ng. It's a monstrous thing!"

"One was bound to meet fellows like that sooner or later," said Captain
Blackie, the squadron commander, philosophically. "I suppose the supply
of gentlemen does not go round, and they are getting some rubbish into
the corps. One of you fellows drop a note over their aerodrome and ask
them what the dickens they mean by it. Did you see him, Tam?"

"A' did that," said Tam; "that wee Hoon was saved from destruction owing
to circumstances ower which A' had no control. A' was on his tail; ma
bricht-blue eyes were glancin' along the sichts of ma seelver-plated
Lewis gun, when A' speered the grand circus of Mr. MacBissing waiting to
perform."

Tam shook his head.

"A'm hoping," said he, "that it was an act of mental aberration, that
'twas his first crash; and, carried away by the excitement and
enthusiasm of the moment, the little feller fell into sin. A'm hoping
that retribution is awaiting him.

"'Ma wee Hindenburg,' says Mr. MacBissing, stern and ruthless, 'did I no
see ye behavin' in a manner likely to bring discredit upon the Imperial
and All-Highest Air Sairvice of our Exalted and Talkative Kaiser? Hoch!
Hoch! Hoch!'

"Little Willie Hindenburg hangs his heid.

"'Baron,' or 'ma lord,' as the case may be, says he, 'I'll no be tellin'
ye a lie. I was not mesel'! That last wee dram of sauerkraut got me all
lit up like a picture palace!' says he; 'I didn't know whether it was on
ma heid or somebody else's,' says he; 'I'll admit the allegation and I
throw mesel' on the maircy o' the court.'

"'Hand me ma strop,' says MacBissing, pale but determined, and a few
minutes later a passer-by micht have been arrested and even condemned to
death by hearin' the sad and witchlike moans that came frae
headquarters."

That "Little Willie Hindenburg" had not acted inadvertently, but that it
was part of his gentle plan to strafe the strafed--an operation
equivalent to kicking a man when he is down--was demonstrated the next
morning, for when Thornton fell out of control, blazing from engine to
tail, a German flying-man, unmistakably the same as had disgraced
himself on the previous day, came down on his tail, keeping a hail of
bullets directed at the fuselage, though he might have saved himself the
trouble, for both Thornton and Freeman, his observer, had long since
fought their last fight.

Again Tam was a witness and again, like a raging tempest, he swept down
upon the law-breaker and again was fo