A WAR EPISODE RECALLED

Hokitika Guardian, 22 April 1930, Page 8

A WAR EPISODE RECALLED

MORE ABOUT THE RAIDER WOLE

HOW THE PRISONERS FARED

Some little time ago we published tin article recalling the activities In the i'acinc during the war period of the merman raider 'Wolf. Through a letter written by Mr N. A. Pyne collector ox Customs at Haapai, Tonga, who was a prisoner of war on the raider, a cir cumstautial acount was given of how the message in a bottle was thrown overboard which came subsequently into the hands of the British Admiralty, and was by it communicated to me New Zealand Government which was thus enabled to institute precautions for the protection of shipping against mines laid by the Wolf off the North Cape and west of Cook Strait. Mr Pvne had only learned of the picking up of the bottle and the success Ox the efforts of those prisoners on board the Wolf to convey a warning to the British Authorities, afted reading a reference made to the subject in a recent lecture by Sir James Allen. Sir James, who was Minister of licence in New Zealand at the time ol the Wolf’s activities, was naturally interested in Mr Pyne’s account of what had actually happened on board the Wolf.’ To a letter addressed by him to air Pyne making inquiry among othei things, concerning Captain Meadows by whom, as Mr Pyne related, the botI lie was actually thrown (from the raider, Sir James has received a reph from which we are able to make the following interesting extracts: “You ask for the address of Captaii Meadows. I am sorry that I am unable to give you this, but I feet certain that the Anglo-Saxon Oil Company of London would be able to locau him for you. He was employee] In that firm when captured, and he is pro-, bahly still with them. He was ir Sydney about three years ago as master of the Planorbis, an oil tankei owned by the Anglo-Saxon Oil Company.”

“Captain Meadows probably doesnot know to this day that liis message was found and in time to lie of such value. It would have been very unwise to have signed any such message so the authorities had no means of lotting him know that his messag< had been found or, rather, of knowing who sent it. Captain Meadows was a prisoner on the raider for 13 months, but he was always very jolly and hearty. On the anniversary of his eaptim the commander sent him a bottle o wine and some cigars for his “birthday.”

“When 1 look back now it all seem* like a bad nightmare, and I marvel that there were not more death. l amongst the prisoners and some ease oi insanity It was particularly trying when we were in the tropics, owing to lack of ventilation in the holds, and to the great shortage of drinking water There were 400 prisoners in trie two after holds, and perspiration poured out of the bodies and accumulated on the steel decks until it was inches deep You can imagine the awful odours and the unpleasantness of. it all. After we got right up into the Arctic regions, passing countless icebergs, crashing into drift ice, and seeing the northern lights. The food right through was very bad There were three cooks to cook for nearly 800 people on the Wolf (prisoners and crew) and they bad a veiy limited variety of food to use. One who was not a prisoner on that ship could never realise what it mean to us to he ashore (even in Germany). Most of the crews captured earlier bv the raider were lauded in stretchers at Kiel, Victims of scurvy. By this mail I have posted you a small book containing a number of pictures -taken on the Wolf on her return to Germany.”

—Dr. Vinet