WIRELESS SPIES

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 859, 31 December 1929, Page 13

WIRELESS SPIES

SECRET OF KABUL OUTWITTING of a king * ow that Nadir Khan has been profl»inied King of Afghanistan, after j# fcartng the usurper and ex-bandit-Affilr ®a7ha Sachao, I am able to disClo,e most closely guarded of all secrets which have made the Ij, r - a hot-bed of conspiracy since s Amanullah abdicated last JanuCecil Rica in the "Daily J?”' orR k leaving Kabul, the capital, GovoV “ opin S to influence foreign tj. anie nts against Nadir, flooded ran- 011< l with stories of appalling , an< * sabotage committed irnh t !‘ y after the fall ol the citadel I “ a<l b ®en his last stronghold. able i° state that apart from c lis tM fi fmishes there were no seriof this kind in Kabul, toca JI 18 * 1 an< l other foreign Legadt, is £ * re not been attacked. The It ' n a more peaceful state than * titce during the past 10 months Camel-Driver Decoys One nf tv. Sathr, ~ l be greatest mysteries of iihia, k 7 ampa ign has been his astou'’Uponert 0, n e^se { b e plans of his ' B acha controlled the only U|»t rmhr B ' at *° n ’. an< * it was obvious fern** ■ s J“ c b information would be “ be considered advisable.

Agents travelling between Peshawar and Kabul, disguised as camel-drivers, water-carriers and carpet traders, supplied much information, but it often proved incorrect. Nevertheless all Bacha’s big moves have been known to his enemies. Bacha never discovered liow the news leaked out. If he had done so Kabul would be without three brave Pathans. The Legations have been guarded by Indians, chiefly Pathans. The messengers, who in former days wore a scarlet uniform with gold facings, but are now attired in sackcloth, remained behind to watch the interests of their foreign employers. They were unsuspected by Bacha’s adherents, for they apparently ignored developments in the city and elsewhere, and their easy life, lounging in the Legation compounds, contrasted strangely with the activities which have marked recent daily life in Kabul. Secret Code Nevertheless, three of these loungers were fully alive to what was going on. They had a private code and were in almost daily communication with a mysterious personage in Peshawar. Reports of all Bacha s schemes w ere flashed from a wireless transmitter hidden in Kabul. The messages were picked up in Peshawar, and a quaint old hermit, who occupies a mud hut in an indescribably dirty alley, followed every development. He was, of course, acting on behalf of Nadir Khan, who thus learned the disposition of Bacha’s troops. It was largely ,due to the knowledge thus obtamed..

Oliver i)ein . s 7 -Mociestna n .87 Dancing Star 8 7 Tunbridge . S 7 1 that Nadir's spectacular dash on Kabul was successful. The three men are still in Kabul. For 10 months they carried out their dangerous duties without being suspected, although on several occasions their apparatus was almost discovered. Hungry City Kabul is a derelict city, occupied by poverty-stricken and hungry inhabitants. Trade has ceased'; food is excessively dear, and money is scarce. The Stgte treasuries are empty, the granaries are exhausted, and the approach of winter heralds famine. If Nadir Khan is to succeed he will have to arrange adequate food supplies before the snows isolate Kabul from India, Persia and Russia.