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Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXV, Issue 1066, 20 February 1913, Page 2

An Australian correspondent of the London Daily Telegraph tells a hair-raising story of the manner in which the Japanese are “ spying out the land ” in Australia. The spying began, it seems, soon after the establishment of the Commonwealth. “ Mysterious vessels, intangible as a phantom ship, began to appear in Australian waters.” As soon as any of these mysterious craft weie sighted by a vessel flying the British flag, they ‘‘displayed a tremendous haste to get hull down on the horizon.” Unimaginative people said these ships belonged to Japanese pearl-pirates, but the correspondent of the Telegraph hints darkly that their errand was much more serious. But worse still was to happen. ‘‘ People in widely separated districts were frightened out of their wits by what appeared to be an airship travelling at night at prodigious speed.” The Japanese Antarctic expedition, led by Lieutenant Shiras, according to this authority, kept the Federal military authorities busy shooing members of the expedition away from the forts and other harbour defences. Japanese have been discovered with ‘‘a photograph of the bridge over the Hawkesbury river in New South Wales, and a chart of the Queensland coast,” in their possession. Worse and worse. “ Thousands ot Japanese reservists ” are being stationed in New Caledonia, getting ready to.“drive Australia’s slender garrison into the Pacifac.” Like the first report of Mark Twain’s death, the story bears evidences of being ” greatly exaggerated.”