"Leslie F. Stone - Men With Wings" - читать интересную книгу автора (Stone Leslie F)

come upon a great band of flying men! He judged there were perhaps a thousand
and they had appeared to be going through some aerial drill, flying in
formation
with a leader at their head.
He had come upon them from the rear, but the noise of his engine announced
his
presence. Immediately as if at a signal the large party separated but still
keeping a formation they flew upward and outward straight into the sky until
a
great circle a thousand feet above the plane was spread.
"Were they to attack me in a body," said the broadcaster from his plane,
"they
could by laying hands upon the machine bear it down to the ground, but it is
evident that they wish me to go my way. For some reason I suspicion that I am
close to their base. I lay this position to be about seven degrees below the
equator and . . . "
There the voice of the pilot ended and it was believed for the moment that he
had been attacked by the flying men, and, as the aviator had conjectured, had
borne his plane to the earth. However five minutes later his voice was again
heard.
"I am losing control of my machine . . . I can no longer guide it . . . for
it
moves . . . and swings about crazily . . . as if . . drawn by some great
power.
. . moving faster than before . . . Overhead the flying men watch . . . God ..
.
my hands . . . they are growing cold . . . my feet . . . why . . . there is
frost on the instrument board! My God . . . the propeller is frozen fast . .
.and yet . . . yet . . . the plane continues to move irresistibly toward some
goal. The earth is swinging around . . . It is cold . . . horribly cold . .
.and
dark . . . the sky is black . . . I can see nothing . . . I . . . I . . .."
And there ended the radiogram. The receiving stations waited for hours but no
more was heard. The pilot was evidently dead, but he had managed to give the
world some tangible news at last. We knew now where to look.
D'Arcy, Norton and Wormley and I started out before dawn and this time we
headed
ninety miles east on the seventh degree of latitude. Others started shortly
after we did, but ours was uncommonly fast so that we led the race. It was I
who
discerned a large band of flying men gathered together several miles ahead.
They
sighted us and quickly spread out fan fashion until they disappeared
altogether
into the blue sky. We were happy. We had found them out.



CHAPTER THREE
Caught