LEIPZIG TRIALS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 18340, 2 September 1921, Page 8

LEIPZIG TRIALS

HOSPITAL SHIP CRIME. GRAVE ADMISSIONS BY GERMAN WITNESSES. ; (From the Morning Post Special Correspondent.) LEIPZIG, July 13. Tli© evidence of the first, half-dozen German witnesses taken this morning enables one to form a clear picture of the circumstances in which the Llandovery Castle was sunk, and the fate meted out to the survivors. The U-boat commander, Patzig, had with him certain reports supplied by the German Admiralty on the hospital ships he was likely to encounter. These reports were evidently worthless fictions, obtained doubtless from German spies in America. He believed, for example, that the Llandovery Castie was carrying American flying officers, and pretended to know the exact number aboard. When the submarine rose to tbs surfacs and discovered that the ship she had been following was a hospital ship', as was evident from her luminous markings, Patzig was in tho conning tower with the accused Lieutenant Dithroar and the coxswain Popitz. Popitz declared that both. Dithmar and himself advised him not to torpedo the ship, as she was in tiro free zone, in which, according even to German proclamations, she was safe from attack. Patzig, after some hesitation and consultation with two other officers, Dithmar and Boldt, however, decided to sink the ship,' and two torpedoes were fired by his order, one of which sent the Llandovery Castle to the bo Horn in a few minutes. ■ Patzig, who undoubtedly was a reckless and ambitious officer, knew well that there was only one justification even in the eyes of hia own Government for what he had done. Ho must obtain proof that tho ship was carrying combatant troops or munitions, or both. For hours he scoured the sea in search of the Llandovery Castle boats. Popitz made it clear that several boats with survivors were seen, also lighted rafts with survivors aboard adrift among tho wreckage. At least two or three boats were stopped and officers or men taken aboard the submarine' and examined. , WITHOUT LEAVING A TRACE.

The statements of survivors and second engineer Neys, who speaks English andccted as interpreter, agree 'that all manner of questions were put to tho survivors as to the combatant character of those on board and whether the Llandovery Castle carried munitions. No evidence in support of these assertions oould be extracted from either officers or men, and it is clear that Patzig realised bis position, and after spending an hour in a fruitless quest for evidence, decided to remove all trace of his crime. The order was given for all hands except the officers to proceed to diving stations as if tho submarine was about dive. This she did not do. Patzig and the prisoners Dithmar and Boldt remained on deck, where they must have agreed on a plan of action. For some timo tho submarine cruised about, only the three officers knowing why or in what direction. It was during this time beyond question- that the attempt was made to ram the only boat which' escaped, although German witnesses so far deny all knowledge of this. Then the order was sent below for the best gunner in the ship, a petty officer named Meiater, to com© on deck. Meiater regularly worked tho after gun in action independently, while Dithmar controlled! the forward gun. Shortly afterwards firing began. It was assumed by Popitz and everyone els© that the commander was firing on the Llandovery Castle boats with’the object of destroying ihem and those they carried: This was common gossip in the ship next morning, and it vVas noted that the accused officer, Boldt, had injured his hand during the night, which- was set down to an accident while helping with the gii-ns. Next morning there seems to Mve been a good deal •of depression on ’board because ait hands knew perfectly well what had been done and were uneasy as to the possible consequences. PATZIG AT DANZIG. Patzig, who is now living under the protection of the League of iSations in Danzig, and whosesaddress is perfectly wed known,

some time afterwards coded the crew togetner and told them that they must observe rigid snenoe as to the sinking, .of tke mandovery Castle-. For what hod been done he took full responsibility upon . Jumse-i, ana his conscience before Goa and • his official superiors. All others on board must remember only to keep silent. buck was. the story drugged by the President, Dr bohmidt, irom obviously reluctant witnesses, mainly from the second engineer, Keys, and the coxswain, Popitz, both intelligent men. All witnesses Bui one remembered the firing. This witness is a sailor now serving on a. destroyer. All without exception, remembered the gathering, togedrer of tne ©Few at Patzig’e order, and agreed ras-eto the substance of the appeal ke made to them, it is clear tnat aeapite the admonition of secrecy the facts leaked ou,, and were soon a matter ot gossip in skips’ wardrooms and naval clubs in German ’ ports.

This afternoon was devoted to a Idng series of Uuos of alleged British treachery and cruelty by sea. a. naval exper., Commander baalv.ttohter, mane a ape ecu in winch lie pleaded somewnat luke-warmly for Patz.g, urging that per nap a he Wrought the beam were small Brmsk warships which hud arrived on the scene. SmJil craft were lire submarines deadliest foe. Ho admitted that there was no justification lor firing on helpless men adrnt at sen; also that Patzig falsified the record of lus voyage m order to hide trom his uovernment that a German submarine had sunk the Llandovery Castle. STORY OF A '“Q” BOAT.

An ex-submarine officer, Lieu tenant-cap tain Crompton, toad how he served on D 41, winch, alter the sinking of the Bntisu steamer UTbino, was lured into a trap by a British auxiliary cruiser, which flew the American flag and pretended to be a merchantman, suddenly opening fire and sinking U 41. Ho and tho coxswain, alter the cruiser’s boats refused to pick them up, climbed into a drilling boat. The cruiser saw them and deliberately attempted to rain the boat, which was damaged. They jumped into tho water, but again climbed into tho boat. The cruiser's commander finally relented and) took them aboard. Crompton, who spoke with visible anger, said the cruiser’s name was painted out, but It© had read in a, British naval publication that Tt was tho famous Baralong. • Other witnesses told how at Toulon and Salonika they worked in the harbours as prisoners of war and had seen troops carried on hospital ships and munitions unleaded from them. One man professed to have seen troops in 1917 at Toulon; aboard the Llandovery Castle. Most of these witnesses were unaware that the Army Medical Corps men wore ordinary khaki, and insisted with great vehemence that the men they saw aboard hospital ships were in the British army uniform, even although unarmed. Another professed to have seen on a voyage in the Indian Ocean a British hospital ship pass 500-yard-j away, tho decks of which were crowded with soldiers and no sick men among them. It was evident that the. president paid little attention to these stories, especially the tales told of hospital ships' discharging soldiers and ammunition at Toulon and Salonika, which were particularly vague and unsatisfactory. They serve, however, to help the Nationalist press to bear the shook of realising that tho charges against Patzig’s boat are perfectly true. '