Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1917-12-12
Navy Department Gets the Story
From Captain Of an Amer.
lean Schooner.
Seventeen Ships Captured by German
Raider In Spectacular Cruises In
TWO oceans-Hoodwinks Brit
lsh by Clever Ruse.

Washington.-The full story Of the
cruise Of the German commerce raid
er Seeadler has been obtained by the
navy department from Capt. Haldor
Smith of the American schooner r. G.
Slade and three other mariners, who
landed at Tutuila in an open boat Sep
tember 20 after being marooned ON
Mopeha island by the master Of the
Seeadler when the raider grounded
and was abandoned.
The Seeadler, formerly the Ameri-
can ship Pass Of Balmaha, was cap
tured by German submarine and sent
to Bremen and fitted out as a raider.
A picked crew was placed aboard,
some Of whom spoke Norwegian, and
sent out into the Atlantic under the
guise of Norwegian ship.
The ruse worked so well that after
leaving Bremen on December q, 1915,
the Seeadler was held up by the Brit
fish auxiliary cruiser Highland Scout,
examined and passed.
Captured Seventeen Ships.
Captain Smith learned that while
cruising in the Atlantic IS ships, val
ued by the Germans at 6O,OO0OOO
marks, were captured and four In the
Pacific.
Relating the story of the capture
Of his ship, the Slade, Captain Smith
said:
II left Sydney on April "a, 1917, and
proceeded without any incident until
the evening Of June II, when the sec
ond mate reported to me that a ship
was firing on us. She was about eight
miles off. There was a heavy squall
starting eastward-wind favorable to
this time. and I thought 1t possible
to get away and kept holding on But
she kept firing on me at intervals Of
about five to ten minutes and was
coming up on me fast.
II concluded that there wasn't any
use and lowered down spanker. clew-
ed down topsail. hoisted the American
flag. and hove to. Shortly after the
prize officer came aboard and doctor
and about ten men. These officers
were In uniform. They told me to
leave the ship and to go on board
the raider and they would give me
time In the morning to pack my
clothes.
"They took all our men aboard the
raider except the cook. Next morn
ing I went back on board with all my
men and packed up. We left the ship
with our belongings on June IS. We
were put on board the raider again.
Shortly after 1 saw from the raider
that they cut holes In the masts and
placed dynamite bombs in each mast
and put fire to both ends Of the ship
and left her"
Captcin sruith said the raider was
a fuli-riggcd ship of steel or iron,
about 2,9OO tons. propelled by oil
burning engines. Her captain was Fee
lix Graf Won Luckner.
When the men from the Slade ar
rived aboard the raider they found
nine prisoners from the American
schooner A. B. Johnson Of San Fran
cisco, captured three days before. On
July 8, Smith stated, the schooner Ma
Mia was captured and dynamited after
Mia was captured and dynamited.
Wrecked In Pacific.
For about three weeks the raider
kept beating up and down looking for
passing ships. Meeting none. they
went south to Mopeha on July 81.
anchored on the lee side Of the island,
and on August the ship was driven
hard and fast ashore. After working
all afternoon they gave her up as lost
and took ashore everything they could
move, including the boats, gear and
wireless. The wireless plant, very
powerful one, was set up between two
coconut trees.
On August %. Captain Smith re-
lated, the German officers fitted up
and armed small boat and started
for the Cook islands or the FIJI Is
lands, where they hoped to capture an
American ship and come back for the
crew. Count Won Luckner. the mas
ter, was In charge. They were never
heard of again at Mapeha island.
On September S French trading
schooner from fapeete, the Lutece'
put in at the island. First Lieuten-
ant King took motor boat and ma
chine gun and captured the ship. She
had large cargo of flour, salmon and
beef and supply of water. King and
his crew dismantled the wireless plant
and left the island in the Lutece that
night, leaving 4S souls, including the
Americans.
A small boar had been left behind,
and the marooned men fitted 1t up.
The captain Of the Manila. with
small crew, started out In the boat for
Tahiti on September 8. They failed
TO reach Tahiti and returned exhaust
ed on September 10. Captain Smith,
with three men, took the small boat
and managed to reach Page Page ten
days later.
Recent dispatches indicate that the
captain of the Seeadler and five OF his
crew were captured on September n
ll.~~> Hcks0