THE CASE OF PROFESSOR PENCK

Southland Times, Issue 17476, 3 April 1915, Page 11

THE CASE OF PROFESSOR PENCK

( Front Sp‘-c]a! U..rr 'I" aidetit >. [ I PON lx iN. February IT. | Tile wavs of tli- official gentlemen who | are responsible for looking alter the [ aliens within our nates tw.- are not at all sure ;.s y.-t who they a:- and to wlr.it particular t lovernmcnial department these officials belong I tir.- .lark indeedto the iiv-ruyo Hrilen. Most ot us in re have German aciuaiuiaro's, and many of us know Germans win:. were pleased in look upon, as friends less than sev- r. inunths ago. ft p ixae s us *-x----tfeivie’y why. say. "A" sin uld be to-day he. as tip- I.id lady said, "interred in a consecrat ion camp." whilst "I';" and "< (Mould he permiued to i> - ai large, and to ;o iib.mt their busin-ss nisi in their Old SWeel wav, "If indeed l.eitl- alllAVt.» reside within went i" Itn l .w ll as a •■j.rolitbit'-d area'" lev a ■ tstri.-t whi'-a Is .-appose,! to pave been swept clear of j aP aliens of German. Austrian, or Turk- I isi: i:ui iona!i; y. j in the particular o's 1 have mind I "P." and ale nmn wm. !a. V on div-i ex;, ibit• d such marked an.t i-Hrit ish fe.d-| pi: sole, i -. ieh-c-e by men who hate. ; in ...ns acne i,v. en i. r' ai ■ • . I tie in and| !,a. e tod iic-ir : m.-pi la Ii i y in tcAh' who iiad been mariy twenty j |.< ->• s-id ill I .e IP ills ' basket, and certain; snowed no sians o! pre-t Icrmaii proclcvisies. The German l-imp-ror. as tie loob.-di nent "f ihussian militarism, was indeed, ills special I.■ ■f - noir. and i:is jirincipni i. ason for leaving the Fatherland was some little differ'nee wiri; tin- authorities as to his rights in tilt- mat-er of fre- speech wi;e n di-ens-s;,;e 1 e kaisefs Verbs and deeds. Tim puli’ e m.v. of '■" ills', have Inn! beiier I, ; I .... .a rn .11 tie- man's I alli tml ■ tov.-a: i-• England t'mii li is most v.-e ■ ■ . i '. !! la lad .-111 i; ii i isc! f adrift and me : mm. -.1 :a tel . p: tor to the vvar, -■ a i-a-n.: t an inn a "at Iha i v.hlh G Imm ..fan paid business vSils to their n Hi." h.n 1 .-and tin ir English horifu v :■ for lin.Er ruim-tryiiu-n. \V’;y ‘’lF’ :>n«T “C.” who have i htn-u (■•-! > cr.obh' l-i t.mu-'al lh»*ir anti-Kr.:’.•••) i. mu.iiM ap.* ir.terimi' ft :. n. 1 :t I ! ov. u.} i.: a< • l ira 11 y t ;•m i ; \\ hiis? " ii :i \ e L:. i 1 n lii<- tr.-M ; r>..: ■al' y lor :.riy *.f !'•»>>: i A ii. Lli ' ru-f'’ lias cm,.' V u I . v ;:' - v. !at t'* J, , n e ■ ' •m a- tat-- "!• aha.m. f, s- 1:■ -■ ’ 1'■ •■ -, Til:- i - i sour - Ul.i.t ins 1 1 u- I. . e - v w.-e to c. ii.tiii-'r.

Profes-or Penck is not only a distinguished scientist, but is probably one of the greatest living authorities in Germany on the subject of the British Umpire. If the German Government deI siren full and authentic information about any of the dominions beyond the seas it is to Professor Penck, before any man. that the German Government would most likely apply. lie is Professor of Geography at Berlin University, Director of the institute and Museum for Meereskunde and of the Geographical Institute, and President of the Gesellschaft fur Krdkunde. He has a son in the German navy and another in the German army. He attended last year's meeting of the British Association in Australia .ami he returned with a large party of British scientists on the Moica. During the voyage the Professor did not hesitate to '■barrack for Germany" in spile of the fad that he was travelling on a. British boat and in the company ob icily of British people. lie landed at Tilbury on October 7. In justice to him. be it said, ho would have much preferred to go to Germany at once. Imt he was not allowed to do so. i Mir authorities insisted on detaining | him. and lie cam" to Botulon, where he | roamed at largo under the live-mile re- ! striclhm until tin- beginning of the pre--1 sent year—that is. for a period of throe, I months—- with every opportunity of I pieking up information that might he valuable to the enemy. Then intluontial j pi-rsons excited themselves on his hei half, with the result that ho was allowed to go back to Germany. if Professor Penck was a person who ought not to have been detained, why wtts he iDtained for three months against 1 is will and put in a position in wltici it was finite possible for him to aciiuire information likely to bo of service to the enemy 7 if Professor Penck, on t! e i thcr hand, was a person who ought to have been detained, why was he re;eus"d just when the arguments lor I keeping him in detention were so immensely strengthened? H would bo very inti resting to know wh6 were the inlluential personages who induced the authorities to revise their original judgment as to what was due to national inter',sts, and to send Professor Penck iioni..