-r7i3S
MAYOR OF NAHA A pistol
packln' "city father" is Ma).
Anthony Walker, above, of
Fairfax. Va. He's tha new
mayor of Naha, capital of Oki
nawa, "electod" to the job by
his division commander.
U. S. Army Unit
HORIZONTAL 4 Gaelic
'; 1,7 Depicted is 5 Symbol for
Insigne of U tellurium
I S Army 6 French l iver
Division 7 Indo-Chinese
12 Idolizes language
13 Assistants 8 Concent
14 Bitter vetch 9 Conceive
15 Nullifies 10 Pauses
17 Bloie 11 Doctor of
19 Railway (ab.) Science (ub.)
20 Consumed 16 Annomese
23 Wide-mouthed measure
Jar 17 Mist
24 Czar 18 Lady Liter-25Geoigio-(ab.)
ate in Arts
26 Decigram (nb.)
28 Us 21 Auricle
29 Sun god 22 National Re-
30 Overtime (ab.) covery Act
32 Symbol lor
iron
3S Halt -em
35 Exempli
gratia (nb. )
St Lett gulf
it Lund meiwure
41 An raid
nltu-oi
49 Pali (ub)
4i Shiip
-ttt IWisiiIIm ring
411 Uukricunt
.49 Culm nietel
50 to- snen
Anmtrr In lrvvlmiM riiftli
lSmtfy HENRY H I PHIS
Q teV. 3. f J k t rIp
(ob.) 38 Exploit
27 Frozen water 40 Abdominal
28 Affliction
30 British ac
count money
31 Sesame
.12 Satires
34 Country
35 Make n
mistake
36 Driving
command
pain
42 Civil wrong
43 Jumbled type
44 Cheers'
45 Rail bird
47 Log.il point
49 Street (ab.)
51 And (Latin)
52 Symbol for
cerium
i e 3 i i lb I 1 & M jii In I
U 5
B
jj Jf .L
n ' w r.r! jt T ""j
play
This
By SUE BURNETT
Little girls like pretty
outfits for fun out of doors.
simple princess dress with match
ing pontics and bolero makes a
perfect sunny day set.
Pattern No. 8873 is designed fur
sizes 2, 3, 4, 5, 0 and 8 years, Size
3, dress and pantic, requires 2V
yards of 35 or 39-inch material;
bolero 1 yard.
For this pattern, send 20 cents,
in coins, your name, address,
size desired and the pattern num
ber to Sue Burnett, La Grande
Evening Observer, 709 Mission
St., San Francisco, Calif.
Ready now the spring issue of
Fashion. Just 15 cents. A com
plete guide in planning wardrobe
needs for all the family.
MULES
Seventeen ships 13 Liberty
and four cargo ships have been
especially convened to accom
modate mules. Each ship is de
signed to carry from 320 to 699
mules, attesting to the import
ance of mule power in army
transportation.
Hold Everything
Our Boarding House
With Major Hoopt Out Our Wag
J. R. William
I VE 6EEM UP PAINTING T(4& 7 THKT TO&S US f
HOUSE 6IWCE SiSO.SO I'M. POSITION Vi COCONUT AND
TAKING A LITTLE L006ENJ- REMIMDS WE'LL SO ONTO
IN& UP EXERCISE VOL) ME OF THE &THE OFFICE
ROBOTS OLW3HTA TRV Tr4lS 1 KOOPLE X'M 60 TIRED
IT'LL MAEVQUAS. J ANCESTORS, YTHIS MORN1NS
LI(VBCR AS A (SARDEni F" ONLV . X'D TtAUfvAB A
HAM BY ( hrSLACiER
'1
5)))) i
it
LfAPA
I H00PLE
VIOUEMTLV
GZ?MiW&' AM-H-H, TH' DELieHTFULNESS TVOU FOOL.THATS
W&zflLrl OF TH' BEES HUMMIN' AMD JUO BEES HUM" I
TTk Wi A TH' BIRDS SlNGlW IS WHUT vMIN' EE BIRDS
v. MAKES ME LOVE TOIf SlNGIN'--IT'S A
ffl7i&l AWAY FROM TO WM - - SO A LOCOMOTIVE CHUG 1
V RESTFUL, SUCH SWEET ) GlW AW WHISTLIN7 I
WW Ml SOUNPS S&mgf Ay OF NATURE4'
Boots and Her Buddies
By Edgar Martin
Xt OO
ran
Am .ismy
Ull Ml
OtiQ CN ASKJ-1; WWLW
AVa VtNRV VvNS-O
IT- IV (r- ....
M
31
Freckles and His Friends
Merrill Blosser
WE'RE GONNA COMB THE" WWrlvliS
rAOUNTAINS, LOOKW& FOR. M NOf hM
HILDA I WANNA GO, MR.. Mk, ?
VTENNY J-
,
Yeah, thesf
mountains
AfC MCTTt I Alkl'T
ROOMV WE'LI WOOP1N''
HELP US WOK.'
f Vou 1
J
fHOOEY.'
SHE'D BE
TOO HARD
TO FIND
THEUE
MO. SHF
womt; she
WAS WEAR
ING A ONE-
PIECE FiED
PATHIN&
SUIT.'
BATH N& J
jC - , y I
T LjUIT-
fvou Talked WtlJW
us into JH l-Sv;)
Red Ryder
VCQPP. 11M5'B nc scbvice inc. t. m. req. U. PAT, art.
Fred Barnvul
flE 6CARED
alwtt
duchess
El-LVN
T nonsense, Lmie If flrt SMIRKS 1 V &cJ&m&3&0 ( Vll wbu' w i
y PtAVErC I'LL SET J AWf VnUWlWU kAM WCmilT JvBSZ&t2B UOTreinoKy
1 1 M DROP OA ...H 0 J& L -AfJsa I . Vv & MaStfSfcSsSk 1 , .--ZAs U
Wash Tuhhs
rtniciH in
IO
HIMAlAYASv
A COLD
WIK1D
THRU THE
SHARP
FLURRIES
Of SNOW
$mmr thev're T but we can't set anv closer, captain
W CHAN6IM6 EASY, WITHOUT RAISING THE ALARM THAT
I SENTRIES AT WOULO MEAN DEATH TO DR.WIN6 ANDBITA!
I mOMUOi fewi " 'wf
a
i "r i - r
...We COULD PICK THAT
SENTRY OFF WITH A RIFLE,
BUT THE SHOT WOULD BE
HEARD WITH THE SAME
RESULTS !
By Leslie Turner
TU.T' TBijF Ppii A" " RUT t'ii AfiiuA.
TO TRY SOMETHING THAT MAY FREC '..
BPWJBg UJP DAKS AM I '
ALARM. BRING ME THE LUTZE NATIVE!
4
'
OU DIP YOUR WORK WELL;
MY PEAK ... HOW MANY OF
ALLEY S FOOTPRINTS
PIP YOU DESTROY v
1
SHE SHOULP KNOW.- WELL, I'M NOT T 'X IslTlWI Ft NOT A TRACE.' AND Y
cvcu -m'TVJHEY CAM6 UP ASATISfiieP.'I'M )VJ DHt3 IT THERE WOULP HAVE SETjN
M,? Ogr! FROM PRE- 6O1NG OUTANP TH N f pTJll TOO. IF HE HAP BEEN V
rf pST,7S' ) HITO?!C LOOK FOR - ffOUU mPh l..N0VVM HERE... AS SOFT AS
106
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MPjur
TlfltOICAC,
) (JSffsxanJD Joi)
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