WAR IN THE PACIFIC

Evening Post, Volume LXXXVIII, Issue LXXXVIII, 12 September 1914, Page 8

WAR IN THE PACIFIC

CAPTURE OF A TRAMP THE WALKURE AND THE GTJNBOAT. News has reached Wellington that the French have made at least one capture in the Pacific, and the incident has peculiar interest for New Zealand, inasmuch as the vessel which has been seized was the German turret steamer Walkure. This vessel was recently in New Plymouth, and being of considerable tonnage she was officially welcomed by local authorities, who were naturally jubilant lat so large a vessel using the port. The | fact was filed for reference to be used |as a knock-down argument to future critics of the port of New Plymouth as a port. _ Then the Walkure came down to Wellington to be completely overhauled as to her boilers, and excellent work was done by a local engineering firm, and in a remarkably short time, considering the nature and extent of the repairs. At Wellington the Walkure shipped some ten men, all British subjects, one being a deck hand, the others being firemen, and trimmers. So she steamed away from this port to the Pacific to Makatea Island in short, for guano or superphosphates. She arrived there all well, and had started to load ; had. indeed, got a large quantity on board. Then the war broke out. This was known in Papeete, the capital of Tahiti, but not in Makatea, 300 miles away. The Walkure went on loading, oblivious of what was going on in Europe. The French gunboat Zele tEen went up to capture the German tramp. This was effected without any difficulty. If the Walkure had had steam up at the time she could have steamed^ away from the Zele in a very little whiie, for she steams nine knots an- hour against the Zele'e five. But no resistance was offered, and the officers and engineers were ordered by the French to take the Walkure to Papeete. This order was earned out under the muzzles of the revolvers of the Zele's' guard put aboard the German ship and stationed on deck and in- the engineroom. Seeing how matters stood, the Germans told the crew that they could have as much beer as they liked rather than it should fall into the hands of the French. The British portion of the crew revelled in good German beer which had come to them in such liberal and unexpected quantities. Some of them were so overcome by the effects of this unwonted generosity of the Germans that they did not_ care about turning to when it was their watch on deck. Some were sound asleep at the time. The Frenchmen stood no nonsense from Britishers or any one else, but whipped out their revolvers and at the point of them ordered the men to their posts. The comedy of the proceeding was the speed of the prize ship compared with that of her captor, for on the way down to Papeete the Walkure had to frequently slow down to enable the Tele to catch up to her. The arrival of the little gunboat and her mammoth prize into Papeete gave great joy to the French there. The Germans were all taken off the ship and put on to the quarantine island at Papeete as prisoners. There they remain. The British subjects were sent on to Wellington by the Moana, 'which arrived in Wellington last night. Their passages were paid, but their wages are still owinf. They arrive here penniless. Mr. JK. Focke, who was German Consul, has brought the case of the seamen under the notice of the Mayor, with a view to , their case being taken up and' relieved.