THE MENTOR--DEPARTMENT OF BIOGRAPHY SERIAL NUMBER 166 GEORGES GUYNEMER _The Wingèd Sword of France_ By HOWARD W. COOK Entered as second-class matter March 10, 1913, at the postoffice at New York, N.Y., under the act of March 3, 1879. Copyright, 1918, by The Mentor Association, Inc. _MENTOR GRAVURES_ GUYNEMER WHEN HE BEGAN HIS FLIGHTS GUYNEMER AND HIS FAITHFUL GUNNER, GUERDER GUYNEMER AT THE WHEEL [Illustration] _MENTOR GRAVURES_ GUYNEMER BROUGHT DOWN BY THE BOCHE GUYNEMER AND A BOCHE VICTORY GUYNEMER, THE ACE OF ACES [Illustration] [Illustration: By courtesy of the Century Co. From the drawing by Madame J.C. Breslau. GEORGES GUYNEMER] NOTE--The following article is based on Guynemer’s own records and the account of his exploits published by his close friend and authorized reporter, Jacques Mortane. [Illustration: GUYNEMER WHEN SIX YEARS OLD] When the history of the World War is finally written, one of the names conspicuous in its pages will be that of Georges (jorje) Guynemer (gee-ne-mare). The name of Guynemer has become synonymous with brave deeds and symbolical of the great spiritual glory that belongs to France. Guynemer has been called “The Ace of Aces” and “The Wingèd Sword of France”; but these names express only in part the characteristics of a world-famous hero whose life, as Clemenceau (klem’-ahng-so) so aptly terms it, “even though short, was a sufficiently beautiful adventure.” Guynemer’s part in the World War is over. His own active chapter is done, but his spirit lives on in the hearts of every allied airman. Guynemer, born in December, 1894, was the son of a retired officer. As a boy he was agile and ambitious in sports, though of slender build and somewhat delicate. He was especially fond of mechanical toys and miniature airplanes, and even in the early school days, when flying was looked upon more as a sport than an actual military factor, Georges declared to his father his ambition to become an aviator. [Illustration: GUYNEMER AT TEN YEARS OF AGE] And then came the war. The youth, who because of physical weakness was refused admission to the army no less than five times, was finally accepted at the age of twenty, on November 23, 1914. Then began a career that in a few short years was destined to make the name of Georges Guynemer immortal. _Guynemer’s First Victory_ In describing his first meeting with the Boche (bosh) on July 19, 1915, to his friend, Jacques Mortane, Guynemer said: “I was on a two-seated ‘Parasol’ with Guerder, my mechanic, as passenger. I had promised myself for some time to undertake a pursuit in my airplane, but I had always been ordered on reconnaissances or photographic missions, and that kind of work did not suit me at all. It is always set aside for the newcomers in the squadrons, and I wanted to show that grit was not the exclusive possession of the older men.”