THRILLING STORY

Opotiki News, Volume II, Issue 268, 6 December 1939, Page 4

THRILLING STORY

vy * . • ? . GERMAN LINER .BREMEN ; FLIGHT FROAI UK. FLEET > . r REFUG E IN EOVIET PORT 1 NO LIGHTS SHOAV.N LON J )OIN , Oct. IT—The Amsterdam correspondent, of the Daily Herald) has sent his journal the story of the escape of the Bremen. The information. was gite.n by a ship’s cook belonging to Holland, the only member of the, crew wlic was not a Gorin an'. The* man, Eduard Post*, had arrived from Murmansk. 'The Daily Herald this morning presents the story. OmlAfigust 30, as I ...the American authorities, .allowed us to leave New York, he said, wo put to sea at high speed. At nightfall the . ship was blacked out. All portholes were closely shuttered. Nobody was allowed Lo smoke on deck. The red and green navigation lights were not lit. No light showed at the masthead* as the ship sped-at 30 knsts'4nto the darkness.

Where we were going only Captain Ahrens knew.: But it seemed ominous to some, of ns that we had taken no passengers aboard. Early next morning all hands were mustered on deck, and everybody who Imth-no essential .duty to perform was served out with a paint pot and a long brush. Then lifeboats were lowered into the- water alongside, aiuli we began to paint the whole ship a dull grey. Speed was not slackened, and those in the boats towing alongside had a. hair-raising time as they painted the side close to the foaming bowwave. Jsmr days passed—days of increasihgVstraiiii for tin* crew, who* did not know what was going on in the political clash of nations. Crew’s Oath Oil the morning of September 3 tho whole crew was called into the welldeck below the bridge. Escape would lie difficult, said Captain Ahrens, hut lie had sworn that the ship would neveil fall into* the hands of the enemy. Thou and there the German seamen took an oath—to destroy the Bremen rather than allow her to fall into Allied hand's. 'The hand played “Dcutehland Übcr Alios,” and the

crew cheered and gave the Nazi salute. Next dlay the captain again called the crew together, and said: “Between England and Iceland, where we are now, British warships are watching every 10 miles. We are in the lien’s den.” Every day lifeboat drill was bold while the forepart of tho ship iiad been evacuated in ea.se we ran into a. mine. Everywhere on deck were* set barrels of petrol to be set on Lire should a British warship come near. The carpenter and his mates had everything ready Lo boro holes in the hull to make the ship* sink faster should*it* he scuttle her. Every officer and man was tokl ..to make a small bundle of lii.s must necessary possessions. No trunksjhir bags would be taken into tlie< boats’’ii we had to leave the ship. Everyone put on his best clothes so* tha% these rat least could be saved. ’-. a *

Still we were not told where the ship was going. But we knew that wo were entering sub-Arctic waters, lor it grew colder hour hy hour. Continual mists and fogs were the captain’s allies in dodging the British cruisers. But the same mists and fogs added to our depression as wo steamed \ve knew not where. At Murmansk None of us could sleep soundly in our watches below. None of us undressed, as we lea rod that at any moment we. might crash into another ship in the* darkness. .\t last we weie told that we were between Iceland and Spitsbergen, in a iatirude so high that it was unlikely we would now he intercepted. Until that moment we had scarcely dared hope wo would escape. Then we sighted! land, and a few hours later wo picked up a Russian pilot. As wo steamed into Murmansk Bay, tho Norddeutscher Lloyd flag and the Soviet Hammer and Sickle were hoisted on the foremast; while the Swastika flag flow from the main. Ssnt Home During the days which followed as we swung to our anchors in the Russian harbour, none of us knew what was to be our fate. It was impossible to write to, our families, and our only news came from German broadcasts. We were forbidden to listen to the radio stations of any nation but Germany. On September 18 were were told that wo could] leave the ship. Wo were taken ashore and put on a train"TPr Leningrad. From there' we were sent by sea to Germany, where I was kept until a day or two ago, when I was told 1 could return to my home.