ck assumed the
characteristics of a concertina, closed.

He had thrown back the throttle. There was a blast
and a roar. I had the same lonesome feeling in the pit of my 10
stomach that had seized me when I first took the express
elevator in the Woolworth Building.

It occurred to me to win the respect of the pilot by appearing
confident. So I forced myself to peer over the side.
The earth was dropping away so fast that it all seemed 15
like a nightmare. I felt as if I had been dreaming and had
fallen out of bed.

"Grin at him," something told me. I grinned.

A dozen or more icicles immediately crunched between
my teeth, pierced the roof of my mouth, and froze my 20
brain, while leaden drops of water percolated through it
and trickled down my spine.

"Keep grinning!" that unconscious self put in again.
The advice was useless. I couldn't have closed my mouth
had I wanted to. Finally by bowing my head I shut my 25
jaws. Oh, for that chin strap which was whacking my
face! It would have kept me warm. Despite the heat
through which we had traveled in reaching Hazlehurst
Field that morning, up here, a mile high, the air was cold.

I stole a sidelong glance at Francis from behind the 30
heavy goggles which some friendly stranger had fitted over
my helmet. Francis was not looking at me.

Instead of watching and appraising me, as I had thought
he was half turned round, gazing back along the fuselage
or body, of our craft, for what reason I do not know.

I turned in my seat and looked back at the tail. Not
seeing anything unusual, I sat back again. And there was 5
Francis with his head thrown back, gazing at the sky. His
hands and feet were not touching the controls.

Every time we struck an air pocket I shuddered. For
ten minutes, minutes which seemed hours, I huddled
and shrank and shuddered. That was about all there 10
appeared to be in the flight for me--huddles, shrinks,
and shudders.

That dog kennel of a barn gave me much to think about.
The wind was dead against us. Our speedometer registered
ninety miles an hour--and the wind pushing us 15
back at the rate of forty miles left us fifty miles an hour
speed. It seemed like fifty feet to me, until I saw off in
the distance ahead the silvery haze that hangs over