THE EMDEN.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 11506, 30 September 1915, Page 8

THE EMDEN.

! sur.ivoes bad :aoshc adventures This 's the story ot the German cru'.'.er Ennli-n (>a\* an American - i paper', ft begins at Tsing-'la<:> :m<! j ends ut Constant nvople. There is ad- | ventnro in it; ilmre is fighting ui \} ; | there is bravery, daring. risk \ lory. Neither insult' itor outside ei fie- j Uon, it- is reasonable if" t>aj, is tnejv- | a story that equals it. tor two moo? lih j ' tho Krnden, " tho scourge of _ tho I'"*- j cilia," i-ailed tlio scan, destroying Brit- j i : h commerce ;in<l dodging scores of j pursuers. At last she was herseit do- j st roved, hut some lil'ty ot her fiurvsr- ; ors, by luck that teems miraculous. , commando,"red a. Fchoouor mid escaped. ( When Japan joined tho Allies the 1 lOmdon was lying comfortably at Tsing- 1 Tno. With her iverc two rumoured j cruisers, two light cniiserx, two tor- f pedq boat-, and five gunboats. Tho ( crr.isers slipprd away and went to tho fV'Ufh Atlantic, which is another story. The five gunboats and tho two destroy- f era wore sunk by the Anpflo-Japane.se' g fleet. The Emden escaped. t She stole out of Tsimr-Tao with a r horrcshoe of gord lnck hanging at her Foremast and began a two months' cruise of excitement, adventure and do- ' struetion. Her commander was C<ip- 1 tain Von Muller. Forty-four men. four j officers and one surgeon arrived safely at Constantinople in May. The others either died of illness or were killed. Somo were made prisoners and ore now in concentration camps in England. The two months' cruise exist Groat Britain 70.000 tons of shipping. The cargoes destroyed were valued at many millions of dollars. The story begins at Kiao-ehow. There occurred the adventure, and there, perhaps, the Enid en's command- J er performed the neatest of a great f many bits of trickery. A heavily ar- J monred Japanese cruiser was lying out- 1 side madness to attempt an encounter with. ? this warship. Lone; before the Em- 1 den's guns could have been brought t within ranee the Japanese would have ' pounded tho German cruiser to bits. ' FOOLS THE JAPANESE. c Down camo the German man-of-war , e ensign and ui> went the British white t ensign in its place. Up went, as well, a dummy funnel, making of the Em- | den a four-funnelled cruiser. Smudge was burned under this funnel to aceentuate the reality of its appearance, i And as the Emden sailed jauntily past the Japanese cruiser, her crew lined up r at the rail shouting British cheers, £ there was not the ghost of a suspicion in the nund of the Japanese commander, who ordered a salute and sent forth a message of goodwill to the escaping enemy. From that time on the Emden roved the high seas, doing as much damage I as opportunity afforded, which was a ! good deal, and always on the lookout , to do more. _ It was early in September that the cru'ser stood off Madras, when a sailor volunteered the information, I gained from a previous residence on the \ island,_ that a number of oil tanks ; stood just within the harbour. A decision was made quickly by the Em- \ den's captain. Nightfall came. The cruiser slipped into the harbour, open- ? ed fire on the oil tanks, and was away ! again before the shore batteries got into action. Several million gallons of I oil were destroyedIt was a month later, about October ? 10. after several more commence ships 1 had been sunk, that tho Emden camo j within sight of the British Island f Diego Garcia. There were only thirty- 1 five or forty Europeans on this island . and somo three or four hundred nu~ * tives. It is situated in the Indian k Ocean about halfway between the coast of Africa and Sumatra. The Emden was badly in need of provisions, so in tho hope that news of the European war had not yet reached this out-of-the-way place, Captain von Mullet sailed his cruiser into the little haxhour. Luck was still with the Emden. The old, white-haired man who acted as Governor of the island not only knew nothing of tho war but had not yet heard of the death of Pope Pius. A small crew sent ashore to establ'sh friendly relations with the British inbab tants, and meanwhile the Governor paid a visit to Captain von Muller, 1 extending to him the courtesies of the island. There were plenty of provisions i to be had, and tor three days the Emden's crew stored away new suppi es while the cantain and the Gover- ; nor became the closest of friends. , ACTING WITH THE BRITISH." As it wits necessary to mako some ' explanation of the presence of a German cruiser without supplies in that ; vicinity the Brit sh inhabitants were , told that the Emden was participating < in joint manoeuvres with a British squadron. Late in October the Emden approached Penang. The dummy funnel . was again put in place and as the cruiser nearui the harbour a Russian cruiser and a large number of small merchantmen were sighted. At a distr.uce of seven hundred yards, the Ru»sion crew having no suspicion of the , Emdeivs identity, two torpedoes were 1 fired. Tho warship was sunk before ! she had a chance to fire a shot. Several ; of the smalt merchantmen were then sunk by shell fire and the Emden sailed array seeking new adventure. Only thirty-fire miles from Penang the French destroyer Mousquet wasighted and approached. The dummy fur ijc! and British ensign still acted an effectual disguiso and at a range of onlv .'i*)oo yards the Emden discharged a salvo. Tho Mousquet sank within a few minutes. Th rty-frve of her ciew were rescued by the Emden. At this moment, another destroyer was sighted making rapidly for the Emden j from thdirection of Penang. Full 1 '■steam ahead, was put on and with thw j aid of a tropical rain storm the Emden j escaped. During the next two weeks several merchantmen weto sunk. On November 9 Coeos Island was s'g'ntod and Captain von Muller ordered a detail of men ashore to destroy the British w ire less station. Tho men domed British uniforms. Apparently a British cruiser was expected and the Emden was mistaken for her. The lauding party was thus able to round up a small British force and destroy the stat'on without so much as firing a shot. Scarcely bad this work been performed when- the diriek of the Edinen':-. win t.!e gave warning that there was danger near by and the landing party hastened to th° small boats at. the shcre. But the Emden did not wait. As she steamed rapidly out of the harbour, leaving some fifty of hei men and two officers, a large cruiser was s.en approaching on tbf horizon. MOVER IS AFLAME. The warships went into action immediately and at. tiie end ot an hour the, Emden was en to be on lire. Sho turned and tied, evidently hoping to run ashore on an island fifteen miles away, but nas de«roved and Captain von Muller and the Mir\ ivnr.s on board were made prisoners. The man on shore, after a twenty minutes conference, ooniri)aiidoorcd ii ,seventy-Urn schooner, the Ayesha, a"d prepared to flee. ft was soon s en thai the warship which had de- • stroyed ihe Emden-- the Australian i endser Sydney - •v.-jv; making away in j pur n-t of nuother .s]i:p. j For e month tlio Emden Jf.. the name j giveo i.o the .V.Vtsi:,;, roome<l the Indian j (letan eluding her many puixmera. j Finaily she managed to drop anchor ' >nfei.v at li-.g l.daiid, a small Dutch f poi-si'.,!i off the coast of Sumatra. There a well to do German resident supplvd provision* and amnuinitioxi, and 1 ii Dtcamber 'J2. one and sx'-ven mm v.lio v>ere ill being loft beij'nd. the Emden 11. set- out- again. A -v *!'!>hiter a eoa.stiag steamer jv, as siget-d. . c -' ii<• ,-bowed tle.> dcrnian fla.g. And h jv, (»-i iiap <-e<-urred one ief ; e i;• ( ,: >;e ihat t/ie ! K:rd.-::\ 1.-j.-'h/.g ' I'!t■ ; ,!,.aint r j \v;i I ;.*• (<-. 4 - \ra:- at >i:-.v;a----j j,j >« t dien f'- e «;r ! - ~ a! . '.. Siie !i:.d n> <■'■: ; ■ r bv iho Get mun a'tthcriaii'.i kui-i>.-d v , ■ 1 h cuai ioi the Lui-

den. Since that time slir- had been •ewisins h-.i-e and then.. e-eaping capture bp mere pood l'ortnn«\ waiting for an opportunity to . 1 i\"i'r- her cjirgo. Hit s ! Eriidend T>. v■:ls. j rniued'atoly deserted and sunk, and the landing corps. safely on hoard the Choiring. started for the Arabian coast. Although ilriti-.h warships were on tlni look run. everywhere /or the Emden's landing corps. the Ohoising managed to cross the Indian Ocean without pneoun taring a hostile sail, •'•"he steamer was steered 1 Aden and through the strait of Peri 111, the surrounding; waters fairly briotliit;with British warships, into the Red Sea. Sbo proceeded to n point, south of J-Todoidah, where the lend ins; corp.-> v.erst ashore wJnlc an unsuspecting French cruder steamed by in plain sight. After ssevoral days, rest on the. heights hack of Boch-idab, the j<mniey across the desert wa< begun. It was made again.--!, the greatest, obstacles. The heat was so intense that travel was pos- '■ si bio only a<. night. During the journey 1 \ arious. banc's of hr><-tiT Arabs. were ! mer. with Mid with cac-h t it j bai lie waiS [ought. Jhe kHirnc} had | searcf>iy been begun br-ioro the Arab j guide descried, and most ef the trip ! Wris m::u:; by compass, tin l n;->n walking and carrying their food and >\ ater suj>pi\ 011 their ha c Tite fjc'.ssitndes 01 the trip were so . ." t t brit aojho o? the men died and '.•> c : mnoj in the sand. At la-L en April :T. ill" fb-rir.ans arrived at Medina. th:> tenvinns 0! the itedjaz railway. Thai, aiicnofin they boarded a train which lociv thorn by various, mw;; io (.onsiannriophn [ creinC'i. ,r ' <"'1(1. s wf,s! wnfTji Which I s:>JUirt .«m;j I'--., iohv my vr.i.r and have ihi !>"•«. Li oi.u-1- of bit,,'«■>]i.i! bli>;)i{; , il.it 1 .I''! ' ;n tu'i.;-. Air I !=ir.;.; i. io , Jia n; » r ti Jtilcet ten-"..' Yt'i'h W'-viv' 'j»r. Pert-viaiist Cuia, '23