Evening Star Newspaper, March 29, 1931, Page 90

THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, MARCH 29, 1931. = — Rescued From the Wild Beluchi Brigands InThisSecond Chapter L.adyBruceCon- tinues the Story of Her Flight Around the World Alone in “a1iny Plane—A Ioiced Landing anc a Brokben Pro- pel/cr A BY LADY MILDRED BRUCE. —~ ROM Bagdad, Persia, I flew to Bushire, a little piace on the Persian Guif, Here 1 had some troubls with the oil leaking from my engine, and as it was impossible to get it repaired until I could reach India, I decided to carry on. I struggled on in the hope that I should reach India safely. I started at dawn from Bushire with the object of flying to Jask, a little cable station on the Pe:sian Gulf, some 600 miles farther on. This flight entailed a journey of 160 miles across the Persian Gulf, and it was just in the middle of the gulf that my oil pres- sure began to go down and I realized that I might have to land in that terrible place among the shaiks. I diclated a record to my husband, siating that I was in serious trouble and that I might have to land in the sea, and should [ not be found and the record was ever found, the reason why I had to come down was there. This record was not broken when the machine turned over later, and my husband received it quite safely. Anyway, I sruggled on, and just when I was half way across the sea the oil pressure hand started gradually dropping, fluctuating between five pounds and zero, then, to my relief, in the distant horizon I saw the outline of the coast. A sandstorm was blowing and the visibility was very bad. Immediately upon reaching the land I cut my engine off and tried to make a landing on the sand beside the water, the only place possible to come down. I landed, bu® unfortunately the sofl was too soft and the plane nosed over, burying the engine three feet in the sand, the tall right up in a vertical position. I jump:d out and realized that I was alone on the Persian Gulf in one of the lone- liest stretches of desert on the border of Baluchistan. FT"HERE was not a soul in sight, and I knew from my bearings on the map I must be at least 50 miles frem Jask. There was no road or means of communication at this lonely point, and I sat down under the aeroplane because the sun was so hot it burned a spot in my brain, with a temperature of at least 120 in the shéde. In a very short time I saw black specks coming toward me and within a short time I was surrounded by many Beluchi tribesmen whe inhabit this part of the Persian Gulif. First they seemed angry and annoyed because I eould not understand them. They jumped around and hit at me with sticks. I knew that to show fear would be fatal, so I smiled and went up to them, shaking hands with the chief. This seemed to please them and they all grin- ned. Then they brought their little children to the aeroplane and I played with them, and tried to show that I was quite unconcerned. Within a very short time I had made great friends with all, and I think they would have done anything for me. My one anxiety was the fact that I had with me only one bottle of water and that had gone during the first hour, for the intense heat made me crave for some- thing every few minutes. I pointed to the bottle and made gestures. Would I be able to have water? They made signs that reassured me and I am glad to say late the same evening they brought me water, terrible to taste, half sait, but water, and I was able to survive on that. As soon as I had recovered from the excite- ment of the crash, I had a look around and realized that I had done no damage to the acroplane except to break a propeller. Before I set to work making repairs, I wrote on a plece of paper: “The British consul, please send help; have crashed. Mrs. Bruce,” and I triad to explain by gestures that I wanted this message delivered to Jask. The savage seemed to understand: taking the note, he disappeared. Then I settled myself down for the night. I decided to sleep under the aeroplane and awake early im the morning before the sun was too strong, fill up with oil, a can of which I carried; change my propeller, which was broken, with the spare one I had in the fuse- lage, and try to take off and fly to Jask. It was very lonely in this spot as night came on, and the wind blew and the sand soon cov- ered me over. At about that time of the year they have very bad sandstorms on the Persian Galf. All the other savages walked away to- ward the mountains, where I think they live. The old Beluchi king, chief of the village on that side, made gestures which seemed to 53y, “Look out.” He was a really good, kind old man and I ghink tha “if 4t/ had’ fiot” béée” for the old Beluchi king and the fact that he seemed to want to help me, anything might have hap- pened. But he guarded me day and night during the three days I wa2s down there, and I think I owe my safsty to him and his kind- ness. I fell asleep under the aeroplane and did not awake until 3 o'clock, just before the sun came up. I got my tools up and started to take off the broken propeller. The old king pointed to the mountains and gave me to understand that he was going over there, but that he would be back later. So I carried on with the work, cleaning the engine of my machine, which was covered with sand, with my teothbrush. I cleaned the carburetor and spark plugs, put on the new propeller and started the engine. TO my bitter disappointment, it was quite impossible to take off from the heavy sand. The wheels dug themsclves in deeper and deeper right up to the axles, and I realized that I would never be able to get away from the heavy sand—not without proper labor, rope and planks. Then I felt very miserable. The sun was soon up and the heat began to become unbearable, and I had to take refuge again under the fuselage. In about an hour the old chiftain returned with a sheepskin full of water and dates. These dates were not good dates and made me very sick. But I drank the water and was grate- ful for it. I pointed toward the horizon and said to the chief, “Jask! Jask!” trying to get some information from him regarding the savage to whom I had given my message, but he only looked blankly at me. He did not seem to understand. I began to fear that perhaps the man had not taken my message. As a matter of fact, I found out afterward that it took him 38 hours to walk to Jask and it was only on the evening of the second day that he reached the little cable station and delivered my note to the political officer’s door. They had to organize their party, obtain pro- visions for the week and a small sailing boat, and this took considerable time, and they only left at midnight on the evening of the second night. It took them 15 hours, fighting against the wind, to reach the spot where I had come down. In the meantime, about 12 o'clock on the second day, I saw smoke on the horizon and turning to the Beluchi, I cried, “Anglais, Anglais.” They seemed to understand and ran with me down to the seashore, about a quarter of a mile from where the aeroplane had come down. I waved my handkerchief and felt like Robinson Crusoe on the desert island as these ships steamed along. They were the British warships which had been sent to scout the Persian Sea. To my bitter disappointment they just slowly passed along the Persian Gulf and disappeared on the distant horizon. They were looking for me and the wreckage of my aeroplane in the sea, and did not realize that I would have come down on that lonely spot on the gulf. As they disappeared, I realized that my last hope was gone and returned to the aeroplane, heartsick and despondent. ABDU'I‘ that time the Beluchis got very anxious, and kept pointing to the moun- tains, making gestures with their knives at their throats, saying “Rupee, rupee.” They put my money inside the cockpit and tried to coyer it up with a cushion, T realized that they were trying to explain that they feared soffiething 'from the ‘mountaing, and then I rememberel the tales { ‘had been fold about the brigands and how {15y’ ¢ all” those who “The brigand chieftain seemed highly amused because I had in my bag a little evening frock covered with beads. He held it up and tried to put it on, amid laughter from the Beluchi.” landed there for ramsom and killed them if they did not get the money—and sometimes if they did. I was too tired and too hungry, really, to care very much. I think perhaps that was the reacon I did not feel particularly frightened, and a few minutes later the Beluchis shouted and pointed toward the mountains, and I saw donkeys coming down and realized that the brigands were on their way. The Beluchi chief tried to hide me in the ccckpit and cover me over, but I told him that that was silly, and I decided to walk out to meet them with the object of shaking hands with them. When I reached them I put my hands out and said, “How do you do?” and smiled. They seemed surprised and .in a very short time smiled, too, and made friends, and we walked back again to the aeroplane. I showed them the aercplane, and the chief brigand climbed into th: cockpit, put on my flying helmet and worked the controls. He seemed highly amused because the rudder was squeaking very badly, owing to lack of oil. He spent quite 10 minutes wiggling the aileron and working the rudder up and down and grin- ning. I saw that I had won him over and immediately felt relieved. He said to me, “Rupee, rupee,” and I knew that he wanted to get down to business, so I got out the few rupees I had and handed them to him. He took thcse and examined all my other kit, but left me everything. He seemed highly amused because I had in my bag a little evening frock covered with beads. He held it up and then tried to put it on amid shrieks of laughter from the Beluchis. Then he returned it to me, smiled and sat down under the aeroplane. Later they left me, and I was alone again with the Beluchis. That night the old king pointed to his home in the mountains and gave me to understand he was going away. 1 hated to be alone in that awful place and begged him to stay, and I think he was sorry for me because I looked upset. He made a gesture which plainly said, “Oh, well, I'll stay!” And I settled down again for the night under the aeroplane, and I wag glad, as hyenas prowled around that night. One of the other tribesmen had taken a fancy to my coat, the only warm clothing I had, and had tried it on during the day and forgotten to give it back to me. I was left that night with very few clothes, and the wind was cold, and I had a very miserable night, with ncthing to cover me over. I awakened about’ 4 o'clock early the third morning, just as the sun was coming up. “HIS was the third day, and I was just about ready to give up all hope. I said to the chief, “Jask! Jask! Take me to Jask!” I pointed to my feet, trying to say to him that I wished to walk. He seemed to understand, for he packed up my things in a little bag which T had with me, and we set off together across the sand. But I returned to write on the aeroplane, “I am walking to Jask, I am walking to Jask,” in case that some day some one should find the aeroplane and wculd then know what had happened to me, should I not be successful in making the journey across the desert. I walked for about an hour and a half in the blazing sun, falling over once or twice, but the old chieftain pulled me along, and in the distance I saw an oasis and knew'that I had, been very near the little village where the.tribe lives. I made cne supreme effort and pulled myself along througiv the sand, only to collapse under the trees on reaching the village. Here I saw for the first time the homé of the., tribesmen and the Beluchi women. And strange they were, with long, dark garments and masks over their faces and rings through their noses, but they looked ..ndly at me, shaking their heads as they observed my cuts and bruises, which were becoming quite sore. They brought me goats’ milk, which was the first nourishing food I had had for three days. I soon fell asieep under the trees and did not remember any more until some time later I heard shouts from the Beluchi, who were dancing a war dance and crying, “Anglais, Apglais.” Waking me, they shook my hands and pulled me back along the sand, pointing toward the plane. Then it began to dawm upon me that the rescue party had arrived. I was gladly willing to take the walk again across the sand and soon, in the distance, I saw four men walking across the desert with white helmets, and 1 knew the rescue party had arrived. As I neared them I felt the tears coming into my eyes, hard as I tried to keep them back. Then I heard a voice saying, “Hello, Mrs. Bruce, are you all right?” That was too much, and as I reached them I was both crying and laughing, overjoyed with meeting them. THEY carried me back to the trees again, and scon I smelled sausages and bacon sizzling, and I was laughing and happy again, for I realized that my troubles were over. Then they said to me that they feared they would not be able to get the plane out of the sand, but I explained to them that I had found a camel track farther down the desert, and that if they could pull it onto that I should be able to take off. So we set off as soon as we had eaten, and started to work, with ropes which they had brought, and after three hours we managed to get the machine onto the hard soil. We sent the carrier pigeons which the rescue party had brought with them with a message to Jask so that it would be relayed imme- diately to England to relieve my husband's anxiety. When they had decided that I could fly the machine, Mr. Wilson, the mechanic who had come with them, said he would like to come with me. And as there was no seat for him in the aeroplane he had to lie on the fuselage, and I took off with him in that way, reaching Jask just as the sun was setting. The rescue party remained behind, and it was some days before they reached Jask, owing to heavy seas. But all's well that ends well, and so ended the first half of my flight to Japan. Lady Bruce's further adventures, flysng in Oriental monsoons over the jungles of India, Indo-China, China and Korea, will be revealed in The Star's Magazine next Sun- day. Leather Market Growing. GER.MANY is in the strange pesition of being the most prosperous exporter of leather in the world at present and yet gives promise of being a worthwhile importer from the United States. Last year Germany purchased mearly $30,000,000 worth of leather abroad, largely from . European sources, but the demand for and it is Believed that now that a prejudioe . .Ageinst pigment tamnned leathers is disappearing the American sales may be even greater.