THE AERIAL MAPMAKER.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXI, Issue 66, 14 October 1916, Page 7

THE AERIAL MAPMAKER.

A RISKY LIFE. The London correspondent of the Wellington Post, writings on August 29, ,, ;; ,_•,.. While, an American journalist in France was having a huge topographical map explained to him as it hung upon, the wall of a hangar, an orderly rushed in bearing some wet photographic prints, the result of that I'at'-teimonrt's reconnaissance over the enemy's lines. The moment ttie'vavia- , lon lands he passes on his case of exposed plates to a waiting messenger, who disappears with them at top speed to the "dark room on wheels," where they are developed with all possible rapidity. To the uninitiated (says the writer) these pictures appear only as h child's rude scratchings. Across the centre are two zigzag parallel lines, resembling the tortuous windings of a dragon. From each side are smaller tendrils, apparently wandering aimlessly, until they disappear in the vague distance; at irregular intervals along these tendrils may he seen tiny wartlike blotches. The dragon represents the trench lines of the opposing forces, while the gossamarlike tendrils are the communicating trenches leading from the rear to the front line. When either side brings up troops to the trendies from the rear they appear to the human bird overhead as small blotches or warts in the winding communication alleys. While the pictures were being looked at, th" officer turned to the telephone, ca''ed up the field headquarters of his sector and said: "The enemy at half-past live this afternoon was being supplied by a train of approximately twenty motor-cars coming along route No. 5, leading from Base H to tin? distributing point immediately behiiil Hill No. 220." "Will that trrin of motor-cars be shelled as they pass that gap between these two hills?" asked'the journalist, pointing to the map. The officer's answer was a sign for silence, and two or three miles away were heard the heavy guns break forth. "There's your answer," said the officer. A scant quarter of an hour had passed botw'ecn the landing of the aviator and thr time the guns opened lire! TlieJ ofTW'cr led the way to an adjoining room where a kind of jigsaw puzzle was mounted on a table. This was I re; !lv a bird's-eye view, brought to so'.'le, of about fifteen miles of front. jam! was composed of from forty to fifty separate negatives, the prints having been pieced together to make [one complete whole. To obtain this picture-map it is estimated that at least one airman risked his life for each square mile represented.