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"I rather fancy he's about as good as they're made!" observed the Lieutenant. Meanwhile, the witch-lamb soared up and up straight as an arrow; up she climbed, growing rapidly less until she was a gnat against a background of fleecy cloud and the roar of the engine had diminished to a whine; up and up until she was a speck until the clouds had swallowed her altogether.
"Same here," murmured the Lieutenant. "But you've never flown a Nieuport before, have you, eh?" enquired the Major. "No, sir, but " "Nor you either, C.?" "No, sir, still " "Then I'll try her myself," said the Major, regarding the witch-lamb joyous-eyed. "But," demurred the Captain, "I was rather under the impression you'd never flown one either."
Right-oh!" he called to his mechanician; the engine hummed, thundered, and roaring, cast back upon us a very gale of wind; the witch-lamb moved, slid forward over the grass, and gathering speed, lifted six inches, a yard, ten yards and was in flight. "Can you beat that?" exclaimed the Captain enthusiastically, "lifted her clean away!"
Finally they touched, the engine stopped and the witch-lamb pulled up within a few feet of us. Hereupon the Major waved a gauntleted hand to us. "Must stop to lunch," he cried, "I've ordered soup, you know." But this being impossible, we perforce said good-by to these warm-hearted, simple-souled fighting men, a truly regrettable farewell so far as I was concerned.
Indeed, so young seeming was he that upon better acquaintance I ventured to enquire his age, and he somewhat unwillingly owned to twenty-three. "But," said he, "I'm afraid we can't show you very much, the weather's so perfectly rotten for flying." "Oh, I don't know," said the Captain, glancing towards the witch-lamb, "I rather thought I'd like to try this new machine if you don't mind, sir."
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