A LUSITANIA STORY.

Gisborne Times, Volume XLV, Issue 3983, 16 July 1915, Page 3

A LUSITANIA STORY.

Last November stories appeared in American papers alleging that British liners leaving New York were in the habit of hoisting derisive signals in the international code as they passed the sterns of tho Vaterland and other big German fillers that have been lying useless since the beginning of the war in Hoboken. The “New York Times’ 2 sent a representative to interview Captain Daniel Dow. who was commander ol the Lusitania flntil Captain Turner took charge. Captain Dow said: '‘l will tell you a story. When 1 was in New York four weeks ago I was asked a similar question on a Sunday, and, strangely enough, I was dining that same evening at the Hotel Macalpine with Captain Hans Ruser, commander of the Yateiland, and his wife. I told him what I had heard, and he smiled. ’Friend Hans,’ I said, ‘we will do something to give this report the lie when I sail on Wednesday morning for Liverpool. You have your crew on deck aft with a quartermaster standing by the ensign when I go out, and I will look out for the Ship.’ As the Lusitania passed the Vaterland I dipped the ensign to the German liner. Captain I?user dipped his in return.”

The “Manchester Guardian” comments: “And it is this ship, which gave all the courtesies that could he given to the ships of Germany, that hag been torpedoed and sunic at sigh' and her huge complement of noncombatant passengers left to drown.”