ATTACK ON NEUTRALS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 26 September 1939, Page 5

ATTACK ON NEUTRALS

BY GERMAN SUBMARINES SHIPS LADEN WITH WOOD PULP SUNK. CONCERN IN SWEDEN. By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright. (Received This Day, 9 a.m.) LONDON, September 25. Sweden is concerned over the sinking by German submarines of two Finnish pulp ships, both bound for England. One, the Martti Ragnar, of 2262 tons, was sunk off Norway. The other, the Walma, of 1361 tons, was sunk off Smorgen. “The Times" Stockholm correspondent points out that the Martti Ragnar and the Walma were the first neutral ships to be sunk and indicates that Germany has widened her U-boat campaign in the hope of cutting off all British supplies. The Captain of the Walma protested on the ground that cellulose had not been proclaimed contraband but the U-boat commander replied that the British make gunpowder of it and proceeded to sink the ship with dynamite, explaining that torpedoes were too valuable to waste on small vessels. Taking this action in conjunction with the sinking of the Gertrud Bratt, Sweden believes' that Germany is bent on stopping all trade to Britain, despite assurances in respect to the rights of neutrals. German comment on the sinking of Swedish and Finnish ships is that if neutrals want to complain they can do so before the courts in Hamburg and it is added that if the commander of the U-boat had not sunk the ships he would have been courtmartialled. as the cellulose might have killed thousands of Germans. SHIPMENTS HELD UP STOCKHOLM, September 25. As a result of the sinking of two Finnish ships carrying cargoes of wood pulp, large quantities of pulp for shipment to Britain and America are being held pending an indication as to whether Germany considers them contraband.