“That queer snake-like thing turned and in a flash had straightened out in a line and shot down on us like a bullet. It hit the top of our right wing and went through as though the wing were a spider web. Then it struck one of our stay wires and was split long ways for a foot or more. It clung to the wire, thrashing about, a blood of that pale greenish color oozing out. When I was ready to go out on the wing and try to get it, it fell on the lower plane and was blown off. It fell below to the plant island over which we are flying now. If it had struck either of us, it would have been death. A short distance more and we will make the dive for earth as our oxygen supply is getting low. I have been catching stray pieces of the plants of which the islands are made and have a bunch packed in the bottom of my cockpit. There is also a large bunch caught in the wires of our left wing and several small bunches caught in other places. These might hold fast until we get down. I have been wondering if the change of pressure on the plant and animals--if we can catch any animals to bring down--will cause them to contract. The effect on them should be just the opposite of the effect on the fish that have been brought up from two miles or more under the sea; when they came up, the pressure was so much less that some swelled up and exploded. I believe these animals would be pressed together more if brought to the denser air of the earth’s surface. This plant up here might be made good use of below at some future time and if--of all the sights--what monsters! What fierce fighting monsters. Look at the great gashes they are tearing in each other. They can’t last. “Oh, I forgot, you below--we just turned a half circle around the end of a medium sized floating island and have come upon one of the most awful battles between two of the biggest and fiercest of monsters. One is like a large flying alligator, except that it has a huge beak and large bat-like wings. The other is shaped like an octopus, but has flat arms and two large balloon-like appendages on its back. It has a hellish beak. They are closed in one biting, clawing and choking mass. We are circling them and watching. The flying alligator just laid open one of the devil-fish of the air’s balloons. It shrank as though it were full of gas. Now they are whirling on the air so fast you can hardly tell what is happening. The alligator has lost the use of one of its wings. The octopus has wrapped several of its arms around it. They are starting to sink. They’re dropping, two of the arms, bitten off. Everything up here is that sickly green, both monsters are that color and they are bleeding the green blood --if it is blood. They are now covered with gashes all over their bodies. They can’t last much longer. There goes the other balloon. It shrinks--now they are falling. * * * * *