The air cut by Ethel's face at a ninety-mile gait, and she grippednervously at the hand-rails of the car. Then, regaining confidence,she began to drink in the novel view about her. Ahead were thedrab-winged aeroplanes growing smaller and smaller until they becamemere specks against the darkening sky. She turned to the rear andwatched the myriads of humans, like birds, rising from thetransports that still lay in the sunshine. There were literallythousands of them. She wondered if human eyes had ever beforewitnessed so marvelous a sight.
They had come over the mainland of Mexico now and were flying at aheight of about half a mile. Shrouded in the tropical twilight, thelandscape below was but dimly discernible. As the darkness came on,Ethel discovered that a small light glowed from the side of the carin front of the driver. Gripping the hand-rail, she made bold toraise herself; and, stopping beneath the searchlight and machine-gunthat hung, one beneath the other, on swivels in the center of theframework, she peered forward over Komoru's shoulder.
The taciturn steersman turned and smiled but said nothing. Ethelnoted carefully the equipment of the driver's box. It was aduplicate throughout of the dummy steering gear with which she hadpracticed in the ship's gymnasium. One conspicuous addition,however, was an object illuminated by the small glow lamp that hadattracted her attention. This proved to be chart or map mounted ateither end on short rollers. As the girl watched it, she perceivedthat it moved slowly. A red line was drawn across the map andhovering over this was the tip of a metal pointer. A compass and awatch were mounted at one side of the chart case.
Ethel watched the chart creep back on its rollers and reasoned thatthe pointer indicated the location of the aeroplane. She wonderedhow the movement of the chart was regulated with that of the plane.Finally she decided to ask Komoru.
"By the landmarks and the time," he said. "Do you see that bluecoming in on the northeast corner of the map?"
"Yes."
"Well, watch it."
After a few minutes of waiting the words "_Gulf of Mexico_" rolledout upon the chart. "Why, that can't be," said Ethel, "we just leftthe Pacific Ocean."
"But we have crossed the Isthmus of Tehauntepec," replied Komoru;"it is only a hundred miles wide."
His companion looked over the side of the car and to the front and.to the right, she could see by the perfectly flat horizon that theywere approaching water.
"The map is unrolling too fast," said Komoru, as the pointer stoodover the edge of the indicated water--and he pushed back the littlelever on the clock mechanism that rolled the chart. "We have alittle head wind," he added.
Ethel resumed her seat and sat musing for a half hour or so. Komorulooked around and called to her.
"Look over to your left," he said. "The lights of Vera Cruz. We aremaking better time now," he added, again adjusting the regulator onthe clock work.
The driver contemplated his compass carefully and shifted his coursea few points to the right. Ethel settled in her bamboo cage andpulled her aviation cap down tightly to shield her face and earsfrom the wind pressure.
For hours they sat so--the girl's heart throbbing with awe, wonderand fear; the man unemotional and silent, a steady, firm hand on thewheel, his feet on the engine controls and his goggled eyes glancingcritically at compass or watch or out into the starlit waste of thenight, disturbed only by the whirl and shadow of other planes whichwith varying speed passed or were passed, as the aerial host rushedonward. There were only small tail lights, one above and one belowthe main plane, to warn following drivers against collision.
* * *
With her head bent low upon her knees, Ethel at length fell into adoze. She was aroused by Komoru's calling, and straightening up witha start, she arose and leaned forward over the driver. Komoru waslooking intently at the scroll chart. In a moment she designed thecause of his interest, for there had rolled across the forwardsurface of the chart the outline of a coast.
In the far left-hand corner was marked the city of Galveston, and tothe right was the Sabine River that forms the boundary between Texasand Louisiana. Ethel raised her eyes from the map and looked far outto the Northwest. Sure enough, she discerned the lights of a city atthe point where Galveston was indicated by the chart.
"How far have we come?" she asked in astonishment.
"Eight hundred miles," replied Komoru. "See, it is nearlytwo-thirty. The first men with the faster planes were to havearrived at one o'clock."
A little later they passed over the dimly discernible coast line,some thirty or forty miles to the east of Galveston. Komorucarefully consulted his compass, watch and aneroid, and made aslight change in his course.
"Where do we land?" asked the girl.
Komoru steadied the wheel with one hand; and, reaching into thebreast pocket of his aviator's jacket, he produced a littledocument-like roll. "These are the orders," he explained, and askedEthel to spread out the papers on the chart case.
The instruction sheet read:
"Fly twenty-eight minutes beyond the coast line,which will place you ten or twenty miles northwestof the town of Beaumont, where a fire of some sortwill be lighted about 3 a.m.
"When you alight locate one or more farm housesand attach one of the enclosed notices to thedoor.
"This done, fly toward the Beaumont signal fireand assist in subduing the town and capturing allpetroleum works in the region.
"At 6 a.m., if petroleum works are safe, followthe lead of the red plane and fly northwest as faras Fort Worth, returning by nightfall to oilregion."
Ethel read the paper over and over as she held it down out of thewind by the dim glow lamp. She wanted to ask questions. She wonderedwhat was expected of her. She wondered again as to what was expectedof the entire invasion and why the women had been brought along. Buther questions did not find verbal expression, for she had schooledherself to await developments.
The roller chart had now come to a stop and showed the red line thatmarked their course terminating in a cross to the northwest of thetown of Beaumont. Komoru tilted the plane downward and flew for atime near the earth. Then checking the speed, he ran it lightlyaground in an open field a little distance from a clump ofbuildings.
The driver got out and stretched his cramped limbs. Taking a handglow lamp he ran carefully over the mechanism of the plane. Then heopened a locker and took out two small magazine pistols. One hehanded to Ethel.
"Don't use it," he said, "until you have to."
"Will you go with me?" he asked, "to tack the poster, or will youstay with the plane?"
"I'll stay here," she replied.
Komoru walked off rapidly towards the house. Presently the stillnesswas interrupted by the vociferous barking of a dog; Then there was asound as of some one picking a taut wire and the voice of the dogcurdled in a final yelp.
In a few minutes Komoru was back. "Dogs are no good," he said; "theyproduce nothing but noise."
"Will you kindly get aboard, Miss Ethel? There is much to do."
By carefully shielding his flash lamp, Komoru wasable to read a duplicate of the notice he had just fastened up.]
Ethel obeyed; meanwhile Komoru inspected the surface of the groundfor a few yards in front of the plane. Returning he climbed into hisseat and started the engine. They arose without mishap.
Within a mile or two, Komoru picked out another farm house and madea landing nearby.
"I will go with you this time," said Ethel courageously.
Approaching an American residence, Ethel suddenly found herselfconscious of the fact that she was dressed in a most unladylikeJapanese kimo. For a moment the larger sentiments of the occasionwere replaced by the womanly query, "What will people say?" Then shelaughed inwardly at the absurdity of her thought.
Komoru produced the roll from his pocket and unwound a small clothposter. This he fastened to the door jam by pressing in the thumbtacks that were sewed in the hem. Then noting another white blotchon the opposite side of the door, he carefully shielded his lamp,and made a light. It was a dupl
icate of the notice he had justfastened up and read:
WARNING
"Two hundred thousand Japanese have invaded Texasand are desirous of possessing your property. Youare respectfully requested to depart immediatelyand apply to your government for propertyelsewhere. All buildings not vacated withintwenty-four hours will be promptly burned--unlessdisplaying a flag truce for sufficient reason.Kindly co-operate with us in avoiding bloodshed.
(Signed) The Japanese People."
"We were late," said Komoru as they walked back toward the plane."Two hundred thousand," he mused; "what you call 'bluff,' I guess."
"It's growing light," said Ethel, as they reached the plane.
"Yes, a little," replied Komoru, as he walked around to the front."An ugly ditch," he said. "We shall have to use the helicopter."
Taking his seat he threw down a lever and what had appeared to betwo small superimposed planes above the main plane assumed the formof flat screws. Letting the engine gain full headway, Komoru threwthe clutch on this shafting, and the vertical screws startedrevolving in opposite directions with a great downward rush of air.The whole apparatus tilted a bit, and then slowly but steadilyarose.
When they had reached altitude of a hundred feet or so, the drivershifted the power to the quieter horizontal propeller and the planesidled off like an eagle dropping from a crag.
Tilting the plane upward, Komoru circled for altitude. Presently hecalled back over his shoulder, saying that he saw the signal fire atBeaumont at the same time heading the plane in that direction.
As the dawn began to break in the East, the occasional passinglights of flying planes became less bright and soon the planesthemselves stood out against the sky like shadows. And then thewhole majestic train of aerial invaders became visible as theypoured over the southern horizon---a never ending stream.
Komoru and Ethel landed in a meadow already well filled with planesand following the others, hurried along toward the town.
There had been some fighting in the streets and a few buildings wereburning. Walking along to the main street of the town, they cameupon a crowd of Japanese who were collected in front of a buildingfrom which the contents were being dragged hastily.
"What is it?" asked Komoru of one of the men.
"Hardware store," replied the other; "we've rifled all of them forthe weapons and explosives."
"Where are all the people?" asked Ethel. "The Americans--are theykilled or captured?"
"They are at home in their houses," answered the man, who seemedwell posted. "I was with the first squad to arrive. We captured thepolicemen and then took the telephone switchboard. Japaneseoperators are in there now. They have called up every one in townand explained the situation, and advised the people to stay indoors,telling them that every house would be burned from which peopleemerged or shots were fired. The operators are working on the ruralnumbers yet. We hold the telegraph also, and are sending outexaggerated reports of the size of the Japanese invasion."
* * *
A man wearing a blue sash came hurrying up. He stopped before thegroup at the hardware store and gestured for silence.
"The town is well in hand," he said, "and only those of you who aredetailed here as guards need remain longer; the others will get backto their planes and await the rise of their designated leaders forthe flights of the day.
"Come," said Komoru to his companion. But Ethel did not move. Hermind was racked with perplexity. Here she was in a city of her ownpeople. Why should she continue to accompany this young Japanesewhom, despite his gentlemanly conduct, she instinctively feared? Yetwhat else could she do? She was dressed in the peculiar attire ofthe invaders, and would certainly have trouble in convincing anAmerican of her identity.
As they passed near other planes, Ethel noted that inmany cases the women were driving.]
"I must ask you to hurry," said Komoru, as the others moved off.With an effort Ethel gathered her wavering emotions in hand and wentwith him. If she must go, she reasoned it were well not to arouseKomoru's suspicion of her loyalty.
A few minutes later they were again in the air, following the leadof a plane with bright red wings--the flag-ship, as it were, of thegroup.
In a half hour the expedition was approaching Houston. Coming overthe city, the leader circled high and waited until his followerswere better massed.
"Are we going to attack the town?" inquired Ethel, as Komoru askedher for the water-bottle.
"Oh, no," he replied, "nothing of the sort; we are simply bluffing.There are a number of expeditions going out to-day. We must make theappearance of a great invasion."
"How many planes are there all told?"
Komoru smiled. "Not so many," he said.
"But how many?" persisted Ethel.
"Fifteen thousand, maybe," Komoru replied.
"To invade a country with nearly two hundred million inhabitants! Wewill surely all be killed."
Komoru smiled.
"By sheer force of numbers," explained Ethel.
"Wait and see," replied her enigmatical companion.
For hours the little aerial squadron sailed through the balmy air ofTexas. They passed over Austin and Waco and Fort Worth and Dallas.They turned eastward and passed over Texarkana, and thence south toimpress the people of Shreveport.
The excitement evinced in the towns increased as the news of theirflight was wired ahead. They were frequently shot at by groups ofexcited citizens or occasional companies of militia, but at theheight and speed at which they were flying the bullets went wide.One plane was lost. Something must have snapped. It doubled up andwent tumbling downward like a wounded pigeon.
The sun was dropping toward the western horizon. The invaders hadbeen flying for ten hours. They had been without food or sleep forthirty-six hours. Save for the brief relaxation of the morning,Komoru had not taken his hands from the steering wheel, nor his footfrom the engine control since the previous sunset in the Bay ofTehauntepec.
The two women of Aryan blood worked together in thecotton field side by side with the Orientals.]
As they passed near other planes, Ethel noted that in many cases thewomen were driving. Notwithstanding her dislike for him, the girlfound herself wishing that she could relieve Komoru.
She pondered over his "wait and see" and began to discern a newpossibility in an invasion of thirty thousand Japanese. She tried toimagine one of the society favorites of her Chicago girlhood sittingin front of her driving that plane. She remembered distinctly thataeroplane racing was a part of the diversion of such men and thatfive or six hours of driving was considered quite a feat.
The more she considered the man before her, the more she marvelledat his powers. She confessed he interested her; she wondered why shedisliked him. The only answer that seemed acceptable was that he was"not her kind."
Towards dusk, they hove in sight of the derricks of the Beaumont oilregion. The leader with the red plane descended in a large meadow.Komoru was well to the front and brought his plane to earth a fewmeters from the red wings. The man in the flag plane who had thatday led them over a thousand miles and a score of cities got out andstretched himself. With an exclamation of joyful surprise, Ethelrecognized that he was Professor Oshima.
The Japanese camped where they were for the night. The wings of theplanes were guyed to the ground with cordage and little steelstakes. Beneath such improvised tents the tired aerial cavalrymenrolled themselves in their sleeping blankets and for twelve hoursthe camp was as quiet as a graveyard.
That day had been a great day in history; it was the firstconsequential aerial invasion that the world had ever known. Whilethe arrivals of the morning had been circling in fear-inspiringflights above the neighboring states, the later starters from theJapanese squadron had continued to arrive in the oil regions. Likemigrating birds, they settled down over the rich fields and grazinglands of that wonderful strip of flat, black-soiled prairie thatstretches westward from the south center of Louisiana until itemerges into the g
reat semi-arid cattle plains of southern Texas.
The region, though one of the richest in the United States, was butsparsely settled. Save for the few thousand white laborers who weresupported by the oil industry, the whole resident population werenegroes who were worked under imported white foremen in the rice andtruck lands of the region.
The negroes were panic stricken by the Japanese invasion and madepractically no resistance. In two or three days, the country for aforty-mile radius around Beaumont was cleared of Americans andpractically the entire oil region of Texas with its vast storagetanks at Port Arthur on the Sabine River, were in the hands of theinvaders.
There were not ten regiments of American soldiers within fivehundred miles. The great mass of the American army had been rushedweeks before to southern California, and the remnant left in theGulf region had more recently been hastened to Panama. In fact, theAmerican squadron had steamed into Colon on the very morning theJapanese alighted on Texas soil.
On the second morning of their arrival, Japanese officials circlingabove the captured region, roughly allotted the land to Captainsunder whose leadership were a hundred planes each. The captains thenassigned each couple places to stake their plane, which were locateda hundred meters apart, allowing to each about two and a half acresof land.
Professor Oshima and Komoru, as soil chemists, were constantly onthe go making studies of the land and advising with the otherexperts as to the crops to plant, and the methods of tillage for thevarious locations.
In the cotton lands, where Ethel and her associates were located,the soil was immediately put to a fuller use. The cotton plants werethinned and pruned and between the rows quick growing vegetableswere planted. Elsewhere the great pastures were broken up withcaptured kerosene-driven gang plows and by dint of hard labor thesod was quickly reduced to a fit state for intensive cultivation.
The outside work of the professor and his secretary threw Ethelaltogether in the company of Madame Oshima. For this fact she wasvery grateful, as her aversion to Komoru, to whom she was nominallybound, grew more and more a source of worry and fear. So the twowomen of Aryan blood worked together in the cotton field side byside with the Orientals--worked and waited and wondered what wasawing in the surrounding world.
The gasoline wagons came around and refilled the fuel tanks of theplanes. Mechanics inspected the engines carefully and replaceddefective parts. The rice cakes and soyu brought from Japan, hadbeen replaced by a diet of wheat and maize products and fresh fruitsand vegetables taken from the captured stores and gardens. Suchcaptured foods, however, had all been inspected by the dieteticians,and those of doubtful wholesomeness destroyed or placed under lockand key to be used only as a last resort.
Thus weeks passed. The green things of Japanese planting had pokedtheir tender shoots through the black American soil. There had beenno fighting except in few cases, where a company of foolhardymilitia or a local posse had tried to attach the Japanese outposts.American aeroplanes had wisely staid away.
But the fight was yet to come. The Federal Government had recalledits ships from Panama and was bringing back the soldiers fromCalifornia. On the great flat prairie between Galveston and Houston,a mighty military camp was being established. Aeroplane sheds wereerected and repair shops built. Long lines of army tents werepitched in close proximity. Army canteens were established that thethirsty soldiers might get pure liquor and good tobacco and a fewrods away--over the line--other grog shops were opened wherein weresold similar goods not so guaranteed. Gambling sharks arrived andset up shell games and bedraggled prostitutes--outcasts from urbancenters of debauchery---came and camped nearby and made nighthideous with their obscene revelry.
So the American soldier prepared for battle against the enemy who,fifty miles away, slept undisturbed in the midst of gardens beneaththe wings of their aeroplanes.
Never since Roman phalanx moved against the hordes of disorganizedbarbarians had such extremes of method in warfare been pittedagainst each other. Indeed it is doubtful if the invasion of theJapanese should be called war at all. They were not blood-thirsty.In fact, the Japanese invaders had sent word to the AmericanGovernment asserting their peaceful intentions if they wereunmolested, though threatening dire vengeance by firing cities andpoisoning water supplies if they were attacked.
Madame Oshima shook her head. "Such talk is only pretense," shesaid, "the Japanese intend to live in America and would never soembitter the people--and it will not be necessary."
Ethel was in doubt. She pictured the Japanese planes flying abovethe unprotected inland cities dropping conflagration bombs uponshingled roof or casks of prussic acid into open reservoirs. Shewished she were out of it all. She wanted to escape and yet she knewnot how.
The Americans made no hasty attacks. They feared the threats of theJapanese and awaited the gathering of many hundred thousandsoldiers. At the end of four weeks the American army was spread in agiant semi-circle surrounding the Japanese encampment from coast tocoast. Along the Gulf Coast was also a line of American battleships,so that the Japanese encampment was entirely surrounded with analmost continuous line of aeroplane destroying guns.
All preparations were at last complete and with cavalry beneath andaeroplanes above, the American strategists planned a dash across theJapanese territory with the belief that the outlying lines ofartillery would bring to earth those that succeeded in getting intothe air.
* * *
One evening at the hour of twilight, messengers passed rapidly amongthe Japanese distributing maps and orders to prepare for flight.
Late that night, their possessions made ready for flight, Komoru andEthel sat with Professor and Madame Oshima beneath the latter'splane.
"Our scouts have come to the conclusion," said Oshima, "that acavalry attack is to be expected in the early morning. So our planis for a signal plane to rise at two o'clock directly over thecenter of our territory. It will carry a bright yellow light.Beginning with the outlying groups our forces are to fly toward thelight, rising as they go. Attaining an altitude of two miles theyare thence to fly due north as our maps show. We will suffer someloss, but two miles high and at night I guess American gunners willnot inflict great damage."
Ethel shuddered.
"Do you think the American aviators will follow us?" asked Komoru.
"That depends," replied the older man, "upon the reception we givethem; we have them outnumbered."
"They carry men gunners," said Madame Oshima.
"So," said the Professor, "but shooting from an aeroplane dependsnot so much upon the gunner as upon the steersman. Their planeswabble, the metal frame work is too stiff, it doesn't yield to theair pressure."
Along such lines the conversation continued for an hour or so.Neither the men nor Madame Oshima seemed the least bit excited overthe prospects; but Ethel, striving to keep up external appearances,was inwardly torn with warring emotions.
Making an excuse of wishing to look for something among her luggage,the girl finally escaped and walked quickly toward the other plane.But instead of stopping, she passed by and continued down betweenthe rows of cotton, avoiding as much as possible the lights thatdotted the field about her.
"Oh, God!" she repeated under her breath; "Oh, God! I can't go! Iwon't go!"
For some time she walked on briskly trying to calm her feverish mindand reason out a sane course of procedure.
She was passing thus where the lights of two planes glowed fiftymeters at either side, when she stumbled heavily over some darkobject between the cotton rows. She turned to see what it was; and,bending forward, discerned in the starlight the body of a man. Shestarted to run; then, fearing pursuit the more, checked her speed.As she did so some one grasped her arm and a heavy hand was clappedover her mouth.
"Keep quiet," commanded her captor hoarsely. In another instant hehad bent her back over his knee and thrown her--or rather droppedher for she did not resist--upon the soft earth beneath.
"If you make a sound, I'll have to s
hoot," he said, resting a heavyknee upon her chest and clasping her slender wrist in a vise-likegrip of a single hand.
The girl breathed heavily.
The man reached toward his hip pocket and drawing forth a brightmetallic object held it close to her face. Her breath stopped short.Then a flood of light struck her full in the eyes, as her captorpressed the button on his flash lamp.
"God! a woman!" the man gasped. The exclamation and voice wereclearly not Japanese.
Ethel felt the grip loosen from her wrists and the weight shift fromher chest.
"You're no Japanese!" he said under his breath, at the same timeletting the glowing flash lamp fall from his hand.
Presently Ethel raised her head and reached for the lamp where itlay wasting its rays against the black soil. She now turned the glowon the other and saw kneeling beside her a young man in Americanclothes. He was hatless and coatless and his soft gray shirt wastorn and mud bespattered. A massive head of uncombed hair crowned ahandsome forehead, but the face beneath was marred by a stubbygrowth of beard.
"Who are you?" whispered Ethel finding her voice.
"Put out the light," he commanded, reaching forward to take it fromher.
"Who are you?" he asked reversing the query as they were again indarkness.
"I'm a girl," said Ethel.
The man laughed softly.
"I'm not," he said.
Ethel drew herself into a sitting posture. "Which side of this warare you on?" she asked.
The man was afraid to commit himself--then a happy thought struckhim. "The same side that you are," he answered diplomatically.
It was Ethel's turn to smile.
"You are an American?" she ventured at length.
"Yes," he said. "So are you?"
"Yes."
"Then why are you wearing Japanese clothes?"
"Because--" she said hesitatingly, "I haven't any others."
For some minutes he said nothing.
"Are you going to give the alarm of my presence?" he asked atlength.
"No."
"Then I'll go," he said.
Rising from his knees, but still stooping, he made off rapidly downthe cotton row.
Ethel breathed deeply. Confused thoughts flashed through her mind.She would not return to go with Komoru; in her Japanese garb shefeared the early morning sweep of American cavalry; but to the manwho had just left her, why could she not explain?
Without further debate, she arose, and at top speed ran after theretreating figure.
The next instalment of this absorbing tale willappear in the September issue of PHYSICAL CULTURE.It tells of how the Japanese attempt to obtaincontrol of the United States through scientificmeasures rather than barbarous warfare, and iswonderfully interesting and readable. Don't missit.
In the Clutch of the War-God Page 3
