the position of forts marked,
and the disposition of troops. In this war they say aeroplanes and
dirigibles are going to play great stunts."

"Think of the nerve of that German aviator, sailing right over Antwerp
in broad daylight!" Tubby declared. "It's a dare, all right, and I
wonder if any of these Belgian fliers will take him up. I really think
I'd like to see a little scrap up in the air. We didn't have a chance
for anything of that sort since we were down in Mexico with Villa."

"Well," returned Merritt, "you may see more of that kind of business
over here than you want. These fliers don't go circling around just to
spy on the enemy. In lots of cases they have another and more terrible
mission."

"Oh!" ejaculated the fat scout uneasily, "now you're thinking of that
visit paid by a Zeppelin to Antwerp a short time back when it dropped a
bomb that smashed things to flinders. They say it was aimed at the
king's palace. But you don't think now that fellow away up there in the
clouds would bother dropping explosives on our heads, do you, Rob?"

Tubby always appealed to the patrol leader when bothered about anything.
To hear him talk you would imagine that he considered Rob Blake a
walking encyclopedia, and capable of answering any kind of question.

"No, he's flying too high for that," the other told him confidently.
"You see, with the air currents, that we know something about ourselves,
no one at that height could count on landing his explosive anywhere
near the place he wanted it to go. Chances are that chap is only out on
a spying trip. Aeroplane pilots are the scouts of the air these days,
you understand. Nothing can be hidden from them."

"I understand," ventured Merritt, as they continued to watch the
circling of the lofty observer and map-maker, "that there can be no
surprises in this war, because the enemy always knows all about the
massing of troops long before an attack can be delivered. An eagle or a
hawk, hovering over shallow water, can see every bit of bottom when the
surface is still, and so he's able to pounce down on the fish he's
selected for dinner. These wonderful air-pilots will bring information
of every contemplated move on the part of the enemy."

"Poor old Napoleon would be a back number in these days," Tubby sighed,
"because you remember his strongest card was to divide the enemy, and
then smash one army and then the other. They'd know all about his game
in time to block it. The roman