SINKING OF THE KAIPARA

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2322, 2 December 1914, Page 8

SINKING OF THE KAIPARA

CAPTAIN MAKEPEACE'S 'ACCOUNT. ! "Captain H. Makepeace, whose ship, Uw New Zealand Shipping Company's Kaipara, was captured and. sunk off the, West Coast of Africa on August 16 by the Kaiser Wilbelm der Grosse, has given a representative of the "British : . Australasian" some additional details tothose already published. ' "The officers 'of the Kaiser Wilhelm," Baid Captain Makepeace, "treated*my officers and crew very well. I was the only one they had a'set against. They accused nle repeatedly of haying told them a lie, inasmuch as I had 6aid that I did not know war had been declared between Britain and Germany. From the wireless 1 received from H.M.S.; Glasgow two days after leaving Monte ■Video; I surmised that such was the case, but'l did not know it for a fact. That message simply ordered lis to avoid ordinary routes; complete voyage without bunkering if possible, and reduce brilliancy of lights.

• "Directly: I received the wireless .I communicated with' the Glasgow, asking if. war had been declared, and received no reply. It is only at 8.30 a.m. and y 30 p.m. that the warships will; exercise witlTincrchantnieh, and even then they do not always answer." ;;•', Captain/Makepeace made .'some, satirical Remarks regarding the gunnery of the Kaiser \Yilhelm. "Although the Germans 'were firing at the Kaipara at u .distance;;'of -only. 200 yards, it took them .two/hours and a half to sink her. Itdoesir't/sayniuch for their shooting I .The Highflyer was firing at a distance of befcween,'fivo and six miles, and once she found the range every shot went home, and the Kaiser Wilhelm was converted into a permanent submarine very quickly. £?••.. •' ' -7 "I thirik'it is a mistake," he added, "to order merchant vessels to avoid the ordinary .trade routes. If we adhere to them our cruisers know where to look for ,us and-the enemy. If we leave them our'warships' don't know* -vheie ■we'are. "In my case, on receiving 'Jio Glasgow's . message,' I steered to tho east, about" 250 miles out of my proper course ,and ran right into the rxa'.sisr Wilhelm "Had I kept to my proper course. I might have avoided her, nnd so saved my ship." His many friends will bo glad to learn that Captain Makepeace has received another command, and will bo in charge of tho F. and S. liner Middlesex on her nest voyage. "Lara thinking of temporarily changing my name," he said, laughingly, as ho said good-bye, "and calling myself Makewar instead of Makopeace until I get a-little of my own back again."