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THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



MALAY CHILDREN OF SINGAPORE 



When the aviators reached Singapore they found the heat intense. Coming from the cold 

 of the English winter, they felt it severely (see text, page 322). 



to avoid them I almost crashed the ma- 

 chine on the tree-tops. By a very narrow 

 margin indeed we cleared them, and I 

 was deeply relieved when we had climbed 

 to 1,000 feet and were clear of the pesti- 

 lent birds. I marveled that our propeller 

 stood the impact, for a very trifling knock 

 will cause the disruption of a propeller 

 when running "full out," and so in an 

 extremely high state of tension. (I have 

 known so tiny an object as a cigarette 

 end thrown carelessly into a propeller to 

 cause the whirling blades to fly to pieces !) 

 ( )u looking over the machine I noticed 

 one of the hawk's wings had become 

 pinned in the rigging, and we secured it 



after the day's flight as a souvenir of a 

 hairbreadth escape. 



Calcutta marked the completion of the 

 second stage of our journey, and from 

 now onward the route would be much 

 more difficult and hazardous. We had 

 had the benefit of R. A. F. aerodromes 

 and personnel at almost every landing 

 place, but henceforth we would have to 

 land on race-courses or very small aero- 

 dromes. Also, I knew that the only pos- 

 sible landing places right on to Port Dar- 

 win were at stated places hundreds of 

 miles apart, and that in the event of en- 

 gine trouble our chances of making a safe 

 forced landing were very slender. 



