een killed by wings
dropping off. I've seen twelve go and it surely takes the old pep out of
you. I was above one and saw his wing crumple, then fall. A man is so
utterly helpless he must merely sit there and wait to be killed, and
when you're flying the same type of machine it doesn't help your
confidence any. I was glad they condemned mine, for I've put my old
"cuckoo" through some awful tests and it's about ready to fall apart.

We expect to change soon and go up to a new offensive in F----. If I get
through that I'm going to change over to the American army. They have
offered me a commission and I think I'll take it. My fingers are cramped
and my feet have long since been numb. Now I'm going to wrap up in my
fur leathers and go to bed. This is war.

FIGHTS WITH FLYING CIRCUS

Feb. 1, 1918.--Had a great time this last week, and made six long
bombardments. For the first three times we had no trouble getting
across whatsoever. Coming out the last three times we got some real
competition. It was in the form of the flying circus or "tangoes," which
consists of fifteen of the best pilots in Germany, commanded by Baron
von Richthofen, who seems a good sort, for when you fight him and you
both miss he waves and we wave back. We had been at it consistently for
four days, and so they sent these birds down opposite us to stop us. We
had been in Germany for some distance and had reached our objective and
bombed it. There was a heavy fog below us, so I took a couple of turns
to make sure we could see our objective. We dropped our bombs and then I
turned to the right to see the damage. I had to take a large turn, for
the "archies" were shooting pretty close. I looked for my escadrille,
and saw these machines way off in the distance. I started for them and
soon caught up with them. Then I swerved and dipped up to them, for I
thought them a little strange. I got up closer, and, wow! all three
dived at me like a rock and bullets flew by me, cutting my plane, so I
pulled up at them, fired, swerved so my gunner could let them have it
also and then saw the iron cross flash by, so I knew it was the Huns. I
started getting altitude and went up high and then the boches got the
sun between them and my plane and came again, but I thought this would
happen and "peaked." They went under me and that left me on top, so I
gave them about 120 bullets, and one went for home. The other two came
by again and I went into a tight spiral so my gunner