Article June 7, 1919 Issue

Extracts from Letters

"I was in my ship [aeroplane] just ready to take off when the official photographic ship taxied out on the field and sent word to me that some official close-up photographs were to be taken in the air and requested that my ship be the model. It was arranged that we meet at four thousand feet over the flying field. Fifteen minutes later the photographic ship had reached this altitude, and as I was in a much faster plane I had been waiting for several minutes. The pilot of the photo ship was eager to take a good close-up picture and so climbed above me and attempted to dive past my left wing and snap a picture on the way down. However, on his way down he came about four feet too close, and his right wing skid struck my left upper wing. The force of the crash destroyed my left upper wing completely as far in as the first outer strut and as far back as the aileron control. The first thought that came to me was that the situation was very serious, that collisions are nearly always fatal; but I then turned my thoughts toward God and tried to realize a line my mother had written me several months before,—that God is just as much present, just as powerful, and that His ideas are just as much protected in the air as on the ground, and the harmony alone is possible to God's children. As soon as these thoughts came to me a feeling of absolute security entered my heart, and I no longer thought of my own ship but looked down at the other ship which was already several hundred feet below, and tried to realize the fact that all of God's ideas are equally protected. I placed my ship in a gentle spiral, turned around and smiled at my passenger,—who finally returned the smile,—and then made a perfect landing on the usual spot. The other ship landed about thirty seconds later not fifty yards distant—the pilot and photographer none the worse for the experience. On examining the ship it was considered quite miraculous that my passenger and I should be living to tell the tale.

"I have had many, many demonstrations during my flying experience and wish to express my heartfelt gratitude for Christian Science. I also wish to express thankfulness for the Christian Science War Relief committee."

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