SUBMARINE AND PIRATES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19833, 31 December 1927, Page 6

SUBMARINE AND PIRATES.

i FIGHT IN BIAS BAY. CARGO STEAMER CAPTURED. g NAVAL ORDER NOT OBEYED. ENGINE "WRECKED BY SHELL. [FROM OCR OWN CORRESPONDENT.] SHANGHAI. Nov. 4. The steamer Irene, a vessel of some 1300 tons, belonging to the China Merchants' Steam Navigation Company, and flying the Chinese flag, was attacked by pirates while on a voyage from Shanghai to Araoy, on October 19. At eight o'clock in the morning, ss the captain of the Irene, Captain Johnsen, a Norwegian, together with the second officer and second engineer were having breakfast, a number of pirates who had shipped as passengers, suddenly appeared in the dining saloon. They shot the saloon steward in the chest and overpowered the officers, and, having gained possession of the ship, .they forced the officers to alter the ship's course and steer for their stronghold at Bias Bay. ' The pirates gave orders for the ship to slow down, as they did not wish to reach the vicinity of Bias Bay in daylight. The pirates broke open the ship' 3 safe and robbed the officers and passengers oi their belongings, the rest of the time, with tae exception of those who acted as guards, they spent in feasting and gambling, the Irene finally arriving off Bias Bay about 8 o'clock on the •evening of Thursday, October 20. The British submarino L 4, which had teen carrying out exercises at sea in the .vicinity of Bias Bay, had anchored for the night under the Ice of the land, when her commander, Lieutenant F. G. C. Halahan observed a steamer—afterwards proved to be the Irene—entering the bay without lights. Lieutenant Halahan suspecting that the vessel had been captured by pirates, flashed the message, "Stop Immediately." As the steamer did not stop the submarine switched on a searchlight and fired a blank round. This having no effect, the L 4 fired several shots across .the bows of the steamer. A Shell in the Engineroom. As the shots across the bow failed to make the steamer heave to, the commander of L 4 commenced firing with the idea of disabling the steamer, and landed a four-inch shell in the engineroom, completely wrecking the engines. It afterwards became known that Captain Johneon, who was on the bridge of the Irene, navigating t'ao ship, under a pirate guard, .when the L 4 signalled the vessel to stop, ■immediately rang down to the engineroom to stop the engines, but the pirates in the engineroom forced the chief engineer, with pistok pointed at his head; jto keep the engines running. The shell, . ;wbich burst in the killed one (of the pirates, "iiho was on. the point of shooting the chief engineer. Fortunately, the latter, though, badly stunned, was not Seriously injured. The explosion of the sihell set the Irene ton fire, and the pirates, who by this time ''twere in a state ol panic, lost all control iof the viesseL The six European offi:'cars, together with a number of the on board, leapt into the. sea. The officers and several of the Chinese were ; rescned by the crew of the submarine, ■fThft first Chinese picked up—a pirate—•■refused to be rescued and had to be if'.pnßfjd oil board the submarine in the Kbight of a rope. Ditlnult Rescue Work* Lieutenant Halahan then brought the iloc ;;side the burning vessel and proceeded to take off the crew and passenger still remaining on the Irene. A heavy (gwfc I was running at the time, thus rendering the work of rescuing those on •hoard the blazing ship extremely difficult, rrhe fact that by 10 p.m. all on board had been safely rescued from the ship, ■which was® now blazing fore and aft, speaks volumes for the seamanship and Kalian try displayed by Lieutenant HalaJian and his crew. Earlier in the evening the L 4 had seat fe wireless message to Hongkong, and the British naval authorities immediately despatched the sloop Magnolia, the destroyer Stormcloud, and a tug from the naval yard to Bias Bay, in order to render assistance. The cruiser Delhi, which had been carrying out exercises in the ;vi':ini£y of Bias Bay, also picked up the •wireless messages concerning the piracy ' )and proceeded immediately to the spot •where she picked up 12 survivors from the Water. The L 4, after taking everyone off the burning ship, proceeded to Hongkong, with 220 survivors on board, packed like sardines, arriving early the following morning. The Chinese steward, who had been shot in the chest, and several others, with minor fnjuries, were sent to hospital, .while seven Chinese among those rescued, who were suspected of being pirates, wsre taken into custody. It is considered probable that several pirates were killed on board the Irene by the bursting shell, Serished in the flames or were drowned, here was a grand total, inclusive of officers, crew and passengers, of 258 persons on board the Irene at tho time, and according to the latest figures 14 of the passengers are missing. Problem for Insurance Experts. The Magnolia and Stormcloud on l&rrival at Bias Bay proceeded to pump rwater into the blazing steamer, but the fire had too strong a hold, all efforfs to ■extinguish tho flames proved fruitless, and the ill-fated steamer sank the following {afternoon. The loss of the Irene has created an interesting problem for marine insurance ex-, perts, who have to decide tho actual cause pf the loss of the vessel and whether the vessel is covered by her insurance policy. !A;s the Irene was flying the Chinese flag and belongs to a Chinese company, there is also the question of the violation of China's rights ia her own territorial ijvatcrs.