One of the hero’s sisters was entrusted with the task of studying the atmosphere at dawn each day to see if it were “Boche weather.” And as soon as it was light enough, slyly, like a boy planning mischief against the orders of his elders, the Second Lieutenant Ace came down from his room and mounted his Nieuport for a prospective fray. He was convinced that no one in the house suspected his escapades except his sister. How little he understood the hearts of a father and mother! Father Guynemer has told of the anxieties, the worries lived through during that convalescence. The boy had gone. Would he come back? Would some hateful enemy appear on the way and prevent his return to the bosom of his family? The minutes of anxiety were as long as centuries. As for the loving Mother Guynemer, she did not dare show her son that she was undeceived by his stratagems, nor did she wish him to see her when she watched him fly away. Through the blinds, with tear-dimmed eyes, she watched him depart in the service of his country. When she saw her boy draw far away, she returned to her household duties--but not until Georges’ machine had become a tiny speck. [Illustration: GUYNEMER AND MACHINE AFTER 3,000-METER TUMBLE] Here is one of the most moving pages in the hero’s life--this feigned ignorance on the part of the parents, the plotting of brother and sister. Guynemer, face to face with his family, pretended that he would run no danger. He insisted on his own prudence. Nothing serious could happen to him, because he avoided all risks. But as soon as he began to turn the conversation upon the subject which was all his life, the comforting words which he had spoken were at once contradicted by the many adventures and varied anecdotes which he recalled. No peril had been too great for him. He played with danger, and looked for it. _A Fall of 3,000 Meters_ Guynemer hated the word “luck,” perhaps because he was accused of having so much of it, and when his Spad was struck by a shell 3,000 meters from the earth, the airman falling the entire distance, he repudiated the suggestion that his was a lucky star! This phenomenal escape took place on September 23, 1916, Guynemer having just finished an exploit humorously set down by his friend Mortane as follows: “Put an egg in boiling water when the Ace of Aces begins a battle; you wait until he has downed three Boches, you take out the egg, and it is done to a turn. What a triumph for the restaurant menus!” While contemplating the immensity of the azure heavens at an altitude of 3,000 meters above the earth, Guynemer suddenly felt a shell strike one of the wings of his airplane with all its force. The left wing was torn to shreds, the canvas sent floating in the wind, as the airman and his machine began a descent. [Illustration: GUYNEMER FACE TO FACE WITH A DEFEATED BOCHE]