CHAPTER IV.
THE MYSTERIOUS AIRSHIP.
ON his homeward voyage Basil Dacres had plenty of opportunities forpondering over his future plans. Having once taken the plunge he wasnot a fellow to repine. His thoughts were of the future and not ofthe past.
"In any case," he thought, "I'll be as independent as I can. I don'twant to come to loggerheads with the pater, but goodness only knowshow he'll take it. If I can have a quiet chat with him before helearns the official version of the row, I may be able to explainmatters with a certain degree of satisfaction. After that I'll goabroad, and get an appointment under one of the South Americangovernments. There will be plenty of scope in that direction."
At Suez the liner received a batch of English mails, and, as usual,there was a great demand for newspapers to supplement the meagredetails of the world's doings as received by wireless.
Dacres hurriedly scanned the columns of four successive weeks of thejournal, but to his relief he saw no mention of his resignation beingreported. That gave him hopes of being able to be first in the fieldas far as his parent was concerned.
Having assured himself on this point he proceeded systematically towade through the news with the zest that only those who have been cutoff from home ties know how to appreciate.
Presently his eye caught sight of a heading, "The mysterious airshipagain."
"H'm, this sounds interesting," he soliloquized, for anything inconnexion with aviation appealed to him. When his services for theNaval Flying Wing were declined the refusal hit him far harder thanhis being asked to withdraw from his Majesty's Service.
"They say 'again,' I notice. I wonder for how long this airship hasbeen claiming the attention of the great British public? It's a pityI've been unable to see the first account of its appearance. Seemslike starting a book at the sixth chapter."
Settling himself in a comfortable deck-chair Dacres was soon lost tohis surroundings in the account of the remarkable exploits of anairship of entirely new design. It was seen within a few hours atplaces as far apart as Newcastle and Plymouth, and Holyhead andCanterbury. Although the eye-witnesses' accounts varied considerablyin detail the general description was sufficiently unanimous to proveconclusively that the airship was not a creation of an excitedimagination.
It was agreed that the airship was of immense length and ofexceptional speed. She invariably flew at a great altitude. Herappearance resembled that of a lead pencil pointed at one end, butthe observers were unable to state whether there were planes, cars,and other appendages. There was none of that gently see-sawing motionof the British military and naval dirigibles: she flew as steadily asa seaplane on a calm day, and created a far greater impression ofspeed.
Near Newcastle she was spotted by a pair of belated motorists whowere travelling over a road that follows the old Roman wall betweenChollerford and Heddon. It was a moonlight night, although the skywas frequently obscured by drifting clouds. While brought up to makegood a slight defect one of the motorists noticed a dark objectoverhead and called his companion's attention to it. Bothsimultaneously expressed their opinion that it was an airship, whileone of the men found by extending his arm that the extremities of thecraft coincided with the length between his outstretched littlefinger and thumb, while its breadth was roughly half the thickness ofthe nail joint of the same finger. Taking the breadth to be fortyfeet it was reasonable to suppose that the length of the airship wasnearly thirty times that dimension, or one thousand two hundred feet.The airship was then travelling rapidly in a westerly direction, thetime being 1.30 a.m.
So impressed were the travellers by this unusual sight that theyproceeded to the offices of the "Newcastle Daily Record" and statedthe facts to the sub-editor who happened to be on night duty.
Just before four on the same morning the coastguard on watch at YealmHead, near Plymouth, "spotted" the airship still flying at a greatheight, but in an easterly direction. He followed it through histelescope until it was lost to sight, but owing to the airship beingagainst the growing dawn he was unable to give any details as to itsconstruction. His description, however, tallied with that of theNewcastle motorists, whose report was published in a special editionof the principal London papers.
Since Newcastle and Plymouth are roughly 360 miles apart the speed ofthe airship could not be less than 150 miles per hour, and that nottaking into consideration the fact that on each occasion the craftwas shaping a course at right angles to the direct line between thesetwo places.
Two days later came an even more startling report, this time fromCanterbury.
It appears that a shepherd employed at Wether Farm, Petham--a smallvillage five miles from the Kentish cathedral city--had occasion tovisit a fold at some distance from the farm-buildings. This was atthree o'clock, an hour before sunrise, but it was just light enoughto distinguish surrounding objects.
Suddenly he saw a huge object falling through the air. All he couldliken it to was a haystack. It struck the ground quite gently andabout two hundred yards from the place where he stood. At first hewas afraid to move, until, thinking it might be a balloon that hadmet with an accident, he ran towards the spot. As he did so he heardvoices, evidently discussing the situation; but before he could getclose to the "haystack," the object gave a bound and shot skywards.
He stood stock still watching the balloon growing smaller and smallertill it approached an object that had hitherto escaped his notice--anairship resembling a "wooden meat-skewer," according to hisdescription. Of what happened to the smaller balloon he had no idea,but as he watched he saw the airship soar still higher till lost tosight.
Curiosity prompted him to examine the spot where the balloon hadalighted. The marks on the dew-sodden grass gave him an opportunityof measuring its base, which was twelve paces square, or, roughly,thirty feet. There were footprints showing that two men had alighted,but had not moved far from the spot. Although he made a carefulsearch he found that nothing had been left behind that might give aclue to the occupants of the balloon.
This story the shepherd told to his master, who, knowing that amysterious aircraft had been sighted at Newcastle and Plymouth, tookthe first opportunity of reporting the matter to the militaryauthorities at Canterbury. Asked if he could vouch for hisinformant's trustworthiness the farmer replied that the man had beenin his employment for thirty years, and as far as shepherds went, wasintelligent, honest, and not given to immoderate drinking.
When this was reported in the Press the interest in the mysteriousairship redoubled. Various theories were advanced as to the presenceof the balloon, or airship dinghy as a facetious correspondentsuggested. Crediting the airship with a mean speed of 150 miles perhour, it was still doubted whether it would be possible to tow aballoon with it, while, on the other hand, it was equally impossibleto deflate and stow the gas-bag within the airship during the shortinterval that had elapsed according to the shepherd's statement.
Then, of course, there was the alarmist section; People who wrotedemanding that the Royal Flying Corps should be brought to book forneglecting their duty. It was pointed out that in the course of hernocturnal voyages the airship had passed the prohibited areas withoutbeing challenged by any of the air patrols. It seemed incredible thatthe mysterious giant of the clouds could be here, there, everywhere,from the north of England to the south, without being seen except bychance by a few individuals. Where, also, could a huge aircraft,measuring at least a thousand feet over-all, be housed in completesecrecy?
Then from the wilds of North Wales came an astounding report. Thistime the narrator was a signalman on the North Western Railway, whowitnessed a remarkable sight from his box near Llanfaelog in the Isleof Anglesey. It was at midnight. The moon had just risen in acloudless sky, and there was hardly any wind.
The man had just cleared a goods train over his section and was aboutto set the signals, when he was aware of a huge object rushing with arapidity greater by far than that of the most powerful express train.It passed almost overhead and, according to hi
s estimate, at about ahundred feet from the ground. After it passed the leaves of the treesclose to the signal box were violently agitated and a sudden blast ofair swept the papers off his desk, but in spite of the commotion inthe air there was hardly any sound from the mysterious airship, savea subdued buzzing.
Recovering his presence of mind the signalman promptly telegraphedthe news along the line, but the terrific rush of this giganticaircraft was unnoticed by any of the other railway employes on duty.
At six o'clock, however, two fishermen put into Dulas Bay, on thenorth coast of Anglesey, and reported that at dawn they had seen alarge airship break in two at a distance of about two miles N. N. ofwhere they were fishing. Both men were unshaken in this statement,that a complete severance had taken place, and that both portions,instead of falling into the sea, headed off at great speed in awesterly direction.
It was pointed out to the Government, in a strongly-worded leader in"The Times," that something must be radically wrong with our systemof policing the air, since it was conclusively proved that an unknownaircraft, possessing superior power of propulsion and radius ofaction to any yet known, had cruised over the length and breadth ofEngland and Wales--and perhaps further afield--without beingofficially reported.
Although there were no evidences that the mysterious aircraft wasflying under the auspices of a foreign power, it was quite possiblethat she hailed from a country other than our own. If not, and shewas built and controlled by a British subject, the Government oughtto take steps to secure a right to build others of her pattern;otherwise the bare margin of safety set up by the Aerial DefenceCommittee was in danger.
Awaking out of its customary lethargy the British Government acceptedthe advice of "The Times," and steps were taken to locate the basefrom which the airship operated, and also, if possible, to trace hercomplete course during one of her nocturnal flights.
Searchlights were temporarily installed on almost every importanthill-top from Berwick to Land's End, and from the South Foreland toHolyhead; airmen, both military and civilian, were encouraged to makenight flights with the idea of being able to sight and perhaps keepin touch with the giant dirigible; while destroyers and seaplanespatrolled the coast, ready on the first intimation by wireless toconcentrate at any rendezvous on the line of flight that thesought-for airship was likely to adopt.
"H'm!" ejaculated Dacres, as he carefully folded the latest newspaperthat it was possible to obtain. "This looks lively. Things aregetting exciting in the Old Country. Perhaps, after all, I may get achance of a berth with one of the private flying schools, even if Ican't manage to join the Flying Corps. I'll have a shot at it, byJove!"