E-text prepared by Christine Bell and Marc D'Hooghe
(http://www.freeliterature.org)
World War Series
THE GUNS OF EUROPE
By
JOSEPH A. ALTSHELER
Author of "The Guns of Bull Run", "The Texan Triumph", etc.
Illustrated by Charles Wrenn
D. APPLETON AND COMPANY
NEW YORK AND LONDON
1915
THE CIVIL WAR SERIES
The Star of Gettysburg
The Guns of Bull Run
The Scouts of Stonewall
The Guns of Shiloh
The Sword of Antietam
The Rock of Chickamauga (In preparation)
THE WORLD WAR SERIES
The Guns of Europe
The Hosts of the Air
The Forest of Swords
THE YOUNG TRAILERS SERIES
The Young Trailer
The Riflemen of the Ohio
The Forest Runners
The Scouts of the Valley
The Free Rangers
The Border Watch
THE TEXAN SERIES
The Texan Star
The Texan Scouts
The Texan Triumph
Apache Gold
A Soldier of Manhattan
The Quest of the Four
The Sun of Saratoga
The Last of the Chiefs
A Herald of the West
In Circling Camps
The Wilderness Road
My Captive
FOREWORD
"The Guns of Europe" is the first of three connected romances, of which"The Forest of Swords" and "The Hosts of the Air" are to be respectivelythe second and third, dealing with the world war in Europe.
It was the singular fortune of the author to be present at the beginningof this, the most gigantic struggle in the history of our globe. He wasin Vienna the day Austria-Hungary declared war upon Servia, thus settingthe torch that lighted the general conflagration. Returning westward, hereached Munich the day Germany declared war upon Russia. He remained inGermany nearly a month, having witnessed in turn the Austrian and Germanmobilizations, and then arrived in England in time to see the gatheringof the British Empire's armed hosts.
He was also, upon his return, in Quebec when the greatest colony of theBritish was rallying to their support. Such an experience at such anextraordinary crisis makes ineffaceable impressions, and through hischaracters, the author has striven his best to reproduce them in thesethree romances.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I. THE SISTINE MADONNA
CHAPTER II. THE THUNDERBOLT
CHAPTER III. THE REFUGE
CHAPTER IV. THE THRILLING ESCAPE
CHAPTER V. THE FIGHT IN THE BLUE
CHAPTER VI. ABOVE THE STORM
CHAPTER VII. THE ZEPPELIN
CHAPTER VIII. THE FRENCH DEFENSE
CHAPTER IX. THE RIDE OF THREE
CHAPTER X. THE DRAGONS OF THE AIR
CHAPTER XI. THE ARMORED CAR
CHAPTER XII. THE ABANDONED CHÂTEAU
CHAPTER XIII. ON THE ROOF
CHAPTER XIV. TH