“The morning after I got there they led me out and stood me alongside a double-seater.  The boss of that shop told me he wanted to see me take it around for a try-out, and then it was off and away for the front.  He said considerately that I might wait a few minutes until another new arrival had done his little preliminary canter.

“The other victim started up, taxied toward the other side of the field that served for an airdrome, and lifted too late, with the result that he caught the wheels of his chassis in the tall hedge and came down in mighty nasty fashion on the other side, just out of sight.  That is, he was out of sight.  The tail of his plane stuck up to show what a real header he had taken.  I found out later that he got out of that smash with a broken leg and a bad shake-up, but when I was standing there by that machine, waiting to go up, I thought the poor devil who had the tumble must have been killed, sure.

“Then up came the major.  He was a captain then.  He was going to get into his seat when the boss-man said to him:  ’I suggest that you wait until he has done a round or so alone.’”

“The little captain snorted at this, but the boss evidently thought it best, so up I went, alone.

“I did well enough, and after feeling the machine thoroughly, came down, making a fine landing.  But fate was out with her ax that morning.  No one had said a word to me about a ditch that had been dug on the left side of the field, and, of course, I had to find it.  When I saw it, no time was left to avoid it, so in I went.  Over toppled the poor plane, and smash went my under-works.  In fact, I came out of my seat rather quickly, but wasn’t really hurt.  The boss chap was a bit mad, but the little captain man just laughed.

“Good thing I waited till he had had his little fun,” he chuckled. “now we can off and do our work, I suppose.”

“I thought he was joking, but he wasn’t.  He did not mind my smash a bit.  I saw that.  He went right on up with me in another machine ten minutes later just as though we had been going up together for years.  That is the kind of nerve my major has.”

Richardson did not realize how very much cool action of the observation officer had to do with the implanting in the pilot of a good sound confidence in himself.  Had Richardson but known it, the captain, as he was then, had never been more apprehensive of trouble.  He did not like to trust himself to green fliers, any more than another man would have done.  But he knew that quick, sure show of confidence was the only thing that would put confidence into Richardson in turn.  Such moments are sometimes the crucial ones.  At such times fliers may be made or marred in a manner that may be, for good or for ill, irrevocable.

Sent to watch and assist this pair of doughty warriors, Harry Corwin found most of his time in the air spent in keeping in the position which had been assigned to him.  Archies were everyday things to Richardson and his major.  They did not by any means scorn them, the anti-aircraft guns, as continual improvement was noticeable, not only in their marksmanship, but in their range.  But Richardson was a pastmaster at judging when he was well out of range, and equally clever at getting into such a position.