MAN IN THE BOX

Evening Star, Issue 15729, 17 February 1915, Page 2

MAN IN THE BOX

GERMAN LIEUTENANT'S PLUCK. The cable informed us at the time of the extraordinarily daring attempt to escape to Germany by a young German lieutenant interned at Dorchester. He

had been enclosed in a wooden box. equipped with food, drink, and a supply of oxygen, and was only discovered as he was actually being put on board a liner bound for Potter-dam. The ' Manchester Guardian' of .December 14 gives the following details :—The box was part of a quantity of baggage which bad accompanied a party of aliens from the Dorchester concentration camp. These men. all over military age. were sent under a military escort to Tilbury for shipment on the steamship Batavia V. to Rotterdam, whence they would have been able to return to Germany. From Tilbury station they were convoyed to the snip by the ferrv boat Katherine, and it was when the luggage was being transferred that the startling discovery was made. There was nothing unusual in the appearance of the box to excite suspicion. It was an ordinary deal case, used for tho packing of matches, and bore, the usual inscription, " Non-poisonous safety matches." with a diamond in the middle. The case was not more than 3ft 6in in length, about 6in less in width, and about the same depth. It was fastened with a small, cheap padlock and a wooden pin attached to a piece of wire. A portion of a label on the top bore the words " Via Hambro." The case was placed with the rest of the luggage in the goods van of -the train until Tilbury station was reached, and was then sent down a six-foot chute to the ferry boat. An observer noticed that it turned over in its passage and fell rather heavily on the bottom of the level, but no sound betrayed that it contained a living occupant. On the ferry piles of other lug-

gage were placed on top of it, and it re-;i-"i:ied in this position until the Batavier V. was reached. It was then taken along to the gangway of the liner by two members of the latter's crew.

On account of its weight and the difficulty of handling it. these men rolled the case over and over. They had just reached the gangway with the box when, to their astonishment, the lid at the side gave -way. and the hear! and arm of a man protruded. " Man inside." they shouted, and the-rnntuin of the Katherine and other members of the crew rushed up. to find that there was, indeed, a j man in the box. He was speedily taken out. and for a time, owing to the doubledup position in which he had been for so many hours, he was unable to stand. He was weak and dazed, but after a time recovered and rubbed his head vigorously as if be had been severely knocked 'about. Captain Jerviss. of the Katherine, questioned him, but he shook his head as if to indicate that he could not speak English. The captain, however, persisted, and the man then replied in very good English. Tie stated that his name was Otto Koehn. and told a remarkable story. He said he sailed from America in the Potsdam to return to his regiment in Germany, of which he was a lieutenant. The ship was captured and taken to Southampton, and there he was placed under arrest and interned at- Dorchester. He added that ho had been in the- box nearly 15 hours, and declared that he got in himself and could have got out himself. Captain Jerviss took him in a ferry boat to Gravesond, where he was handed over to the, police to be detained until the military authorities took him in charge. The box in which he was making his adventurous journey was closely examined, it contained a blanket, two champagne bottles filled with water, a bottle of meat extract, and about a dozen banana* and banana skins. In two corners straps had been fixed for the man's arms, and when the box broke open one of his arms was still, suspended, while the other sling had given way. The most interesting thing in the .box, however, was a rubber pillow filled with oxygen. The air space being so limited, the. oxygen was doubtless intended to revive the prisoner had fa-intness attacked him. Tt did not appear to liavo been used. How the fugitive got into the box is at present unexplained. His statement that he entered it without as-r sistance is hardly credible, as it is considered impossible that the padlock could have been put on from the inside. Ho was a young fellow about 23 years old, S sft llin or 6ft- in height, with a fair i moustache, and was dressed in a dark I lounge suit.