Omaha daily bee., 1915-10-16
ZEPPELIN SINKS
BRITISH WARSHIP?
Commander Of Airship Asserts Bomb
Sunk Vessel on River
Thames.
DESCRIBES RAIDS ON LONDON
Correspondence Of the Associated
Press.)


Correspondence of the Associated
Press.)
BERLIN, Sept. 25.--Iieutenant
Peterson. German navy. one OF the
few German officers who have re-
peatedly visited London since the
outbreak Of the war. Is visiting Ber-
lin, where a correspondent Of the
Associated Press had an opportunity
to have conversation with him
upon his impressions of the British
metropolis.
beardless. smiling Westphalian. is
neither secret service officer nor re-
turned prisoner of war, but one of
the senior officers in the German
navy's aerial fleet and his visits have
been made in command of one OF
the naval Zeppellns which have kept
London in semi-darkness and APP
prehension since the opening OF the
aerial raid campaign. He refutes
the reassuring reports given out by
the English as to the small effects
Of the housekeeping campaign.
Evidence of AccOmpIishmen
mr.. Balfour says that the destructva
effect of the air raiders has been small.
almost insignificant from a military
point of view, and that we are unable
TO see what we accomplish" remarked
the Zeppelin commander. I'VE see and
htr
tory under us collapse after an exc
plosion. or when we drop a fire bomb
upon the London docks or adjoining
storehcuses and see these burst into
bright flames, we know that we are ac-
comprising something.
I'VE cruise normally at great heights.
bat with good glasses we can see things
very plainly. In a great city like London.
particularly for one who has not WIS.,
tied II in peace times, 1t Is of course i'm
possible to say definitely that one has
hit this or that particular building, dock
or storehouse. but we can identify very
well the general locality. particularly
of such regions as the dock district along
the river or the city and banking dis
trict of London and find our way easily
to the spots selected for our attacks.
warshIp Destroyed.
ION ono Of our visits. and this Is q
fact that has as yet not been admitted
by the British admiralty. we witnessed
clearly the destruction of warship on
the Thames, one on which fair and
square hit was scored. On another oc-
CASTOR dropped BONN squRrely on a
fort. I could not tell precisely the ef-
feet caused, but from the fact that the
guns of the fort, which mad previously
been conducting vigorous lombard
ment of. the Zeppelin squadron, suddenly
ceased fire and that the searchlight
which had been playing upon US went
osx after flash OF flame and heavy
euvaosion, I concluded that the damage
i1sA been a very heavy. perhaps a mag
aSine explosion"
Attacks on warships at sea. said Lieu
tenant Peterson, are difficult and dam
gerous except in cloudy weather. since
most of the warships now are equipped
with anti-balloon guns. Only when low
hanging clouds permit the dirigibles TO
swoop down upon the warship to an
elevation from which the quickly man
euvering ship offers q fair target, do
such attacks offer q reasonable chance
of success.
British Do Little.
Returning to the subject of attacks
against London, Lieutenant Peterson was
questioned about the value and effect OF
the defensive measures against the
dirigibles-anti-balloon guns. rifle fire.
searchlights and hostile aeroplanes. OF
those he attached Importance only to az
tiliery fire supported by searchlights and
even in this line, he said. the British had
been able to do little against the raids.
THE searchlights. of course. pick us
up now and then. but 1t Ii very difficult
70 hold a Zeppelin long In view. owing
70 CLOUDS and tho changes in direction.
speed and altitude, which we can make
quickly, and It Is still more difficult for
guns 70 get our range In the darkness
under these circumstances"
AS to the attacks by aeroplanes. men
toned number of times In press dis
patches. the commander relegated these
to the realm Of fables. He had not known
Of an attack Of this kind in any Of the
raids upon England. nor had he ever
seen a hostile aeroplane in any of his
various excursions thither. Aeroplanes
can with difficulty navigate in the dark
ness and have very little chance OF find
ing or catching one of the high-speed
Zeppelins. so that the dirigibles had as
yet no occasion to use the defensive arm
Rment which they carry to drive away
these wasps of the air.
Must Cross in Darkness.
Navigation for the ZeppeIins, too. Is by
no means as yet an exact science. The
trips must be timed so as to cross the
English coast in the darkness. make the
attack and get away again before dawn.
ut is not so easy to find England" he
said. I'VE cannot navigate so exactly at
sea as overland, owing to the uncertainty
of the air currents. absence of land
marks, etc, so that It is usually an open
question at just what point OF the Brit
ish coast we shall bring up. Once there,
however. after we have confirmation of
the coast, we have the outlines OF some
coast city that gives us our bearings and
We can steer a straight course for our OBJ
iective.
I'VE can easily tell by Just what route
We are entering London Last time
went in from the Surrey side and naNi-
gated without difficulty to the dock re-
gion. which we had been ordered to at
:ack. Others of the squadron went to the
,ity district and found 1t, too"