The school is an experiment. Lt. Colonel [Robert] Smith-Barry is in charge—he originated the idea. Under him is Wells. There is no red tape. As long as a man does his work no questions are asked. There is great freedom, the instructors are a fair bunch of men, very good flyers, of many experiences. Many of the pupils are majors, etc., who have flown even at the front for a year or two and who are now for the first time learning how to really fly. Many have Huns to their credit, and many have decorations. In instructing, the instructor first does a thing, then you follow in loops, etc. By means of simple metal tubing with rubber ends conversation is easy. There are plenty of machines and good mechanics and an instructor to a man almost, so you learn quickly or are advised to try for the commissary department. There is also an excellent shop where machines can be completely made. The country all around is full of good landing fields.
The barracks, offices, mess halls, etc., are within an old fort surrounded by a moat with drawbridges.162 It is wonderfully picturesque. The rooms are great, though cold, with fires kept up by a batman. What an institution, the Batman! My first experience with a valet. There are also reading rooms, etc. The food is O.K. and there are no rules or regulations, only an unwritten law to do your flying and do it well. A paradise for a flyer. The only other sort of duty is to practice on the range with shotguns, pistols, or machine guns.
The men are mostly experienced fighters and a great bunch. The hangars, etc., are just beside the fort in a large perfect field. On one corner is also a range etc., for elementary machine gun practice. The field is about two miles from Gosport. As there was no flying, we walked to Gosport where Shorty cabled his girl that he was well and lonesome. As Ken asks almost nightly for some message for Priscilla [Murdock], I, this old bachelor, am again stuck to a bunch of born lovers. I foresee a hell of a time in one respect—these two are going to waste a lot of our time writing and talking about their fiancées. Sometimes I thank God I am still unshackled. Sometimes I sort of wish I were. If I am sociable and write my family whenever they write their future families, my old man will wonder what the Hell!. After a great lunch I read and wrote till tea and dinner. More reading.163
Friday, December 21, 1917. Started out a good day, after breakfast at 9:00, I had a wonderful hop with my instructor. I did more stunting in fifteen minutes than I knew there was. I like something that is touchy, at least in an aeroplane. I learned how to do vertical turns and tail spins, and tried a couple of landings. Never again will I fly a water machine in preference to land. It is wonderful. It was warm flying, as we only went up to 3,000 feet, although the thermometer was about 20 today. The continued banks made us a bit sick, but I soon recovered, and found Shorty all in from his flight. Afternoon mist and no flying, so walked to Gosport.
Saturday, December 22, 1917. After my second flight in morning when I had a great time and learnt to land the bloody bus, and learned more of stunting. Then learned the place closed up for Christmas. Ken, Shorty, and I went to Portsmouth for lunch, took an afternoon train 2:35 for London. Got rooms at the Curzon near A.O.C. [American Officers Club] where we had dinner and saw “A Little Bit of Fluff.” Very funny, a bit crude.164
Sunday, December 23, 1917. Had lunch at A.O.C. and then went for a walk with Alice [Bowler] and had tea at Ritz.
Monday, December 24, 1917. Saw about mail, talked to [W. Atlee] Edwards, where I saw [Carl] Hull. Lunched and saw Al [Sturtevant], John [Vorys], Bob [Lovett]. Did a lot of what you do in London. Had dinner with Alice at The Chinese Restaurant, very peculiar and very cheap. Saw movie after.165
Tuesday, December 25, 1917, Xmas. Hell of a note. Maybe I feel the way I did the first two weeks away at boarding school, maybe a little worse. Took Alice to Westminster Abbey, big reunion lunch at A.O.C., wrote a number of letters. Then Shorty and I had dinner at Almonds Hotel with Alice and Dorothy Foster, Joe Foster’s sister, who is in R.C. [Red Cross] here.166 We then went to a dead dance, then to Murray’s. After a lot of trouble we found a taxi. By the time we left Murray’s, Christmas was long past. A hell of a Xmas we all agreed. Especially as I haven’t had any mail since two days before leaving Paris over two weeks. I’m very much afraid I was just a bit low.
Wednesday, December 26, 1917. Saw Edwards and arranged our mail if we even get any forwarded. Took Alice to lunch at La Petite Riche, very nice, and saw the “Saving Grace,” very good show. Had tea at the Carlton. Then the old five had a farewell dinner at A.O.C. and Shorty, Ken and I went to see “The Boy.”167
Thursday, December 27, 1917. We got up at 6:30 to catch a train, which Ken said left at 8:15 A.M. On arriving at Waterloo Station about 40 minutes ahead of time, we found that it was 8:15 P.M. and our train didn’t go till 9:35. After a haircut at Savoy I couldn’t get a taxi and had to run like the Devil all the way to the station and just got on as train was leaving. After finding Ken and Shorty in a second class compartment, the first were all taken, we had a rotten trip, arriving about 12:30 to find that school didn’t open till Friday, so after lunch and a rubber of bridge I walked to Portsmouth and back.
Friday, December 28, 1917. Hotter weather, long walk. After lunch, short flight making many landings.
Saturday, December 29, 1917. Cloudy at 2,300 feet, and very rough flying. Short flight, I then soloed. As soon as I got up to about 2,000 feet, making turns all the time, I looped six or seven times, tried three or four tail spins, several rolls and more loops. I couldn’t seem to get on to the rolls, came out in a tail spin motor full on several turns. Looping was easy, though I hung on to the stick like death as I did loose loops and there was not great centrifugal force. Then I tried a few landings and one spiral and came in a bit sick as I had been throwing the machine around a good bit. After about an hour, I felt fine and after lunch got up again. First I tried a number of landings in small fields and also tried landing in one spot, it is much easier than a water machine as you can side slip off altitude very fast. Then I started for quite awhile and did some fairly respectable rolls. Came down and took a look at the R.N.A.S. station nearby and then came in after about 45 minutes. My thumb was cold and stiff from [so much] buttoning the motor and after landing as I taxied in my thumb wouldn’t keep the button off and I got off the ground near the hanger. After cutting the gas I made a hell of a landing and lost the propeller dead motor. I certainly was disgusted with myself as Capt. [Dirk] Cloete, my flight C.O., was watching me come in. However, I felt much at home and had a very good time and think I learnt a lot about flying. Didn’t have sickness afterwards. Shorty, whose stomach has been causing him trouble, also is feeling much better and soloed this morning too. No mail yet and we three are pretty sore at the mail service in Paris, they were holding it till enough came to fill a bag, till Edwards telephoned.168
[Gosport] December 29, 1917
Dear Dad,
After leaving London Thursday morning, we were certainly glad to get here, although late as usual. On account of the holidays everything has been a little slack here, but Monday a new bunch of people came in and things will probably take a big brace. Just now we Americans are the only pupils, so we are getting some good work in.
Yesterday I got only one flight, a short one in the afternoon, with a young Englishman who is my instructor now. He is just a kid, but a very good flyer. For some reason a young Englishman seems very much younger than an American of the same age. There were heavy clouds at 2,300 feet and it was rough as the deuce, with a strong wind of twenty-five miles per hour. After about ten minutes instructing, I at last got off alone. I’ve been dying to get up alone and certainly had a time. As there were a lot of machines around, I had to keep a good lookout, as it is surprising how quickly you come