“KOEPENICK” OUTDONE.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXX, Issue 442, 1 December 1908, Page 4

“KOEPENICK” OUTDONE.

Englishman’s Prank With Dorman Soldiers. A trick of the cobbler captain of Koepenick, who* in second-hand uniform took command of a squad of German Guardsmen and used them to arrest a Mayor and rob a municipal treasury, was a tame affair compared to an incident described in the Times by Mr Henry Cbamberlaud, a retired naval lieutenant.

On a walking tour in Germany he came upon a body of Saxon soldiers taking their ease in a wood, and though his German vocabulary consisted of only about forty words, sat down and conversed with them. He was wearing an old grey suit, a felt hat, and flannel shirt, and carried an umbrella. Quite casually he mentioned that he was a naval officer. “ At the mention of the word officer, all the men sat up, buttoned their tunics, and bundled on their swords or bayonets —I forget which, ‘ Are you going to Niederbrokn ? ’ was my next question. ‘Yes,’ they replied, * we are going to walk to Niederbrokn, and there take the train to Bitsch.’ What evil genius prompted me to make the next remark I cannot tell, but, though uttered in a joke, its consequences were perfectly astounding. ‘I, tco, am going to Niederbrokn. You are my regiment; I am your colonel! ’

• ‘ Up they fsprang to their feet, fell in two deep, and kept quite silent, as if on parade. ‘ Right turn ! ’—and off we marched, I carrying my umbrella as if it were a sword. Breasting a grassy slope, we marched to the top at a swinging pace, still observing perfect silence, and in step. “ A short distance off was a solitary soldier of the same regiment lying at full length on the bench near the entrance to a wood—tunic unbuttoned, sword unbuckled, etc. On catching sight of the approaching squad up he jumped, buttoned his 'tunic, buckled on his weapon, stood rigidly to attention, and when the “regiment” came up 1 tailed on,’ as if it was the most natural thing in the world to do. “ A disconcerting thought arose.' ‘ What will happen if we chance across a German officer, and how, in ray broken German, can I ever hope to explain this extroardiuary assumption of command of the forces of the Kaiser ? ’ So, without a momeut’s further delay, I said to the men : ‘ I must go fo ray hotel, which is over there,’ and bade them good-bye.

“These docile and amiable Saxons with one accord, taking time by the leading file, saluted, and I, having returned their salute, got out of site as rapidly as possible. On peeping round the corner of a house there was my late ‘regiment’ still marching with the regularity of clockwork.”