A DESERTER’S STORY.

Taihape Daily Times, 16 August 1918, Page 7

A DESERTER’S STORY.

An officer of the German Naval Service, who deserted and who is now in Holland, gives an account of the island fortress of Heligoland. “It has often been said,” ho states, < ‘ that this island commands the approaches to our coast. That is not true. Heligoland only commands a sea area that lies within the reach of the land guns on the island. And there is a considerable expanse of water that intervenes between Heligoland and our fortified island, Wangerooc, that lies about six miles to the mainland, commanded by our Minsen fortifications. And as every naval man knows that it is impossible to hit a moving object 15 or 16 miles, there remains an expanse of water between the Heligoland and Wangerooc fortifications which is it least eight miles wide, through which waterway an crjemy vessel can navigate and enter the Jade sea. But I would not advise our enemies to make such an attempt, because the sea area between Heligoland and Wangerooc, '.hat extends beyond the ranges of the land guns, is thoroughly mined and a passage is impossible. The land force on tho island itself composed of between 8000 or 10,009 men. There arc enough provisions and munitions on tho island to withstand a naval siege for 18 months, should it become impossible to stand even a loyf of bread or a bullet. It has been suggested that afiw tons of explosives dropped by a fleet of cney aeroplanes would wipe tho island from the face of the sea. The people who make these suggestions do not know the defences of* the place. Those rvho are in command of our enemies’ naval forces know the impossibilities confronting such a venture.