The Search for Contraband at Sea,

Horowhenua Chronicle, 4 December 1916, Page 2

The Search for Contraband at Sea,

# Under the title of "Searching Ships at Sea," a number of important facts as to the maintenance of our bloekado tire set forth hi the November "'Windsor Magazine," with photographs which illustrate such technical details as the inspecting of a ship's cargo the application of the x-ray treatment to merchandise for th e locating of contraband, and other necessary measures. In the course of his theme tlio author, Mr Walter Ford says:— contraband is found the guard remains on board and the block-ade-runner is ; of course, arrested. A complete search in- port will take from two to five days, according to cargo and/ stowage. As many as two hundred vessels pass eastward every month through these police cordon/;, and the trickery of some of them is very daring indeed. From a cargo of onions on a small ship an inquisitive petty officer took a fine specimen and threw it sharply on the deck. To the amazement of all, the Lively 'vegetable' —of puTe Para rubber, artfully painted outside-—bounced six feet in the atr!

"Ploughshares and agricultural implements made entirely of /copper were another discovery. Cotton was dug out of barrels of flour, and nickel irojn hollow boards in neutral decks. The skipper of a neutral trawler welcomes one boarding party with genial smiles, and bombards the boat with fresh fish for breakfast as it 'returns to the cruiser. .Vext cLiy. unexpectedly overhauled, a string of murderous contact mines is pulled from under that self-same skipper's catch. "And,, aga'.in, her© is a brand-new hawser .neatly coiled oil deck. 'Looks too big tor the ship,' murmurs the Argus-eyed visitor. 'Out it Tom,' And from new hempen strands petrol shoots forth with reeking waste. That vessel was mother of submarines, pumping sustenance into their dastard' hearts. So goes the war of wits at sea, and the cutting off of supplies, i From the the letter mails of one neutral eteamer 1265 parcels of rubber were taken, and a further 1390 parcels from another. "On another were 50 cases of meat with no bill of lading to account for them among the ship's papers. On another vessel were boxes of 'hammers' consigned to a Dianish agent. Bags of copper, brass and aluminium were found inside. Smuggling rubber by registered letter (with postage from $s to os each) shows the extreme need of this commodity in the Central Empire#;. " 'Honey' on one blockade runner's manifest turns out to be a weird mass of rubber 'comb.' and glycerine.—this last a leading constitueait of a Wigh explosives. "From Brazil to Hamburg were sent four sacks of samples containing nearly 2001b of the purest Para rubber; and 1 on one vessel an immense consignment of propaganda literature was seized. Here Germany's Jcase. was set out in books, pamphlets and special newspapers in every language of Europe, besides Arabic and Hindustani. Horowhenua A. and P. Association intends to discuss the ing of wool by the New Zealand Government. A meeting of the association will be held on Wednesday miext, at 3 p.m., in the Foresters (Hall. iLevin. Full details of the meeting are advertised on page 3.