SPIES IN PERSIA.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LII, Issue 16098, 11 December 1915, Page 2 (Supplement)

SPIES IN PERSIA.

AS SHELL-COLLECTORS.

Major Mxtrpht, in a lecture at the Indian United Service Institution on the Gulf Expedition (writes a correspondent at Calcutta), painted a sinister picture of the German methods of employing pseUdoeconomic enterprises in order to promote political objects in the Far East.

When the Expeditionary Force reached Bahrein on its way to the Shat-el-Arab, Herr Wonckhausa, a German agent, was in his office in the act of signing a letter which proved on examination to be a detailed statement of the composition of the British force, addressed to the German Consul at Bushire, and among his papers was found another report, giving accurate details of General Delamain's force, which had been despatched to the German officials at Basra and Bushire four hours earliet.

Herr Wonckhauss's firm had a remarkable rise. In 1896 Herr Wonckhauss arnvedl at Lingah and started buying shells oil the i>each, his entire possessions consisting of three wooden boxes on which he slept at night. In 1901 he moved to Bahrein, and in 1906 be was appointed the agent of the Hamburg-Amerika Line, which then came to the Gulf for the first time. In 1914 luxuriously furnished offices were established at Basra. Bushire, Bahrem, Lingah, Muhammerah, and Ahwaz, the agents being well paid. The partners became rich, and large sums were devoted to the Bagdad Railway. Everyone asked whence the money came, as it was certainly not profit. "In 15 years, ' said Major Murphy, "this romantic shell-collecting business had become a vast, widespread enterprise. It is not too much to say that the aims of this firm were firstly political and secondly economic and that the representative! were all trained intelligence agents "