CONVOY ATTACKED

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 96, 21 March 1940, Page 7

CONVOY ATTACKED

GERMAN FAILURE. OFF , SCOTTISH COAST. NO SERIOUS DAMAGE. (From Daventry.) While smoke was still rising from the Island of Sylt following the British air raid, a large number of German bombers attacked a British convoy off the coast of Scotland yesterday. No damage either to the warships or fighter ’planes which engaged the enemy resulted. Only two small neutral ships in the convoy suffered minor damage. 'PLANE OVER SIIETLANDS. LONDON, March 20. A ’plane was driven off from the Shetlands. The air raid warning was enforced for half :vn hour. No bombs were dropped. DUTCH SHIP" MINED. SOME OF CREW RESCUED. Received March 21, 11.20 a.m. LONDON, March 20. The steamer Plmhos (7412 tons), bound for Holland with a cargo of oil, has been mined on the south-east coast. A lifeboat rescued 30 members of the crew covered with crude oil. A steamer picked up 19 others. The first officer and six Chinese members of the crew were killed. The vessel is still afloat. MERCHANT SERVICE. STRAIN ON PERSONNEL. (British Official Wireless.) Received March 22, 10.20 a.m. RUGBY, March 20. Captain Coombs, general secretary of the Navigators and Engineer Officers’ Union, in a speech in London, emphasised the great physical strain to which personnel of the Merchant Service were subjected in the war, especially in the sailing in convoys. A collision, he said, was even in peacetime the greatest fear of the master B and the risk was higher when it was necessary topsail near other ships, often zigzagging and sometimes at night. He paid a special tribute to the Lascar crews of whoso bravery and endurance, he said, the officers spoke in terms of the highest praise. CONTRABAND CONTROL. On March 19 there were 29 neutral ships in British contraband control bases. Twelve had been there four days or less. They included 15 Dutch, five Belgian, two Italian, and one each Danish, Eirean, Finnish, Norwegian, Portuguese, Greek and Swedish. During the week ended March 16 tlie contraband committee considered 77 cargoes which had arrived since March 9 and 24 outstanding from the previous week. In 44 cases the entire cargoes were released. READY TO SAIL. LARGE BRITISH LINERS. NEW YORK, March 20. Smoke is pouring from the funnels of the Queen Mary and the Mauretania, and it is believed that they are sailing to-day under sealed orders. The Mauretania, is loading sand ballast. The Queen Mary’s luxurious furnishings are being dumped on the pier. She is provisioning heavily. Police have been ordered to keep a sharp watch on the Hudson River for mines or bombs disguised as debris. They have also been ordered to report immediately low-flying aircraft. The Queen Mary’s crew are being issued with tropical uniforms. An Ottawa report says that the War Supply Board revealed that it was converting the liners Prince Robert and Prince David into armed merchant cruisers at a cost of 1,000,000 dollars, and had ordered 7302 motorvehicles at a cost of over 9,000,000 dollars. A British liner which the Germans six weeks ago claimed to have machine-gunned and sunk has arrived safely at Table Bay (Capetown).