GERMAN GUN-RUNNERS IN CHINA

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2772, 16 May 1916, Page 7

GERMAN GUN-RUNNERS IN CHINA

SPIES-AT WORK

BIG HAUL OF SHELLS

According to advices received in Syd-ney-last: week by the 13. and A. liner ; Umpire, front Kobe, German havo • been particularly active of late at Shang-' hai, and, aided by Chinese, liavo been dealing extensively in gun-running, and procuring ammunition. What was known as the Melseu -case attracted wide attention in. Shanghai and Hong-kong when the linipiro was at the latter port. Nielsen was a supposed German spy, and a chauffeur employed by him testified before the Trench Mixed Court at Shanghai that he had taken to a house at U JiTench Sicawei Koad' case 3 supposed to have contained GOO'shells. Two hundred of these shells were found in ponds in. Nielsen's "garden. On March 25, after'the discovery of tho shells in Nielsen's garden, .the Shanghai police seized'a iurtuer eight cases of artillery shells, just as they were about to be; loaded on to a boat in, the Soochow Creek. A Chinese sailor in full uniform, was on the boat, and a. constable asked him what he i was doing. . He replied: "Waiting for some guus tor the arsenal." At the same'time'a loaded cart approached drawn by J a ; pony, and accompanied by five Chinese.. Two foreigners were fol-. lowing'the cart at'a distance, and ono of these turned back and .made 'off. Tho other ' foreigner admitted .to the constable that the cases in the cart contained ammunition for the arsenal. The foreigner, the' Chinese, and the cart weroi taken to the police station. 'While on the way to the police station a motor-carj containing a Chinaman in. naval uniform and a foreigner drove up. The foreigner presented a card bearing the name, '"Fritz Somnier, Vice-Con-sul at" Tientsin." He also produced, a pass for the ammunition issued .by the Chinese naval .authorities, • which tho police could not;recognise, as such per-, mits had no force in the settlement. The two foreigners were allowed to go, but the five Chinese and the ammunition were detained. The cases were found to contain.altogether 398. shells. They-were of three pattern's, but all of the same size. There were;also 55,000 rounds of .32 automatic pistol lammunition, and 34,000, rounds.for Mauser pistols. .Half of tho latter ■ contained Sum-dura bullets. . The five Chinese Were placed on their trial for being in: unlawful possession of certain explosive articles within the limits of the international, settlement without the order, sanction;; or authority of the Consular body; ( '' . Sensational Disclosures. Some sensational; disclosures regarding Nielsen .wore, made, at the I'rench Mixed Court, Shanghai, on March 27, by a Miss AVeinstock, alias Schwartz, who appeared on a charge of; being in possession of a false passport..: She stated that she had known Niolson fev sis months, and had seen, him every, day.: Although, she- at first .denied! that she .knew Nielsen' was a German, she now admitted that she knew; he was, and that all their conversations had. been in his language.; Nielsen on many occasions had lunc'h with the accused in her house, but ho did not say .much.about his business. Noticing that ; he was always armed—he had in his possession, two pistols,' ono ■ large and the other small, and a dagger— the accused'asked him why. He, replied that he was a German. She pointed out that other. Germans she kneVv wero not armed, and Nielsen replied that his was a special case. He had important business to. transact,'but said he would not tell her .what it was or why ho was armed until the war was over; ■

Nielsen was in the habit of spending large sums of money..' He had two motorcars and a'motor-boat. • One evening he told accused that he wqs compelled to spend tho night in his'.motor-boat, having important work' to', do. 'The following day she asked him if. ho,, had completed the. work, .he went out ,to do, and he replied";that', he- had,-and that he was very..'tired. In reply to a question as to what he had done,. Nielsen said ho had had to '.- load something on board some ships in-the river, and that, being- too busy to do it during the day, he had been compelled to do. it. at-night. Nielsen, she said, was always very busj-, and-very mysterious in his manner. Sometimes he would tell her. that he had to lunch in a hurry as he had to meet somo people at the German Consulate; at other times it was because ho had to do some work with .Chinese secret agents. He was always very'mysterious. .During Hie hearing of the arms case at the, International Mixed Court accussed asked Nielsen if it Were true that he was sending arms . and. ammunition, to India. 'Nielsen told her not 'to. believe everythjng that was' reported,', but: from, that time began to look!anxious and perturbed... On' the day. that the shells, were discovered in his garden Nielsen was with the accused at .77 Rue du Consulat. While he' was there someone by -the pame of Muller telephoned to him:- ,As the result of the communication which he then received, Nielsen became vei'y excited, and left the place in. haste, saying that he ought to go at once to the German Consulate. Nielsen had also advised accused not to travel by the steamer Empress of Russia, as he had an idea that the ship-would meet with disaster. ' He .had a presentiment that many ■ ships would be' blown up. On one occasion ;he had said that he would be delighted if ho could blow, up the. British Consulate. ■ '-Court.'Sentences.

On March 31, at: the' French liked Court, 'Shanghai,' M. de la Prade, the French Assessor; delivered judgment against' Liu King-piao, Nielsen's \ chauffeur, who was charged-Avith. complicity in the storing of arms and ammunition, and Miss Emina .Weinstock,. charged'- with being l iu possession of a, false. French passpost. .'■ . '

After an' exhaustive review of the evidence, .M. de la Prade found that the declarations of the witnesses called were precise, and proved the existent of an .organisation whose aim was. to carry disorder and .destruction, 'notably .into Siberia, at strategic points, such as railway bridges, iuto India, and on" merchant ships. Concluding, the Magistrate said: —The facts of the case arc of such 'exceptional gravity as to warrant severity on the part of the' Court in dealing''With. Nielsen's' accomplices, but, inasmuch as the persons responsible for the conception, preparation,' and direction of . the criminal acts in question' arc not -before the Court, the Court has some grounds for showing clemency towards tho accomplices, who ' have already been arrested 'by the police... Liu King-piao was sentenced to six months.in gaol, and Weinstock to three months in gaol, aiid to a fine- of 2000 dollars. It-was also'ordercd that both be put under surveillance altci serving their respective sentences.