Hidden Arms in Germany

Hokitika Guardian, 11 March 1922, Page 4

Hidden Arms in Germany

(By One wlip lias found them)

AVhen, early in 1920, wq commenced control qf German aerodromes and factories! our inspecting delegations wer e . to put it mildly, conspicuous in the picturesque variety of their uniforms. For we were an Inter-Allied Commission, end on each delegation were to be found representatives of, at any rate, five of the Allies. go, each morning, we would start out from our headquarters in B e rlin, a Frenchman, an Italian, a Belgian and Japanese and ap Englishman. Small wonder that crowds collected to stare, that news of oiijc * coming sped before us and that our arrival at a factory was not always the surprise it should have been.

'But a few months later found a great change in opr' appearance—ourselves in civilian clothes, o ur chauffeurs similarly disguised and the distinguishing marks removed from our cars. TV we would drive direct to the factory to be inspected, walk inside and demand to see the manager.

Once on requesting the book of a certain firm, we were informed t,lat the chairman of the company was on holiday in Vienna, that he was not expected hack for some weeks and that most unfortunately—he had taken with him the keys of the strong-box in which the hooks wore kept. AVe replied that we too were sorry, but that the box would have to lie forced open as we must have immediate access to the books.

Five minutes later the chairman appeared and remarked that he had had, most unexpectedly to cut short his holiday and had but that moment returned I

None of the Germans present even smiled!

Our interpreter, in facetious mood asked him if he had liked what he had had time to see of Venice, mis-stating the place from which he was supposed to have returned so suddenly. Still no one smiled. And the chairman replied that he had liked it very much, especially the Grand Canal and the gondolas! And even then no one smiled. Truly the Germans have no sense of humour.

But perhaps the most amusing of such incidents happened to one of the English members of the Commission, while on a short holiday in a very beautiful, though little visited part of Germany.

He had gone one day to see a famous old castle and was being shown over the building together with a party of Hermans, by the official guide. In the huge vaults under the castle lie heard someone behind him whisper to a companion, “Come and look through this grating. They've got aoropiancs down here and piles of Big cases.

Onr fellow said nothing but quietly followed the speaker and his companion a girl, to the grating. “Oh,” ho heard the girl—a Junker’s daughter surely— delightedly whisper: “They must ho hiding them from the Tvontrol Kommission. And these cases must contain engines and perhaps guns; isn’t it splendid!” It was; those vaults provided a tidy haul when acting on the information thus gained a delegation from the Commission searched them a few days later.