The War in the Air

Mother speech and one's familiar land. Before the coming of the Scientific Age this group of gentle and noble emotions had been a fine factor in the equipment of every worthy human being, a fine factor that had its less amiable aspect in a usually harmless hostility to strange people, and a usually harmless detraction of strange lands. But with the wild rush of change in the pace, scope, materials, scale, an

poured over its devoted rusticity. Bert Smallways was only one of countless millions in Europe and America and Asia who, instead of being born rooted in the soil, were born struggling in a torrent they never clearly understood. All the faiths of their fathers had been taken by surprise, and startled into the strangest forms and reactions. Particularly did the fine old tradition of patriotism get perverted and distorted in the rush of the new times. Instead of the sturdy establishment in prejudice of Bert's grandfather, to whom the word "Frenchified" was the ultimate term of contempt, there flowed through Bert's brai

the nations had to adapt themselves to a wider coalescence, they had to keep what was precious and possible, and concede what was obsolete and dangerous. A saner world would have perceived this patent need for a reasonable synthesis, would have discussed it temperately, achieved and gone on to organise the great civilisation that was manifestly possible to mankind. The world of Bert Smallways did nothing of the sort. Its national governments, its national interests, would not hear of anything so obvious; they were too suspicious of each other, too wanting in generous imaginations. They began to behave like ill-bred people in a crowded public car, to sq

uns and countless swarms of little Smallways. The Asiatic peoples had been forced in self-defence into a like diversion of the new powers science had brought them. On the eve of the outbreak of the war there were six great powers in the world and a cluster of smaller ones, each armed to the teeth and straining every nerve to get ahead of the others in deadliness of equipment and military efficiency. The great powers were first the United States, a nation addicted to commerce, but roused to military necessities by the efforts of Germany to expand into South America, and by the natural consequences of her own unwary annexations of land in the very teeth of Japan. She maintained two immense fleets east and west, and internally she was in violent conflict between Federal and State governments upon the question of universal service in a defensive militia. Next came the great alliance of Eastern Asia, a close-knit coalescence of China and Japan, advancing with rapid strides year by year to predomi

st and wes

the twain

eption, of the Subject Races as waking peoples, and finding its efforts to keep the Empire together under these, strains and changing ideas greatly impeded by the entirely sporting spirit with which Bert Smallways at home (by the million) cast his vote, and

a pacific power perforce, divided within itself, torn between revolutionaries and reactionaries who were equally incapable of social reconstruction, and so sinking towards a tragic disorder of chronic political vendetta. W

. Each power sought to keep its preparations secret, to hold new weapons in reserve, to anticipate and learn the preparations of its rivals. The feeling of danger from fresh discoveries affected the patriotic imagination of every people in the wo

, physically, as any population has ever been--or, one ventures to add, could ever be. That was the paradox of the time. It was a period altogether unique in the world's history. The appara

perfecting of the Pforzheim engine by Germany and the consequent possibility of a rapid and entirely practicable airship. At that time Germany was by far the most efficient power in the world, better organised for swift and secret action, better equipped with the resources of modern science, and with her official and administrative classes at a higher level of education and training. These things she knew, and she exaggerated that knowledge to the pitch of contempt for the secret counsels of her neighbour

avigables, several dating from 1908, that could make no possible headway against the new type. They had been built solely for reconnoitring purposes on the eastern frontier, they were mostly too small to carry more than a couple of dozen men without arms or provisions, and not one could do forty miles an hour. Great Britain, it seemed, in an access of meanness, temporised and wrangled with the imperial spirited Butteridg

ngerous possibility; America, which was also now the leading trade rival of Germany and one of the chief barriers to her Imperial expansion. So

at. The airship and the flying-machine were very different things from ironclads, which take a couple of years to build. Given hands, given plant, they could be made innumerably in a few weeks. Once the needful p

inflate the second fleet which was to dominate Europe and manoeuvre significantly over London, Paris, Rome, St. Petersburg, or wherever else its moral effect was required. A

. To many he seemed Nietzsche's Overman revealed. He was big and blond and virile, and splendidly non-moral. The first great feat that startled Europe, and almost brought about a new Trojan war, was his abduction of the Princess Helena of Norway and his blank refusal to marry her. Then followed his marriage with Gretchen Krass, a Swiss girl of peerless beauty. Then came the gallant rescue, which almost cost him his life, of three drowning sailors whose boat had upset in the sea near Heligoland. For that and his victory over the American yacht Defender, C.C.I., the Emperor forgave him and placed him in control of the new aeronauti

de th

nsiderable literature of military forecasts, beginning as early as 1906 with Rudolf Martin, the author not merely of a brilliant book of anticipat

bout as Trafalgar Square. Some must have been a third of a mile in length. He had never before seen anything so vast and disciplined as this tremendous park. For the first time in his life he really had an intimation of the extraordinary and quite i

lf, and whether he should pretend to be Butteridge or not. "O Lord!" he groaned, in an agony of indecision. Then his eye caught his sandals, and he felt a spasm of se

f the car, that he might avoid all sorts of disagreeabl

sh up about him as if to look at him, and his car hit t

to hear a voice crying, "Booteraidg

and big hose-pipes trailed everywhere across the intervening space. Close at hand was his now nearly deflated balloon and the car on its side looking minutely small, a mere broken toy, a shrivelled bubble, in contrast with the gigantic bulk of the nearer airship. This he saw almost end-on, rising like a cliff and s

and again could he recognize--

Bert. "They'v

e one, and some ra

in blue was talking thereat about him. Another stood close beside him with th

Cherman, Herr

dazed. He did his best to seem thor

se at hand. This seemed to increase the excitement greatly. A mono-rail car bumbled past. The telephone bell rang passionately, and the

hite moustache appealed to Bert. "Herr B

I?" Bert

other shoulder. "Are you H

repeated the white moustache, and then he

ergetic, stood up and bawled directions at unseen people. Questions were asked, and the doctor at Bert's side answered, "Ja! Ja!" several times, also something about "Kopf." Wi

e doctor explained; "

sked Bert,

roundt their--h

but

d ti

t their necks. "Vorwarts!" Some one ran before him with the portfolio, and he was borne rapidly along the broad avenue between the gas generat

coat, and he had responded to Mr. Butteridge's name. The sandals dangled helplessly. Gaw! Everybody seemed i

to Woolwich Dockyard. The whole camp reflected the colossal power of modern science that had created it. A peculiar strangeness was produced by the lowness of the electric light, which lay upon the ground, casting all shadows upwards and making a grotesque shadow figure of himself and his

masses; within the cavities of the airships small inspecting lamps glowed like cloud-veiled stars, and made them seem marvellously unsubstantial.

rbling by. The cabins under the heads of the airships were be

ave directions to work

with crimson padding and aluminium. A tall, bird-like young man with a small head, a long nose, and very pale hair, with his hands full of things like shaving-strops, boot-trees, hair-brushes, and toilet tidies, was saying things about Gott and thunder and Dummer

aid Bert. "

about him

l I try to keep i

e old trouble came uppermost. "I wish to 'eaven I 'adn't these silly sandals on,

man in uniform appeared, carrying Mr. Butte

a beaming face, and a sort of pinkish blond hair. "Fancy y

"in another half-hour! You d

fraction of a moment on the sandals. "You ought to

after you. Naturally he can't see you now, but he thinks your

still and

were answered distantly. A bell jangled, and feet went down the corridor. Then came a stillness more distracting than sound, and then a great gurgling and rushing and splashing of water.

e water out of the

ter?" as

anchored us. A

ed to ta

compact young man. "

. "That's the engine," said the compact you

ng listeni

! we're starting already;"

ied Bert, sitt

ain. There were noises of German in the

e young man reappeared. "

tarting? I wish you'd explain. What

young man, "you

at crack on the nob I got. Wher

where you are-

What's all the swa

merica, and you haven't realised. You've just caught us by a neck. You're on the blessed old flags

ff to A

--t

n air

do YOU

on! 'Ere! I say--I don't want to go! I want to walk a

dive for

a strap, lifted up a panel in the padded wall, and a wind

Bert. "We'

he young man, ch

ess, picked out at regular intervals by glow-worm spangles of light. One black gap in the long line of grey, round-backed airships marked the position from which the Vaterland had

We're off! I daresay it is a bit of a shock to you, b

really am dazed. What's thi

p of Prince Karl Albert. This is the German air-fleet, and it is going over to America, to give that spir

a German?"

uft-lieutenant Kurt

speak E

or the present, Mr. Butteridge, to look after you. You're shaken by your fall. It's all right, really. They're going

ecting his mind, and the young ma

al sort of way. "Daresay all this is new to you," he said

ound the little apartm

l except for drinking. No baths or anything until we get to America and land. Rub over with loofah. One pint of hot for shaving. That's all. In the locker below you are rugs and blankets; you will need them presently. They say

hese cushions stuffed with hydrogen. Foxy! The whole ship's like that. And not a man in the fleet, except the Prince and one or two

ght you'd be an old man with a beard--a sort of philosopher. I don'

then the lieutenant was struck with the riddle why He

you'd lend me a pair of slippers, or something. I'm regular sick of the

ght

d with a considerable choice of footwear--pumps, cloth bath

epented of at

n the zeal of the moment." He laughed confidentially. "Had 'e

chose th

e are trying on slippers," he said, "and the world go

nto a dark immensity. The land below, except for a lake, was black and featureless, and the other airsh

fleet flying through the night. They flew in a wedge-shaped formation, the Vaterland highest and leading, the tail receding into the corners of the sky. They flew in long, regular undulations, great dark fish-like shapes, showing hardly any light at all, the engines making a throb-throb-throbbing sound that was very audible out on the gall

the landscape

id the lieutenant suddenly. "How did yo

Bert, after a pause. "

you. They thought the British had

Bert. "Still--i

ng--to invent. I couldn't in

ummoned them to a belated dinner. Bert was suddenly alarmed. "Don't you 'ave to dress and thing

wear. We're travelling light. You might perhaps take your ove

d, and it struck Bert greatly that as he ate he did not look at people, but over their heads like one who sees visions. Twenty officers of various ranks stood about the table--and Bert. They all seemed extremely curious to see the famous Butteridge, and their astonishment at his appearance was ill-controlled. The Prince gave him a dignified salutation, to which, by an inspiration, he bowed. Standing next the Prince was a brown-faced, wrinkled ma

starting; partly it was the overwhelming sense of strange new experiences, of portentous adventure. The Prince was lost in thoug

safe amidst that bundle of inflammable things. Bert suddenly fell yawning and shivering. He was overwhelmed by a sense of his o

steep ladder from the swaying little gallery into the

om formless terrors down an interminable passage in an airship--a passage paved at first

r after his seventh fall thro

not nearly so smooth as a balloon; he could feel a regular swaying up, up, up

em with memories--mo

ld come to him and discuss his flying-machine, and then he would see the Prince. He would have to stick it out now that he was Butteridge, and sell his invention. And then, if they found him out!

Somehow twenty thousand pounds str

s in wait in the small hours. He had g

wamped his

I this time

now. It might be years ago. For the first time he thought of his fellow Desert Dervish, left with the two red-painted bicycles on Dymchurch sands. "'E won't make much of a show of it, not without me. Any'ow 'e did 'ave the treasury--such as it was--in his pocket!"... The night before that was Bank Holiday night and they had sat discussing their minstrel enterprise, drawing up a programme and rehearsing steps.

followed in his mind that if he sold the Butteridge secret he could! Suppose after all he did get twenty thousand pounds; such sums have been paid! With that he could buy house and garden, buy new clo

ver the goods and draw the cash. And before that--Just now he was by no means on his way home. He was flying off to America to fight

ught to mak

ad settled now it was to be twenty thousand pounds. He left a number of mi

his nightmare fall through space. "Thi

down, then slowly swinging to up, up, up. Thr

or the air was very keen. Then he peeped out of the window to see a grey dawn breaking over clouds,

. Then he referred to the other drawings in the portfolio. Twenty t

wer in which Kurt had put p

advertisments and individual enterprise, that was really not his fault. He was as his State had made him, and the reader must not imagine because he was a little Cockney cad, that he was absolutely incapable of grasping the idea of the Butteridge flying-machine. But he found it stiff and perplexing. His motor-bicycle and Grubb's experiments and the "m

carefully deposited the copies he had made in the place of the originals. He had no very clear plan in his mind in doing this, except that he hated the idea of al

was one of these people who sleep little and play chess problems in their heads to

almost benevolent. He spoke English fluently, but with a strong German flavour. He was particularly bad with his "b's," and his "th's" softened towards weak "z'ds." He called Bert explosively, "Pooterage." He began with some indistinct civilities, bowed, took a folding-table and chair from behind the door, put

t?" asked Bert, after a

all picnic. Also your cords were entangled. You haf' been tugging--but no good. You cou

tho

here is

--what

ic. A man of your temperament--he would take a laty. She was not wiz you in your balloon w

ed. "'Ow d'y

come and go--I am a man of ze worldt. I haf known wise men wear sandals and efen practice vegetarian habits. I haf known men--or at any rate, I haf known chemists--who did not schmoke. You haf, no doubt, put ze laty down somewhere. Well. Let us get to--business. A higher power"--his voice changed its emotional quality

ll

structed to say," said the secretary, with his eyes on the table and his notes spread out, "has always been willing to puy your secret. We haf indeed peen eager to acquire it fery eager; and it was only ze fear that you might be, on patriotic groundts

aid Bert, o

your

Bert, raising his hand

ly accused laty you haf championed so brafely against Pritish hy

ad the old chap also read the letters? He must think him a scorcher if he had.

ooked down again. "Well, ze laty as you please. She is your affair. I haf performt my inst

ica. Our fleet will descend out of ze air upon ze United States--it is a country quite unprepared for war eferywhere--eferywhere. Zey have always relied on ze Atlantic. And their navy. We have selected a certain point--it is at present ze secret of our commanders--which we shall seize, and zen we shall establis

!" sai

d of Pharisees and reptiles, can do nozzing!--nozzing! You see, I am perfectly frank wiz you. Well, I am instructed that Chermany recognises all this. We want you to place yourself at our disposal. We want you to become our Chief Head Flight Engineer. We want you to manufacture, we want to equip a swarm of hornets under your direction. We wan

s scrutiny of

ath, but otherwise resolute and calm; and it seemed to him that

th sustained attention. Only for one moment

are debilitating. "Look 'ere!" he said at last, wit

es

f Butteridge to appear--see?

tle de

cret--leastways, I give

nd the stare continued. "I want

ousand pounds paid into benks--thirty thousand into the London and County Benk Branch at Bun Hill in Kent directly I 'and over the plans; twenty thousand into the Benk of England; 'arf the rest into a good French bank, the othe

said the

nd. You don't arst 'ow I got it. See? 'Ere I am--I deliver you the goods--that's all right. Some people 'ave the cheek to say this isn't my inve

ded into a pr

pick, and used it, to assist his meditation on Bert's case. "What was that

llways," said Ber

ty about the spelling because of the different names

ning back and resuming the stare, "tell me: how

t Smallways, he left him in an extremely defl

esert Dervishes--everything. For a time scientific zeal consumed the secretary, and the question of the plans remained in suspense. He even

escent into the camp at Dornhof, he said, 'Pring him!--pring him! It is my schtar!' His schtar of Destiny! You see? He will be dthwarted. He directed you to come as Herr Pooterage, and you haf not

be awkward. I triet to suggest some doubt, but I was over-ruled. The Prince does not listen. He is impatient in the high ai

ead, and drew in the

e plans,"

seit. Herr Pooterage was so much more--ah!--in the picture. I am afraid you are not equal to controlling

of Pooterage with us.... Well, we must see what we

ot clear in his mind whether he wept or no, but certainly there was weeping

th benevolent eyes. "You do n

'ave tore

re not

en't Butt

to pay

rds desperate deeds. "Gaw!" he said

tell you the Prince--is no choke. I do not think he approffed of your appearance last night. No! I can't answer for him. He wanted Pooterage, and you haf spoilt it. The Prince--I do not understand quite, he is in a strange s

the door clicked. "Gaw!--w

ing-chair, and whistled

for 'im if I tore '

show away. If I'd j'es' kep quiet about being Enonymous.... Gaw!... Too s

't 'ave k

ain't so very

It isn't MY secret, anyhow. It's jes

fare is from Am

ed and disorganised Bert Smallways stood

hem was a number of American maps and Mr. Butteridge's letters and his portfolio and a number of loose papers. Bert was not asked to sit down, and remained standing throughout the interview. Von Winterfeld told his story, and every now and then the words Ballon and Pooterage struck on Bert's ears. The Prince's face remained stern

t from Bun 'Ill, yo

ld made some

st did

. The papers, leastways the Daily

erman over th

? Op in the air? That i

r Royal Highness, lik

he Prince to Von Winterfeld, and

rs looked at Bert. One rang a bell, and the portf

Winterfeld protested. Apparently theological considerations came in, for there were several mentions of "Got

footing in this airship," he said,

ematic," sai

ilenced him

wer of his Highness to d

I came t

d one of t

lying-machine reaching his Highness's hand, you haf been spared. Yes,--you were the pearer of goot tidings

rince, and added terribly with

" said Winterfeld, "as pa

d then a saving gleam of wisdom silenced him. He met Von Winte

he great arm and hand towards the door.

But he was extremely keen upon this wonderful new weapon Germany had assumed so suddenly and dramatically. He showed things to Bert with a boyish eagerness and appreciation. It was as if he showed them over again to himself, like a child showing a new toy. "Let's go all over the ship," he said with zest. He pointed out particularly the lightness of everything, the use of exhauste

little white-metal turrets with big windows and airtight double doors that enabled one to inspect the vast cavity of the gas-chambers. This inside view impressed Bert very much. He had never realised before that an air

y, though he had not the ghost of

nt wrong in the night. There were even ladders across the space. "B

d-air knapsack and its helmet were of an alloy of aluminium and some light metal. "We can go all over the inside netting and st

bombs of various types mostly in glass--none of the German airships carried any guns at all except one small pom-pom (to use

dder that was encased in a kind of gas-tight fire escape--and ran right athwart the great forward air-chamber to the little look-out gallery with a telephone, that gallery that bore the light pom-pom of German steel and its locker of shells. This gallery was all of aluminium magnesium alloy, the tight front of t

thrown them away. These people could not have done so very much to him. And even if they did, ought not an Englishman to die for his country? It was an idea that had hitherto been rather smo

how the aerial fleet must look from down there. Tr

consumed their own reek--old railway viaducts, mono-rail net-works and goods yards, and the vast areas of dingy homes and narrow streets, spreading aimlessly, struck him as though Camberwell and Rotherhithe had run to seed. Here and there, as if caught in a net, were fields and agricultural fragments. It was a sprawl of undistinguished population. There were, no doubt, museums and town halls and even cathedrals of

e airships of the right wing had picked up overnight and were towing behind them; each airship towing three or four. They looked, like big box-

equired for thos

the

us

ifferent from that

ect, and less like a bird. And it buzzes, and d

was still explaining when Bert was called to

e was turned out of his nice cabin, and packed in with his belongings to share that of Lieutenant Kurt, whose luck it was to be junior, and the bird-headed officer, still swearing slightly, and carrying strops and aluminium boot-trees and weig

apart and surveyed, him for a moment as

d Kurt, who was only imperfectly i

llwa

e took it calmly. He's a pretty tidy blazer when he's roused. He wouldn't stick a moment at pitching a chap

forget,"

eat picture by Siegfried Schmalz of the War God, that terrible, trampling figure with the viking helmet and the scarlet cloak, w