"No, but in fifteen minutes more it will be, at the present rate of speed."
"About how much higher above us do you think it is?"
"A thousand feet maybe, but I never calculated distances of this kind before."
"Likely it's near enough. Let me know when it's about to come directly over us, and on your life don't fail!"
John watched with all his eyes. He saw the hovering shape, and he caught a glimpse of the arm of the man who steered. But it became to his fancy a great bird which, with its comrade below, pursued them. That name, Taube, the dove, called so from its shape, was very unfitting.
While he was watching he saw the Taube swoop down at least five hundred feet, and at the same time make a burst of speed forward.
"It will be over us! almost directly! within a minute!" he shouted to Lannes.
The Arrow swerved to on side with such suddenness that John reeled hard against his seat, despite the strap that held him. At the same moment he caught a glimpse of some small object shooting past the Arrow.
"What was it? what was it?" he cried.
"A bomb," replied Lannes. "That was the reason why I didn't want either of the Taubes to get above us. I was sure they had bombs, and if one of them fell upon us, well, nobody would ever find our pieces. Hold hard now, we're going to do a lot of zigzagging, because that fellow probably has more bombs, where the one he just dropped came from."