THRILLS AT BERGEN

Evening Star, Issue 23718, 28 October 1940, Page 7

THRILLS AT BERGEN

AMERICAN SEAMEN'S EXPERIENCES To be surrounded by German men-of-war while berthed in Bergen ru’d wondering what was nex* going to happen, was the thrilling experience of Captain William Schutz, ol the steamship Charles dl M'Cormack. of San Francisco. The vessel sailed from New York on March 23, bound for Narvik, Norway. One week out of New York, Captain Oscar C. Orsland died and •First-officer Selin.?, a naturalised United States citizen, born in Germany, took command and finally brought her safely back to San Francisco. Tha highlights of Captain Schutz’s experiences were related at San Francisco, recently: “ The freighter arrived ■in Bergen the afternoon of April 3. Early next morning, we were awakened by tha sound or firing. Later we learned the Germans had taken the port. A German destroyer came into the harbour and docked ahead of our steamer. By evening 20 or 30 German warsh.pa had entered the port. The cruiser Bremse made fast to the starboard side of the Charles R M'Cormaek. I spoke to the commander of the warship, who stated that his orders word to protect us and we could shift to another place of safety, if we desired. Shortly 'after this the Allies raided the harbour from the air. One plane, seeing the cruiser, headed toward ua but turned away when she saw tho American flag. “At 7 o’clock the next morning, there was a more severe raid. Again anti-aircraft guns were blazing all over the harbour and another raiding piano made for the cruiser, whose shells and bullets, arching diagonally over tho freighter,'shot away-part of our after rigging. No uof our seamen was injured. but all of us breathed a sigh of relief when we started for a safer place three hours later. First, we wens 24 miles up the Sorfjord to Vaksdal, where we stayed five days until tho Norwegians warned the ship to move still farther to avoid the advancing Germans. We went 30 miles north to Stammes. We had been there three weeks when on May 5 two German torpedo boats entered the harbour and placed a German commander on board who made us take onr ship back to Vaksdal. “ We remained at Vaksdal until May 21, when we were taken back to Bergen with an escort of four German mine-sweepers. In Bergen the Germans, using Norwegian labour, unloaded our ship and confiscated her 5.000 tons of general cargo. We lay there 12 days. “ One order for the ship to niovs was delivered in the middle of tho night by a courier who said he cams from Norse army headquarters. " I insisted 1 would not move without advice from the American consulate Ifi was a lucky thing that I did so. Had I ordered the ship out we would havn backed into a newly-laid mine field that would have sent us to kingdom come,” Captain Schutz said. “ I d.dn't find out about the mines until tha next day and 1 , also found that tha order did not come from the Norwegian army.” , An engraved watch was presented ta Captain Schutz, for his plucky conduct in the face of the perils described*