It lessened. It tore away in rifts. All around, the ships became visible.
Seven battle-ships swung around and put on speed and rushed in echelon toward the coast. They steered straight for the mouth of Narragansett Bay, turned just outside of the zone of fire of its defenses, slowed down and steamed across the mouth.
The bi-plane’s engine burst into life. The machine lifted and followed them. It flew high over them and into the bay, climbing.
“They’re over it!” said an officer on a ship, looking at the machine through his glasses.
Locating the Forts For the Enemy Ships
Far inside of the bay, so high in air that it was little more than a shining speck, the aeroplane was describing a series of regular, equal circles. All at once, as if it had been painted in the air with a mammoth brush, a jet-black descending streak stood out against the sky, and lengthened steadily toward the earth.
The azimuth and other range-finding instruments at both ends of the battle-ships caught
the angles and ascertained the range to the black smear that still hung in the air, like grease. The aviator had dropped a smoke-bomb to indicate the fort below.