As best they could, the governments of earth sought to dissipate the
panic, pointing out that few lives had been lost, and urging greater
efforts in the production of the air-mines. Already the first great
steelite globes were rolling out of the big factories, and were quickly
being fitted with the charge of explosives.
It was early on the morning of the 12th that the first air-mine was
finished and released. Dr. Howard and I superintended the process,
which took place outside one of the great Pittsburgh _steelite_ works
that was turning out the globes. Anchored securely to the ground, the
globe was slowly exhausted of its air by the giant air-pump that had
been equipped for the task.
The pump was disconnected. Then the globe was removed to a large open
field near-by and reanchored. We could see clearly that the mighty
globe, of incredible lightness, was straining upward with such force
against the anchoring chains that held it that it seemed they must
part. Dr. Howard reached forth and turned the lever that held the great
globe anchored. There was a whizzing sound, a puff of air in our faces,
and the great air-mine had vanished, rushing upward at such tremendous
speed that it had seemed to disappear before our eyes.
We all gazed up after it, as though to follow its course upward until
it floated at last on the surface of earth's atmosphere. I think that
the same thought held us all. This air-mine, this single globe we
had released--it seemed such a puny weapon to use against beings who
from mighty ships had let down the colossal trawl upon us. Was there
actually any hope for us in this method?
Perhaps this doubt was felt by many then, but there was no cessation
of the work, which after all held our only chance of striking back at
the great space invaders above. By the next day, here and there over
earth's surface, scores of the air-mines were being released, to rush
upward. In Germany and the English midlands, in Russia and Pennsylvania
and Indiana--everywhere on earth's surface where the air-mines could be
made and assembled--they were being released in groups.
The great industrial leaders of the world had gathered, under Dr.
Howard's heading, to devise plans for the quantity production of the
air-mines with the greatest possible speed. Already great factories
were being hastily equipped with special machinery, and the explosive
factories of the world as well as those producing the repelling devices
were working night and day to manufacture the needed materials.
By the 15th, scores of the globes were being released each hour, here
and there over the world, and their number was rapidly increasing.
Dr. Howard was sleeping but two hours out of twenty-four, it seemed,
remaining night and day at the Washington office that had become the
center of the world's activities. He estimated that within a week the
air-mines would be pouring forth at the rate of a thousand a day.
"The great danger," he said, "is that the next attack on us might hit
one of the great cities so hard that the inevitable panic will cause a
cessation on work on the air-mines."
"But how long is the work to go on in any case?" I asked. "There must
be thousands of globes floating already upon the atmosphere's surface."
"There need to be tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands," he said
solemnly. "They must be sent forth until these terrible trawlings from
above have entirely ceased."
I shook my head, for I could see that already many, tired of the
ceaseless work, were crying out that the scheme was a crazy one. Others
had begun to say that whatever space-visitors had been above had
already departed. But these statements were swiftly silenced on the
next morning, that of the 16th, by the fifth catastrophe.
This fifth blow took place at one of New York's residential suburbs,
Scarsdale, and while it took a toll of life exceeded only by that
of the Chicago horror, it was different from the others in one odd
respect. The great trawl seemed to descend and gouge along the earth
with somewhat smaller speed than in the other instances, and was seen
very plainly and even escaped from in time by some people in the
vicinity.
It was described as being very like the familiar steam-shovel scoop in
shape, but of a glittering metal that all agreed was not native to the
earth. The top of it, what supported it, ran up into the mists of the
morning sky. They were many shining strands, and very slender for the
colossal weight they supported. They gleamed with strange light and it
was the opinion of many that if they were of metal they had in some
unheard-of way been given supernatural strength.
At Scarsdale perhaps twelve hundred perished in the sweep of the giant
scoop, which seemed to make a smaller gash than usual. A few who had
heard the trawl crashing toward them had managed to flee from its path
in time to escape it.