NAVY AT WORK

Wairarapa Times-Age, 5 September 1939, Page 5

NAVY AT WORK

MOBILISED & ON WAR , STATIONS PROTECTION OF MERCHANT SHIPPING. RIGHTS OF SEARCH AT SEA. (British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, September 3. The Royal Navy is fully mobilised and at its war stations in full strength, supplemented by a number of fully commissioned armed merchant ships as auxiliary cruisers. The Admiralty, profiting by past experience, has already taken certain measures which were only slowly developed during the last war. Among these is the reintroduction of the convoy system for merchant shipping to assist the merchant navy in its vital duty of ensuring the overseas traffic of the British Commonwealth and its allies. In answer to numerous inquiries it is stated that, following the signing of the Anglo-German Naval Agreement of 1935, Germany agreed to adhere to the rules regarding submarine warfare as set out in part four of the London Naval Treaty of 1930 and to accept them for herself, irrespective of wheI ther they were accepted by other Powers. The Admiralty announces that all British merchant vessels are liable to examination by the British naval contraband and control service. British ships coming under any of the following categories will not normally be detained on interception longer than is necessary to establish identity, namely, (1) Ships on Government charter; (2) ships bound direct for British or allied ports and which will discharge all their cargo and passengers in such port; (3) ships whose last port of call was British or allied and which have a special war clearance from it. Other British ships may on interception on certain routes be required to put into a contraband and control, base for a more detailed examination. DUKE OF KENT ' NAVAL COMMAND TAKEN UP. LONDON, September 3. The Admiralty announces that RearAdmiral the Duke of Kent has taken up his war appointment.