OFFICIAL WIRELESS

Hokitika Guardian, 3 October 1928, Page 6

OFFICIAL WIRELESS

PRINCES’ TOUR. WELCOME AT MOMBASA. (British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, September 30. During the stay of the Prince ol Wales and the Duke of Gloucester in Mombasa (Kenya. Colony) the town is celebrating, and the inhabitants, ol many races and complexions, are participating in. a great variety of festivities. The streets are gaily decorated at night time, and between streams of motors and rickshaws is seen the curious spectacle of closely-veiled purdah women riding plllon on motor-cycles. While the Europeans were celebrating the Royal visit at Government House the natives held a great “ ngome ” in the native quarter, where weird percusssion music accompanied native dances.

To-day the Princes visited the native quarter, where tribal dances were staged for their entertainment. The native women dancers wore coloured waist-coats, and long white trousers, and the other dancers were weirdly painted as ghosts.- When the Princes left the natives crowded round with wild enthusiasm, and sang many native songs, including several wartime soldier songs in broken English. VISITING LONDON. PRIME. MINISTER OF GREECE. RUGBY, September 30; M. Venizelos, the Greek Prime.. Minister, arrives in London to-night from Paris. His purpose is to see Lord Cusheiulun, Acting-Foreign Secretary, and to explain personally the details and intention of the Pact - of Peace and Arbitration recently signed by Italy and Greece. M. Venizelos is paying a short round Gif visits, not only to Rome, Paris and London, but to the Balkan capitals: with, it is understood, the same purpose.

GREEK POLICY. • IN SOUTH-EAST EUROPE. LONDON, October 2, The “ Manchester Guardian ” interviewed M. Venizelos (Greek Premier) after his conversation with Lord On,shendun. and Mr Baldwin, and elicited from him this announcement: “I am visiting Italy, France and England to explain ( what I am doing in order to nip in the bud, any misunderstanding handicapping peaceful diplomacy, i djesire to link, up the Balkans and neighbouring countries on the basis of friendship. The Pact which I hav< signed at Rome is not directed •at any. third party. My policy is one' oi constructive peace all round. I Jippe .shortly to sign a pact with Angora; and with Sofia, creating a Balkan Locarno, which eventually will include Greece, Turkey, Italy, Bulgaria, and Jugo-Slavia, but threatening nobody. Greece desires peace.”

f EMPIRE Air bases. SIR PHILIP SASSOON’S TOUR. RUGBY, September 30. Sir Phillip Sassoon, Under-Secretarj of State for Air, left Plymouth at dawn to-day in a flying boat for a cruise through the Mediterranean ti Egypt, across the Syrian desert tr Irak, and then down the Persian Gull to'lndia, on a visit to nearly, all tin Royal Air Force stations outside G ion I Britain. He will cover nearly IN,OOO miles in five weeks, visiting in that time at least 20 Royal Air Force baser and stations and inspecting units. The flight is being made in a Black-burn-1 ris craft, the largest metallmlled flying-boat produced by Britain which was used by Sir Samuel Hoaro. Air Minister, in liis Baltic cruise- lasi year. It is fitted with three RollsRoyce Condor engines of 7000 horsepower each, and when fully laden weighs over 12 tons. It has two pilots and a crew.

CHINESE PIRACY. OFFICERS KILLED. WILD FIGHT OCCURRED. RUGBY, September 30. An account of the capture of tlx Anking by Chinese pirates states that the captain and chief officer , were on the bridge when -the pi ra suddenly rushed in, " opening fire at point blank range. They killed the chief officer. David C. Jones, and shot the captain through both thighs. Simultaneously the pirates rushed the engine-room and a wild fight took place. Chief Engineer Thomson, after putting up a fierce resistance, wa.s fatally shot in the head, and fsecond Engineer Bennett fought with a, club before being over-powered. Third Officer Camp.b,ell was stunned from be bind, while resting in a deck chair, and when be recovered consciousness be staggered to the. bridge and was stabbed in the back.

All the passengers were lined,up and searched and their valuables added to the loot from their luggage and cargo, which were taken ashore by the pirates in the ship’s lifeboats. It is estimated that they got away with £‘20,000 worth of goods. The Anking then sailed to. HongIvong, where the wounded officers are in hospital. This is the first case of Chinese coastal piracy since the British naval and Chinese military force cleaned up the Bias Bay stronghold some months ago. [The Anking is' an oil-burning steamer of 3472- tons, owned by the China Navigation Company, Ltd. She was built at Greenock in 1925'.]