MINEFIELDS.

Hokitika Guardian, 17 July 1926, Page 1

MINEFIELDS.

THE WOLFE’S EXPLOITS. THREE SHIPS LOST. WIIAT HAPPENED TO THE MINE! WELLINGTON, July 14. A few days ago, in a. speech mad in London, Sir James Allen refer re to the minefield laid in Cook Strait b the war-time raider. The raider wa the notorious Wolf, and the lull stor of her war-time activities has just bee released for the first time by the Mir ister for Defence, the Hon. Mr Rolles ton. The Wolf laid some sixty mine round the New Zealand coast, in tw lines, north and south off Cape Mari van Diemen, and the western entranc to Cook Strait. The object, of course was to catch traffic from and to Aus tralia, and the two fields were spreai as far out as possible. The German raider came out fron the North Sea, round the Cape of Goo< Hope, then to Ceylon and India, cap taring another vessel and setting lie riff in turn as a minelayer, and thei passing through Bass Strait, south o Australia, up towards the centre o the Pacific. Finally she came dowi towards New Zealand, where sin brought two minefields into being fliere wore about 25 mines in tin northern field, and some 35 in tin southern one. Tn the field off Mari: ran Diemen tho small coastal ship fterrimn was sunk, while the Wim nera struck two mines and went dowi vith heavy loss of life. The Common vealth and Dominion liner Port Koin tin struck a mine off Cape Farewell ir -.he southern field, and sunk, fortunately without loss of life. The nev Port TCembln, Who replaced her, is islioro on San Salvador, West Indies. SWEEPING BEGUN. Both north and south the Navy soon ■ommenced operations to attempt tr dear the trade routes from danger, ind two small steamers were convert'd into mine-sweepers. These were lie Nora Niven, which was brought lown from Napier, and the Simplom, i-liich now acts as a tug in Auckland. Tic task was dangerous, ns will he enlised when it is known that the Ulniirnlty lost something like 250 weepers in the North Sea alone durig the war. Tn the northern mineeld sweepers caught eleven mines, lid in the southern nine mines. The hunt for tho mines was helped v the fact that effective mine-laying , restricted to a depth of TOO fathoms, ir in water over 200 feet deep it is lipossible to he sure that mines will old their places. This did not affect line-laying near at home, for the hole of the North Sea is of a depth iss than this. But round the New ealand coast there is a very deep nter and the sweepers were aided by knowledge of this fact. Still, a >od uumlier of mines were not locaid. AID FROM. TIDES AND WINDS. However, the tides and the winds ere on the side of tho searchers, uring 1918 an increasing number of ines were reported to lie washed shore. Two were found in Queen

Charlotte Sound, one near Foxton, one between 'Cape Farewell and. Wesi Haven inlet, one at Otaki, and others six miles north of Manawatu, off Rangitikei beach at Manawatu, 17 miles from Bulls, and at Truarangi Point. This last killed three Maoris. t This represented the “bag” of 1918. 3 ‘ In 1919 others were found on Olansu Beach, near Oliau River, near Tory Channel, and at Manakau. Two blew up in the mine-field. One was sunk I bv riflte fire from the AVaimea. Tn these days all small coasting vessels s were provided with lilies and ammunition for the purpose of sinking II mines. One was seen to blow up on a reef; one was exploded at Awaliio, one was sunk by Waverley, 15 miles from s Patea; one was heard to explode from 3 I Ohario, and one was towed into AVel- ’ lingtoii and sunk in deep water. The L ‘ vessel which did this was the Kamona, ’ Which encountered the mine in a. ” smooth sea just as the light was failing. The Navy Office viewed this feat 1 with great approbation, and increased * its usual grant to the crew for the destruction of the mine. The Union Steam. Ship Co. was also written to, ‘ and informed that- the naval authority . considered that Captain J. Rankine had shown considerable resource in the * i matter. ’ In the northern field one went ashore at Russell, two on the AVest Coast, and one on the Great Barrier. THE LAST SAVEEP. AVh.cn the Armistice was signed a ’ naval condition was that Germany should supply charts of all minefields laid during war-time, and though the minefield had been rejxirted clear in July 1919, the Admiralty sent out sweepers to New Zealand, as they did everywhere else. These vessels were the Marguerite, the Geranium, and the Mellow, and they swept over the whole area twice and failed to find any mines. The Germans had sown tens of thousand of mines during the war years, and the same safety procedure, was followed everywhere. Thus it will be seen that many mines have never been located, hut the Navy Office announces that the time which has elapsed since the A\ r olf set the mines afloat is sufficient to justify the belief that they have perished, or else have drifted ashore on obscre beaches long ago. v Tn the event of another such occurrence, the Dominion will not he unprepared. The AVlmknkura, which lias been purchased for the New Zealand Navy, and which is to be used as a training ship in mine-sweeping, is now on her way to the country.