Beneath Gray Skies

by Hugh Ashton

  “Yes, Major, the American is telling the truth, as far as it goes,” replied Spitz, somewhat defiantly. “The black was not working properly, so I try to teach him a lesson by telling the Untermensch that he must clean the toilets with his mouth, since he will not use his hands to do it properly. When he refuses to learn this simple lesson, I hit him to teach him who is the master. He falls down, so I kick him again, and then I kick his black Arsch out of the door. That is all.” Weisstal looked horrified.

  LeHay did not reply directly, but turned to David. “Yesterday, I trust you told Major Weisstal that he was to come to you if any problems occurred with the colored boys? And that he reminded you that they are Confederate government property?”

  “Yes, sir. I did that, sir.”

  Weisstal nodded. “Yes, he did tell me that, I remember. Along with a lot of what I quite frankly regarded as sentimental nonsense about your blacks. But since I am a guest in a foreign land, I happily go along with your customs. I know that we Germans also have our funny little ways which are sometimes strange to foreigners, so I am tolerant in these matters.”

  “Did you repeat these instructions to your brother officers?” LeHay asked Weisstal.

  “Yes, Major, I did. And I very much regret what has happened. It is truly an unpardonable insult to our hosts. If you will excuse me, gentlemen.” He turned to face Spitz, and shouted a stream of German into his face. Spitz answered angrily in German.

  “I regret, gentlemen, that Lieutenant Spitz refuses to apologize.”

  “He said a good deal more than that,” remarked Vickers with a cold smile. Weisstal looked at him. “I speak a little German, Major,” he explained, still smiling.

  “With your permission, gentlemen, I would like to send Lieutenant Spitz back to Germany. I think we will all be a little more comfortable. Including you,” turning to Spitz and letting fly with some more German.

  “I am sure the Colonel can translate, but to save him the trouble, Lieutenant Spitz is confined to barracks as of now and will return to Germany at the earliest possible opportunity. I have asked him to start packing his kit. Sofort!” he screamed at Spitz, who sullenly brought his hand up and saluted Weisstal using the “German greeting” which had been adopted as the army salute following the Nazi seizure of power. No salute or formality was offered to the Confederates as he walked out of the door that David opened for him.

  “I do apologize once again,” said Weisstal. “I would have you know that not all Germans are like that. We may be a proud race, and we may even be seen as over-particular by others,” he turned and smiled at David. “Yes, I saw your face yesterday, Sergeant, when you were showing us round and I was complaining, but don’t worry about that. I always complain. It is my nature, and you will find that I am not such a bad fellow after all. But we Germans are not all cruel barbarians.”

  “Your Nazis are not typical, then?” sneered Vickers.

  “Not my Nazis, Colonel,” shot back Weisstal. “I am an officer of the Wehrmacht. Some, like Spitz, are Nazis first and then soldiers second. I am a soldier first.”

  “And a Nazi second?” suggested Vickers, with more than a touch of malice.

  “No, Colonel,” emphatically. “Not second. Or third. Or fourth. I cannot count to a number big enough to tell you where I put the Nazis in my life.”

  Major LeHay coughed. “Excuse me, Major Weisstal. May I thank you for your fine work in handling this situation so promptly and smoothly.”

  “Actually, Major,” said Weisstal, “I think our thanks are due to the young sergeant here who did not hesitate to bring this matter to your attention, and who told me quite forcefully that I was to talk to you about it immediately. Well done, Sergeant,” smiling at David. “I do hope, Sergeant, that you will bear me and my men no ill-will for what has happened?”

  “Yes, sir. I mean no, sir,” replied David, blushing.

  “Well, gentlemen, as I said earlier, I shall make sure that Lieutenant Spitz is out of this camp and out of the Confederacy as soon as is practical. I bid you all good day.” He saluted them all, and marched stiffly out.

  “Well done, Sergeant,” said Vickers. “Not many soldiers in the Army of the Confederacy can claim they’ve driven out a German invader.” He laughed.

  “Reckon you can still work with them, Sergeant?” asked Major LeHay. “I guess they’re not all like that Spitz. Weisstal might end up being a good guy after all. Maybe he plays poker?”

  Chapter 18: The War Department, Washington DC, United States of America

  “Do you realize what this means? This means that the Confederacy has the ability, together with Germany, to make airships that could bomb the heart out of this city.”

  “Another batch of Germans just arrived, then, Christopher?” said Henry Dowling. It wasn’t really a question, but just a confirmation of the facts as given by the US agent in place at Savannah.

  “Yes, they have. Only a few of them in this lot who came in on the 12th, but Berlin tells us there’s more to follow. Specialist engineers, a lot of them, coming from Friedrichshafen.” Christopher pronounced the name of the German town with a commendable accent. Henry had been teaching him the basics of German pronunciation with considerable success.

  “What’s at Friedrichshafen, then, Christopher?” Henry already knew, but he wanted to be sure that Christopher was on the ball.

  “Airships. Zeppelins, of course,” answered Christopher. “Do you think that they’re going to start building airships in the Confederacy?”

  “Didn’t Berlin tell us that they’re due to meet up with the Confederate Army’s First Airship Support Regiment?” asked Henry.

  “Oh, that’s right. A support unit doesn’t sound like they’re going to build them in the Confederacy, does it? But they could build them over in Germany, couldn’t they, and deliver them to the Confederacy?”

  “They’re not supposed to be building them in Germany, according to the agreements signed after the last war,” replied Henry. “Mind you, that never seems to stop the blighters, does it? They’re not meant to be building any ships of any size, either. And their motorcar industry is meant to be closely watched, too, but those bloody Nazis have already set up factories in Austria and Czechoslovakia. It wouldn’t surprise me if they started building Zeppelins down in the Confederacy, though they might have a few problems. Anyway, do we know where these Germans are headed?”

  “Not yet. Henry, I’ve discovered something interesting. Can I tell you something you might not know about airships?”

  “Go on.” Henry settled back in his chair. He was more than pleased with the way that Christopher was making himself useful in so many ways.

  “What are Zeppelins filled with?”

  “I thought you were meant to be telling me, not asking me questions, Christopher. All right, then, I’ll bite. Hydrogen, of course.”

  “And what’s the big disadvantage of hydrogen?”

  “It burns. We saw that in London when the Zeppelins came over and bombed us. When they got shot down by our guns and the boys who went up in airplanes at night, they fell out of the sky like fireworks. Hell of a sight, that was meant to be. You could see it all over London, they say.”

  “What if I was to tell you of a gas that didn’t burn that could be used in airships instead of hydrogen?”

  “Go on.”

  “It’s called helium, and although it’s not quite as good as hydrogen at lifting airships, it’s a lot safer. It doesn’t burn.”

  “So why don’t German Zeppelins use it, then?”

  “Because almost the whole of the world’s supply seems to be in the Confederacy.” Christopher grinned.

  Dowling put down the papers he’d been using to fan his face, and stared at Christopher. “Say that again.”

  “The Confederacy contains well over 97% of the world’s known helium supply.”

  “Christopher, do you realize what this means?” Henry sunk his face in his hands for a few seconds, and then looked up. “This means
that the Confederacy has the ability, together with Germany, to make airships that could bomb the heart out of this city, if they’re launched from the Confederacy, and London, if they’re launched from Germany, and which aren’t as vulnerable as Zeppelins.” He thought a minute and looked at Christopher, puzzled. “Christopher, how on earth have you come to know all this?”

  Christopher shuffled his feet and looked down at his desk, obviously embarrassed.

  “Oh, I see,” said Henry, interpreting Christopher’s deference. “You’ve been talking to Virginia?”

  Christopher nodded. “Her family’s in shipping, and wants to get into airships, she says. According to her, her father reckons you could build an airship that could cross from New York to London in half the time of a steamship. But like you say about hydrogen, they reckon it’s too risky for passengers, and folks won’t want to fly on them, and the money from the mail service probably won’t be enough to make it worthwhile to go in for airships. So her father’s been looking at helium instead. There’s a fair bit of helium in South Kansas.”

  “Where does it come from?” asked Henry. The little science he had been taught at his expensive old-fashioned private school had never been his strong point, and he was somewhat unsure of himself when it came to technical matters.

  “Oil wells,” replied Christopher. “And natural gas wells. Some of the best places for helium would seem to be in North Texas round Amarillo way, and South Kansas. It’s something that the prospectors have been testing for when they make their tests.”

  “Oh, it really is an interesting little puzzle, isn’t it? Is this helium stuff difficult to obtain? And do you think the Germans know about it?”

  “I don’t rightly understand it all, but yes, I think it is a mite tricky. Leastways, I don’t think the Confederates are going to be able to do it without some help from the Germans. I would be almost certain that the Germans know where the world’s helium comes from.”

  “Well, well. That is interesting, isn’t it? I think you may just have told me something very important. We have a country that knows how to build airships—there’s no doubt that in the war, the Germans were the experts when we didn’t have a clue. And they’ve made friends with a country that can fill them with a gas that could make them safe. Let’s draw a picture, Christopher. These things could be used for war, but for the moment, let’s assume they won’t be. I’ll explain why in a minute. My guess is that they will use this as a way of getting some kind of publicity for both Germany and the Confederacy. We’ve been told that Jeff Davis is fascinated in airships and airplanes in any case, but if the Germans can build airships that are faster and more convenient than ocean liners, and they only fly to and from the Confederacy, then that shows off Germany’s technical talents, and it brings some money to the Confederacy.”

  “I guess there’s some folks who won’t be too particular about who they travel with, so long as they can get from place to place fast enough.”

  “Absolutely right. I’m sure there are a lot of people on both sides of the Atlantic who won’t care too much about flying with the Nazis or traveling to the CSA.”

  “Do you really think that?” came Virginia’s voice from the other side of the room. Both men started.

  -o-

  “Virginia!” exclaimed Henry. “We never heard you come in.”

  “I’ve only just arrived, and you two seemed busy, so I didn’t want to interrupt you, but then I overheard you talking about something I’m interested in, so forgive my interruption.”

  “You are forgiven,” smiled Henry. “Please join us. Christopher has just been telling me about helium and how it may be useful to both the Germans and the Confederacy. Maybe you can add something to the discussion?”

  “I’ll see if I can make a useful contribution, with pleasure.” She sat in the chair that Christopher held for her, and faced the two men. “Christopher and Henry, you were saying that you thought that people would happily travel on Nazi airships across the Atlantic to the Confederacy. I have to say that I disagree.”

  “With respect, Virginia, what makes you say that?”

  “The USA would never allow travelers to go between the CSA and the USA simply on account of a faster connection to Europe. And I’m willing to bet that the same would apply to Nazi Germany. Those guys are pigs—worse than pigs—you know what they’re doing to Jewish businesses and Jewish people over there?” Her face had become flushed with anger, and her bosom rose and fell most intriguingly. Henry stole a look at Christopher to see if he had noticed. He had. It was Christopher who replied.

  “I hope I’m not speaking out of turn, Henry, but I don’t think that the Europeans will all feel the same way about the Nazis as you do, Virginia. What I found in Britain was that folks felt it was sad that the Nazis had taken over, but no-one reckoned they were going to be there for ever, and the whole of this Jewish business would stop pretty soon in any case.”

  Henry nodded in agreement. “I hate to disagree with you, Virginia, but I have to agree with Christopher on this one. The links between European countries are probably closer than the links between, say, Vermont and Mississippi. We British may not like the Nazis, but we really have nothing against the Germans, even though we just fought a bloody war against them. No more than we have anything against any other European country, anyway.”

  “You Europeans are all crazy.” Virginia laughed, but her face was still serious. “But just supposing Europeans could use this safe airship service between Germany and the Confederacy? What is there they can do in the Confederacy? Not a lot, is there? And like I just said, I don’t see the USA letting travelers in and out through the Confederacy.”

  “A point occurs to me, Virginia,” Henry replied. “Remember that the people using this service are going to be very rich. They’re not going to be the average sort of steamer passenger traveling in steerage, and I think they have enough influence and money with all the governments concerned to make sure that they’ll always get their own way.”

  Virginia nodded. “All right, Henry, I’ll grant that you might be right there. Money does seem to be the magic key that opens frontiers.”

  “We really don’t want anyone to accept the principles of the Confederacy or Nazi Germany, or to take them seriously enough to give them money or to travel there,” said Henry. “My firm belief is that we must make it our job to make sure that the airship service between Germany and the Confederacy never gets off the ground.” He chuckled. “I don’t trust the Nazis and Herr Hitler as far as I could throw them, and I have only a little more respect for Jeff Davis and his crew. But I do think we have a few years of grace before they start to become a menace to the whole world. So, does anyone disagree with me?”

  Virginia and Christopher looked at each other and shook their heads.

  ”Next question,” continued Henry. Where will they put the port for the airships?”

  “The way we looked at it,” replied Virginia, “it has to be flat ground, and it helps to be fairly close to the coast, but not too close, to avoid squalls. Airships use water for ballast, and it’s useful to have water for emergency landings, so a lake or some water of some kind is a good thing to have nearby. It shouldn’t be too hot, but that’s something you can’t avoid in the Confederacy.”

  “And getting there when you want to fly or from there when you arrive? Do you put it close to a big city?”

  “Not close, but easy to get to. A good road, or better still, a railroad, allows passengers to get there easily.”

  “I’d be willing to bet that the Germans have already looked at a map of the Confederacy and decided where they’re going to build their airship terminal,” said Christopher.

  “I’m sure you’re right about that,” replied Henry.

  “So if we could find out where this Airship Support Regiment was located, we would know where they’re going to build the terminal?” Christopher pressed on.

  “Yes, we would, and we will be doing just that. Virginia, we’
re going to have to get one of your people down in Richmond to help us with this. Would you mind arranging a meeting with Mr. Gatt, tomorrow morning if possible?”

  “I’ll arrange it straight away,” she replied, and got up. The two men likewise rose to their feet. “I’m going over to that side of the building now, so it will be easy for me to do. Goodbye for now, the both of you. Thank you for the analysis.”

  “The pleasure’s ours,” said Christopher, smiling. She smiled back at him, and was gone.

  -o-

  “Well, Christopher,” said Henry, slumping back into his chair, and fanning his face with a buff file cover. “How are things in that general direction, if I may enquire?” looking over at Virginia’s empty desk.

  “We’re friends, still,” said Christopher. “I’m playing things very quiet. But I have met her folks and we got on just fine.”

  “Oh?” asked Henry, somewhat taken aback.