The Oklahoma City times. [volume] (Oklahoma City, Okla.) 1908-1984, 1915-01-16

Perhaps" said the magistrate
But you we're silly. Pay guinea
fine-and nfter this obey tho Yard
when 1t speaks"
At bokstone your passport ia az
amlned again. This time the exam
liner tries to pick holes In IT, He ask,
you where you were born aud when.
People shuttle their feet lmpatlcntly
behind you during the catechsm. You
get on board the boat, and begin TO
look your fellow passengers over.
Then you begin TO understand why
the Yard has been 80 yerv cautious
Some Of them seem worth looking nj
twice.
I've met five Germans on board
this boat" sNid naurnllzed Ger
man American on steamer bound
Tor Holland the other day I'm sure
one ot them is in the German secret
Servlce-in other words Il spy. An.
other II q captain In the German mr.
my who has Just come ON from Ar.
gentina 10 join his regiment In the
Held. He has n Spanards passport
The others are Of military nge.r
Remember that England is posi-
lively mad on the spy question. and
that each OF these men would hnyo
been lnlerned In a prison camp until
the war is over II ne had been lden.
titled az a German. The German
American chuckled at the clcverness
OF his compatriOts I'm evadlng the
Yard. One eventually began 10 won.
der about the German. American him
self He has been plying between
France and Germany-each time
passing through England. Well out
TO sea he developed into an ardent
Teutonism.
But l won't talk IN the smoking
room" said he. There are four men
on this boat have seen on every
trip. think they are detectives"
Mines In the Channel.
The four were certainly easy to get
acquainted with. They never looked
at each other but kept plying through
the boat. Wherever possible they sat
down where they could ogcrhrar 9th.
ers talking Once the pilot suddenly
Iamlhed the helm hard down. mud the
boat spun around In a half circle aud
then stopped Some onh asked one II
the four what the trouble might be
Just "a mine" said he lndffer
emily.
There arc mines plenty of them
In the channel. Most of them are
anchored. and the honts 90 in well.
buoyed lanes Others are floating.
The English say these loose mines
were cast ndrlrt by the Germans.
The Germans say they are English
mines that have broken away FROM
| their unchornges Iou can take your
choice of the explanations. That
there are plenty Of them was aycrrcd
! by tho pilot
There isn't trip that we don't
see three or four " Them" said he
Fortunately, they are cnsy To see"
Most passengers also believe they
see them At least they see round
objects floating about level with the
surface of the water Some Of them
have little metal onion tops sticking
mp above the waves. Sometimes
when the boat has had rather a mar.
row miss she II backed down near
the loose mine. aud barrel NJ oil IN
emptled on the water rhat eerye1
10 mark the mines whprcnbouts
The next destroyer attends to her
Mlne-swerpers IN palrs nrc always
hard 1t work In the channel and in
the North sra chain cahle drng.
ged between them catch mines thar
are not whore they should be. Then
they nre DESTROYED.
There is theory, strongly held In
England and France that lhe Andral
Hantehume. an old French steamer
laden with wounded Belgian soldiers.
was torppdOed In the channel some
months ago Proof seems to be lack
ing of this At the time opinion wns
divided between the contention thnt
her ogc rocked old boilers had let go.
and the belief that she struck mine.
In any ease II wasn't much ~ tor.
edo FOR the old hulk managed 10 vet
to port Rut from that time every
one watches for submarines IN n
channel voyage. As there are a gonl
many submarines, one often scns
them Some woman Is very certnu
to sQueul In fright whenever one Is
! sighted
They will murder u.s." she cries.
we win drown |"
By The time she In soothed the sub
marine ls out Of sight On the re-
turn voyage from Holland the pa
senEer list IL certnlu 10 he heavily
Belgian IN cast Many are Religion
soldiers who by some hook or crook
have evaded the regulation recurring
the ipternment of helligprents ON on.
tering neutral country and others
are poor. broken DEVILS from the In.
terior ~ Belgium, fleeing TO England
an to a refuge Oddly enough. ther
ARE mostly cheerful Perhaps n il
reaction from despair.