2:32
The Diesel tramp edged closer inshore still . It was all very peaceful and placid . There are few softer jobs on earth than being a member of a `` force in being '' for the sake of civilian morale . * * * * * But at 2:32 P. M. the softness of that job departed , as far as Sergeant Walpole was concerned . At that moment he heard a thin wailing sound high aloft . It was well enough known nearer the front , but the Eastern Coast Observation Force had had no need to become unduly familiar with it . With incredible swiftness the wailing rose to the shrillest of shrieks , descending as lightning might be imagined to descend .