In the early days of the war, the value of the flying machine as a
weapon was not by any means appreciated. It was used for observation
and bomb-dropping purposes almost exclusively. The Germans were the
first to realize its possibilities as a gunning as well as bombing or
spying craft. They began carrying rifles and pistols with which to pot
enemy aviators, and the chivalry of the air, so excellent a feature of
the initial period, disappeared, for, necessarily the Allied aviators
were not slow to follow the lead. It was, however, in the early stage,
September, 1914, that the duel occurred of which the following is an
account. The narrative was written by the German aviator, the chief
figure in the adventure.
The story, the truth of which is unquestioned, was published originally
in the Berlin _Tageblatt_ from which the New York _Evening Post_ made
the translation. It is of special interest as a report of one of the
first, if not the first of the armed encounters between belligerent
planes.