South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1917-11-25
TELLS STORY OF
GERMAN RAIDER
Famous Commerce DESTROYER
Seeadler Has Remark
able Sea Record.

WASHINGTON, Nov. 24.-The
full story OF the cruise Of the Ger
man commerce raider Seeadler has
been obtained by the navy depart
ment from Capt Haldor Smith Of
the American school r. c. Slade.
and three other mariners who land
ed at Tutuila ira an open boat Sept.
20 after being marooned on Mopeha
island by the master Of the Seead
Fer when the raider grounded and
was abandoned.
The Seeadler, formerly the Amer
lean ship Pass OF Balmaha, belong
cd 10 the Boston Lumber company.
and was in the Nova Scotia trade
before the war. After the war broke
out she was put under the American
nag and was captured by the British
and a prize officer was put aboard
her with instructions TO take her to
kirkwall. Scotland. on the way. she
was captured by German subna-
rine and sent 20 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 a Norwe-
gian ship.
Ruse Worked.
The ruse worked so well that af-
ter leaving Bremen on Dec. 81, 1916,
the Seeadler was held up by the
British auxiliary cruiser Highland
Scot. examined and passed Sailors
identification books issued by the
Norwegian government were fur
nished the men, although they prob
ably were taken from captured Nor
wegian vessels and given TO the men
who seemed 70 lit the descriptions
given. These, together with pictures
of Norwegian kings and queens. gave
the ship the appearance Of a Nor
wegian
Capt. Smith learned that while
cruising in the Atlantic 13 ships,
valued by the Germans at 5000, 900
marks were captured. and four i'm
the Pacific. the r. G. Slads, the
American schooner a. r. Johnson.
the American schooner Manila and
the French schooner Lutece.
Relating the story Of the capture
Of his ship. the Slade, Capt. Smith
said
II left Sydney on April "a, 1917,
and proceeded without any incident
until the evening of June II. when
7 was in latitude about north and
longitude $50 west on the evening
OF June Il. about o'clock, the sec
ond mate reported to me that a ship
was firing on us. I went on deck
and looked aft and instantly. as I
came on deck they fired again, and
] saw the shell fall short about two
miles. She was about eight miles off.
There was a heavy squat starting
To- eastward-wind favorable 10 this
time-and / thought l. possib BILE to
set away and kept holding on. But
she kept firing ON me at intervals of
about FIVE to 10 minutes, and was
coming up on me fast.
HOistcd Flag.
THE ninth shot, fired about 6
O'Clock. struck very close. passing
the poop and splashing water on the
ship. Then I concluded that there
wasn't any use, and I lowered down
spanker. clewed down topsail. hoist
cd American hag, and hove 10. About
o'clock the raider was up along
side and asked what ship. told
him what il was. and he told me
90 lower down sails. and stand by
aud he would send an officer aboard
me. shortly after. the prize officer
came aboard. and a doctor and about
10 men. These officers were i'm uni
form They told me TO leave the
hip and To GO on board the raider,
and they would give me time i'm the
morning 10 pack my clothes.
They took an our men aboard
Inc raider except the cook. Next
morning I went back on board with
I'D my men and packed mp. We left
the ship with our belongings, June
is. We were put on board the raid
PIP again shortly after / saw from
the raider that they cut shOles in
The masts and placed dynamite
bombs i'm each mast and put fire
90 both ends of the ship and left
her saw the masts so over the
side and the ship was burning
from end 10 end, and the raider
steamed away"
Capt. smith said the raider was
"a fuIl-rigged ship OF steel or iron.
about $500 tons. propelled by an
oiI-burning engine. Her captain was
Felix Graf Won LuCkner. active cap
taiu-Heutenant: the first lieutenant.
Alfred King, prize officer. Richard
PleSs There also was "a chief en-
gineer. a navigating lieutenant,
mate and a doctor. All told, her
complement was SIS officers and
men. Mounted between decks. she
carried two fOur-inch guns Go.5
ceutimeters) and two machine guns.
The name on her bow rim was Trina.
When the men from the Slade ar