LIEUT CRAMPTON EXPLAINS

Taihape Daily Times, 14 December 1918, Page 5

LIEUT CRAMPTON EXPLAINS

u Lieutenant Crampton, the officer in charge of the Wanganui detention barracks, in a statement made to a Palmerston reporter, explained that when he was in Samoa he found that houses of ill-fame was seriously affecting the health of the troops and of the civil population while the German element on the island was ignoring the rules and regulations issued by proclamation, and generally was doing as it liked. The stand that he took was to clean the island of both these evils by the internment of Germans who disobeyed the regulations, and by suppressing the houses of ill-fame and deporting the occupants to an island. The assault on v woiirin to which reference as made occurred during thfc investigation of a brutal assault on a girl committed by the woman with a knife. She was defying all authority, and was trying to put him off the premises, and it was only to avoid contact with her that he put out his walking stick, which is technically an assault. The court-martial was brought about on his own application, and the result was a reprimand for'a technical assault. Lieut. Crampton added that the fact that he was retained in the service of the Defence Department, and upon his return to New Zealand was given important positions, showed that the authorities did not regard the charges made against him in Samoa as bing Samoa. AEROPLANE AS DECOY. .. c SUCCESSFUL BRITISH RUSE. Two British airmen, at great personal risk, enabled a successful local raid /o be made in October last, with hardly a single casualty to the attacking British. It had become necessary to take a small salient in the line. The Germans were expecting an ordinary attack, with its preliminary bombardment. Early in the morning a British aeroplane passed very low over the front trenches, and purposely flew slowly parallel to the German line, but about 500yds or 600yds behind it. The Germans thought this a target not to be missed, and unsuspectingly fell int othe trap set for them by turning their backs to the British trenches in order to fire on the machine. While they were thus busily engaging the aeroplane, the British infantry leaped from their trenches, and captured in a few minutes- a position to which considerable importance was attached by the British staff, incidentally taking c/uite a number of prisoners. The aeroplane returned to its aerodrome riddled with bullet-holes, but. fortunately, both the pilot and observer were unscathed.