GERMAN PIRATES LAND IN FIJI.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 14450, 9 November 1917, Page 5

GERMAN PIRATES LAND IN FIJI.

EXCITEMENT IN THE ISLANDS.

rasion. The military are under arms, and search parties have been organised.

Von Luckner claims thiat he had not taken any lives, although he sayj? the life of one boy from a captured vessel waa lost accidentally through a falling spar. He declares; he has sunk 23 ships, five m the Pacific. In his boat were found numerous charts and logs belonging to other vessels, but the Government has not permitted any information to be disclosed m t.his lUiection.

Tho crews of the vessels sunk m the Pacific von Luckner says, he has landed, and h<is. it is understood. uiaiie known the locality tn th*o Governor.

A story is told that the party called nt one of the Cook Islands, where thoy obtained provisions, for- which they paid m gold, and insisted on having a receipt. As a matter of fact, there were some hundreds of pounds m gold m the boat, and the, usual excellent cigars and champagne. *

THE REAL STORY OF THE "BLUFF."

SYDNEY, Oct. 31. On Friday evening, September 21, there landed, under armed guard, at the Queen's Wharf,' Suva, six Gei-mans, two being officers m naval uniform. They had been captured that morning on the northern side of Wakaya Island, between Viti Levu and Vanu Levu. They were then m a 20-foot power boat, armed to the teeth, with machine guns, rifles, and a supply of bombs, and their capture was the result of a brilliant piece of bluff on the part of tho officers concerned— Sub-Inspector H. C. Hills, and Inspector A. E. Howard. On the Thursday word had been brought by a half-caste into Levuka that a party of strange Europeans were at Wakaya, that they refused to talk *?: lth 5 hatjyes md had^taken. possessionthere. Sub-Inspector Hills, of the Fijian' constabulary with a party of Fijians, at once set out from Levuka m a cutter. Bad weather, much to their good fortune, as it- turned out, compelled them to turn back. ' By this time the steamer Amra (A.U.S.N. Company), the inter-island steamer, a boat of about 300 tons, put m an apupearance at Levuka, and; she was requisitioned. Early on Friday morning she came to Wakaya, and as she made for the entrance the strange boat could be seen making for the passage. A 22-ft boat was lowered, and into this went Sub-Inspector Hills and his party of Fijians, six m number. Inspector A. JS. Howard had joined the 'party by now.. The only weapons they had were an ordinary Colt revolver m the possession of the sub-inspector, while the inspector had an automatic pistol. The Fijians were not armed, although they were m the uniform of the constabulary. They made straight for the strange boat and cut across it 3 bows.

Sub-Inspector Hills stood up and challenged them. By this time he saw they were m German uniform.

"I call on you 'to surrender, m the name of the King," ho said. He made no attempt to draw his revolver, which was still at his hip. "Who are you?" came the response, m excellent English. "What do you belong to?"

"I call on you to surrender," was the quick reply. "I do not wish to parley." After some hesitation, the. reply came. The Germans, for such they turned out to be, surrendered.

They then suggested they should tow the other boat to the Amra, but SubInspector Hills was taking ho "chances. After accepting the leader's automatic revolver and disarming the rest of the men, he ordered them into his boat, all but one, whom he retained to run the engine — a motor engine. The other boat, with the German prisoners m it, was then towed to the Amra, now lying near byWhen they boarded the Amra it became apparent to Germans they had been bluffed. Tliere was not a weapon of any kind, much less a gun. The only weapons were those m the possession of the two officers, while their boat was practically chock-full of weapons and munitions.

"We did not come this distance to be captured by an unarmed, boat," ex^ claimed the leader.

They were brought to Suva, and disembarked at night on the wharf. They marched through the streets, whach were crowded with Europeans, Indians, and Fijians.' For a time all went well, until an Indian called out, m tones of disgust, "Baby-killers," and for a time it was' bedlam let loose, Indians and Fijians giving vent to their thoughts. Tho leader claims to be Count von Luckner. He declares he waß m the battle of Jutland, and escaped from Germany m the See Adler, which was operating off Brazil it will he remembered. His story is that his vessel caught fire m the Pacific, and they had travelled 2000 miles m the boat after abandoning the See Adler. He says, it is stated, there are other boats from the vessel, but will sive no idea as to where they are. *< At the time of writing, there are rumors that another party is at large somewhere on Viti Levu, and the Governor has issued a proclamation as to m-