"I think that when I circled up and above their trees, the Germans were uncertain whether I was their carrier or not, but the moment the sharp-shooters perceived that I was going west they were sure that I was not their messenger, and so they shot at me to bring me down and find out what I carried on my foot. "I could not go up for ever in the clear winter air without being frozen, and anyway, I did not want those enemy planes to gain on me. Again I dashed westward, and again the wall of bullets spread themselves before me like barbs of death. But I had no choice left; either pierce my way through, or be killed by the oncoming aeroplanes who were so near that I could see their passengers. So I dashed towards the west. Fortunately by now my tail, which was hurt about a month ago, had grown almost to its normal size. Without that rudder my task would have been twice as hard. As I kept on going towards our line, the fusilade increased. There was no doubt now that all the sharp-shooters and men in the trenches far off were taking a shot at me. But I zig-zagged, circled, tumbled, and in fact did all the stunts and tricks I knew to cheat the ever-augmenting swarm of bullets, but all that zig-zagging business lost me time. One of the aeroplanes had come within striking distance of even so small a mark as I made, and began to pour loads of fire from above and behind. There was nothing to do but go forward, so I dashed on. Oh! how hard I flew--fast as the fastest storm. Then--ftatattafut--I was hit! My leg was broken right near the groin, and it, with its message, dangled under me like a sparrow in a single talon of a hawk. Oh! the pain, but I had no time to think of that, for that aeroplane was still after me and I flew harder than before. "At last, our own line came into view. I fled lower. The machine dived down too. I tried to tumble, but failed. My leg prevented me from trying any of my tricks. Then pa-pa-pat-pattut--my tail was hit and a shower of feathers fell below, obscuring for a moment the view of the men in the German trenches. So I shot down in a slanting flight towards our line and--passed it, making a circle. Then I beheld a strange sight--the aeroplane had been hit by our men. It swayed, lurched, and fell. But--it had done its worst ere it went down in flames--it had hit my right wing and broken it. It gave me satisfaction to see it catch fire in the air and fall, yet my own pain had increased so that I felt as if twenty buzzards were tearing me to pieces, but, thanks to the gods of my race, I lost consciousness of either pain or pleasure, and felt as if a mountainous weight were pulling me down.... [Illustration: _That sound was drowned in the cry of the eagles above who screeched like mad, slaying each other._]