The Storm That Shook the World by Walter Soellner

Author:Walter Soellner
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Morgan James Publishing
Published: 2016-11-05T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 30

January 1915, Nyaminyami

Markus estimated it was sometime in early January 1915. He couldn’t be sure, but he looked to the moon for guidance as the ancients did. “Yes,” he said to himself, “it must be early January.”

The day finally arrived for him to search for his wrecked aircraft. I’m not leaving the village for good, only going out to retrieve what I can from the crash site, he thought. He knew he was still too weak to trek alone across the unknown Africa that lay ahead of him.

“I feel good,” he mumbled to himself as he limped along, two hunter guides ahead of him and two behind. He still had pain in his leg, but his chest was not bothering him anymore.

“If I don’t overdo it, my leg will heal correctly.”

It was a long walk, with a half dozen stops he knew his guides didn’t need. Before they arrived at the wreck, he could see it way off on a rise in the land. One wing was pointing straight up, the fuselage upside down in the tree and badly crumpled.

“Good God! I survived that?” he said aloud. “I hope the radio parts are still undamaged somewhere in there.” His BaTonga guides ignored his comments.

A mixed herd of zebras, wildebeest, and four kinds of antelope grazed on new grass among the scattered trees near the aeroplane. A leopard leaped down from a nearby tree and slinked away in no hurry. When his four guides arrived, they sat down and waited. Markus walked around the tree, looking up, inspecting his erstwhile transportation.

“Christ, I was lucky to survive this.”

The German askari porter was one of his guides, so Markus asked if there was a way to bring down whatever was still in the aircraft. This took a lot of explaining and gesticulating and a drawing in the dirt. The translator finally understood and told the three other men. Two of them shimmied up the tree trunk in surprising fashion and were at the wreck in moments. They rocked the fuselage back and forth. Parts of debris fell off.

“No, no, don’t rock it!” Markus shouted. “Just bring down what’s inside.” He gestured to the translator to repeat the command, which he did, and the two tree climbers gave a mighty shove that brought the entire wreck plunging to earth.

“Christ, all mighty! I said just the contents!”

He hurried over to the pile of what was left of his aeroplane and pulled away the fabric, wires, and broken wooden struts. There in the remains was his knapsack. He pulled it out gently and heard glass tinkling inside. He pulled out the wooden box from the knapsack. His hands trembled a bit as he pried it open.

The wood shavings were packed tightly around vacuum tubes and other electronic parts. He slowly removed the stuffing and laid the wireless parts on the flattened knapsack. Only one tube was broken.

“Thank God! I’ll bet they’ll have this type of tube at the East African transmitter. What luck, only one

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