“Now, I’ll start where I left off. I shall have to hurry along, as it is getting late. Since the early days of the great World War, many new inventions have made sea flying the marvel of the age. Suppose I tell you boys of a great battle in which the amazing air fleets of the sea take part.
“Two hostile fleets of warships steam defiantly toward each other. How proudly their banners flaunt gay colors in the breeze! How boldly their stately bows plough through the sea! How grim, how stern their gray sides reflect the sunlight! Ere the day is over, many, many ships of these grand fleets will lie on the ocean floor. Many others will stagger to home ports—battered wrecks.
“High over the enemy fleet are their Zeppelins, floating lazily with the clouds. Over our warships, darting here and there, are the ‘eyes’ of the fleet—our seaplanes. It won’t be long before the Zeppelins, the hostile aeroplanes, and our seaplanes are clinched in a struggle to death.
THE DEPTH BOMB DESTROYS A U-BOAT
A MASS OF WRECKAGE THAT STRIKES THE DECK OF ONE OF OUR WARSHIPS
“Let us look at the battleships again. Many of them carry small elevated railways on which run tiny cars. These are called seaplane catapults. The word catapult means, ‘To throw heavy stones.’ So we conclude that these little railways throw seaplanes. Well, they do throw seaplanes. Let’s inspect one and see how it is done. The little car, bearing a big seaplane, with its propeller spinning, shoots along the railway track at lightning speed. At the very end, it strikes a bumper. Off shoots the seaplane. The car darts back to the starting point. When a battleship clears for action, the catapult is taken down.
“The monster warships have now begun to fight. Their big guns are banging and booming—hundreds of times louder than thunder. On the decks, behind the guns, in the engine rooms and wireless cabins—everywhere, men are striving, straining every nerve, risking their lives for the land they love.