THE EUROPEAN WAR.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 3, Issue 242, 27 October 1914, Page 3

THE EUROPEAN WAR.

Patriotic Workers. HELPING LADY LIVERPOOL FUND. The nameß of the women knitters of Pukekohe and Puni who knitted socks and caps fot the expeditionary force now embarked are as below Socks: Mrs Cook 2 pairs, Mrs Grant 2, Mrs Boase, Mrs Stephenson, Mrs Loughlin, Mrs Curnow, Miss Hooeyford, Mrs Allingham, Rev. Prioress Convent, Mrs Craig, and Mrs Townson. Practically every lady mentioned above asked for more wool, hut as the ladies of Puni road and of Pukekohe had given so generously, the required number had been collected. Mrs H. Stuart is especially to be thanked tor her work of collecting sockß from Puni road and bringing them in to Pukekohe for transmission by rail. Donations have already been acknowledged. Cap knitters were as below:— Mrs J. Baxter, 10; Mrs S. and Miss Harper, 8; Mrs and Miss Townson, 7; Miss Hamlin, 6; Mrs W. and Miss Blake, 4; Mrs Darrell, 4; Mrs Crum, 5; Mra Ritchie Brownlee, Miss Usher, Mrs Webster, Mrs Webb, Mrs Mcßac, Mrs Cowperthwaite, Mrs Fioet and Miss Chambers (Puni), 3 each; Mrs Talbot, Mrs J. O'Connor, Mrs J. B. Brown, Mrs Comrie, Miss Beatty, Mrs Haslam and Miss Barter, 2 each. The tallowing ladies found time to knit one each, although mauy were helping in other ways:—Miss Graham, Mrs Mountjoy, Mrs Boulcott, Mrs Allingham, Miss Barttom and Mrs G rigor. The Sisters at the Convent undertook to teach six pupils to knit. Miss Chambers (Puni school) sacrificed her time to teach this most difficult of needlework to learn, vet the easiest when once Acquired. As this was the pupils first piece of work they of necessity had to receive assistance; and one wee girl had to have help at the last in order to finish to time. The Puni girls were:—Thelma Parkinson, aged 10, Standard 11. 5 Kita Roberts 11, Phyllis Preece 11, Iris Fulton H and Vera Wright 12, Standard **The remainder, about 8 caps, were knitted by the chairwoman of the Pukekohe branch of the League.

Waiuku Trooper's Death. WELLINGTON, Friday. Trooper Clement McDermott, of Wajkuu, a member ot the expeditionary force, died in the WelllingtoD hospital yesterday from measles and pneumonia. .The body was sent north t<j-day. Trooper McDermott was twenty yearß of age. Battle Stories. "EARLY DOORS THIS WAY." Sapper H. Mugridge, of the Royal Engineers, who has been in hospital with a wounded ankle, describes the following incidents : The British troops rushed into battle singing and shouting " early doora this way; early doors, 9d." While the men were in the trenches and shells and bullets were dropping round, two men were playing marbles with bullets from a shrapnel shell. One night Mugridge went to a house to see if he could get a drink. The only water he could find was some rain which had collected on top of some paraffin barrels, and "it went down well." He had a piece of bread in his pocket, which had been there three days, and was grimy with dust; but that went down, too. ESCAPED FROM THE GERMANS. Trooper Beak, of the 4th Dragoon Guards, writing home to his wife at Crewe, gives an exciting story of his escape from the Germans. After describing his journey from England he says:— I went straight to the front in the firing line, and within two hours of being there had three horses shot under me. The last one was a Uhlan's, and that caused all the trouble. That went down when 1 was in the midst of them, and I got made J along with Sergeant-Major H of ours. We did not think we should ever see England again, as just before dusk on Wednesday afternoon they made us strip every mortal stitch off our bodies bo that we could not escape. At the time they were bnng hardly pressed by our troops. But in the middle of the night we made a cut for it, and got away. I have one consolation, and that is I killed two Uhlans and wounded one before they captured me, and Sergeant-Major H claims he killed half-a-dozen. I broke my sword clean in half when I was recovering from the second one I plugged with it, and 1 had to go into the third scramble with only about nine inches and the hilt left. "BRIDGE" ON THE SEA-BED. A good story of calmness is told in regard to a British submarine which was scouting: As she came to the surface her conning-tower was fired at. As she was not struck she submerged herself, and rested on the bottom. After four hours, the atmosphere having become somewhat thick, she came up for air. He conning-tower was again a mark for the enemy, and one shot went through. Hastily plugging the hole, she was again submerged, waiting at the bottom until it was dark, when she came up and escaped. The young officer in command, in making his report, was asked what they did while on the mud. " I did fine," ho replied; " we played auction bridge all the time, and I made 4s ll id." Damaged British Ships. READY FOR BATTLE. A BADGE OF HONOUR. A special correspondent to a London paper writes:— Most of the British ships which suffered damage in the fight off Heligoland have been fully repaired, and are again fit for active service. From personal observation 1 can say that one of the destrojera which was in the thick of the business and was knocked about considerably by the fire of German cruisers is to-day as perfect an engine of war as when she steamed boldly into the Heligoland Bight to challenge the enemy. There is this difference. She now displays in a prominent place a metal plate bearing the words, "Heligoland, September 4th, 1914." Other ships which did prominent work on that same occasion will in due course possess a similar badge of honour, and doubtless their crews will take as great a pride in it as do gallant sailors on the destroyer to which I have referred. How Germany Suffers. PRICES IN HAMBURG. Reuter's correspondent at Rome fuppliss the following news:— Prices have risen to such an extent in Hamburg that even in the middle of August eggs cost 10 marks (10b) a dozen. Fresh meat was unprocurable, all the cattle having been requisitioned. There wBB a very small quantity of milk and butter, but it bad all been reserved for the hospitals. There was neither milk nor prepared food for babies, and long, sad processions of motheis could be seen outside the Town Hall imploring the City Fathers for assistance. The Government's action in forbidding anyone to leave the town augmented the ranks of the hungry unemployed. The municipality vainly protested against this order, pointing out that it affected Hamburg's position as a Hanseatic city.