The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1918-01-07
OPERATOR FOILS
GERMAN RAIDERS
Kaleidoscope History of Vessel
Which Flew Two Flags.
FOOLS GERMAN RADIO MAN
Youth Shortened Length OF Sound
Waves So That No Vessel Could
Pick Up Messages He Made Pre-
tense Of sending-Hls Life 10
Threatened by OFFICERS Of Enemy
Ship.

Ship.
A dramatic incident Of the sea, In
which q young wireless operator fooled
the enemy, was related In the prize
court In London recently, when the
crown was asked to condemn the
steamship Edna on the ground Of un-
neutral service and enemy ownership.
The attorney general. Sir Frederick
X. Smith, described the Kaleidoscope
history of a vessel which few two
flags. The plucky operator was zone
Smith, an Englishman," who since has
received a commission In the II. N.
A. s.
Frederick Jebson, a German, said Sir
Frederick, was a prominent man In
San Francisco shipping circles. He
chartered the vessel and was believed
to have persisted afterward in a Ger
man submarine. The vessel was built
at Bergen In 1902 and In those days
sailed the seas as the Jason. Jebson
used the vessel for his Mexican bust
ness He had been In the German
navy and was in the naval eserve.
Jebson purchased the vessel, the
ownership Of which was vested In the
Lloyd Mexican Societe Anonyme, In
which he held the bulk of the shares.
Finally he managed to get back to Ger
many disguised as a Scandinavian sea-
man.
Vessel Was Disguised.
The Edna took on board wireless
and gun-sight apparatus and tried to
communicate to the German cruiser
Leipzig the dates when British vessels
left port-an attempt which was frus-
trated by the resonrcefulness, ingenu-
ity and courage of Smith.
In an affidavit read by the attorney
general, Guy Duncan Smith, the wire
less operator, said that he was on
board the vessel when the war broke
out. He awoke one night at midnight
and heard the steamship Aztec an
nounce that war had been declared be-
tween Russia and Germany.
At this time the vessel had "Ham-
burg painted ON the stern. After the
announcement that war had begun
Hamburg" was removed from the
vessel. la Paz" was painted In and
the Mexican flag was run up.
Before leaving San Francisco he
had heard that the coal taken on board
was intended for the Leipzig. Infor-
nation was sent to the British consul,
and the authorities at San Francisco
demanded that the coal should not be
delivered to the cruiser.
Deceived German Operator.
A German wireless operator was
taken on board and Smith was told
that II he refused to do his duty the
German would take his place. The
German operator. however. did not un-
derstand the Marconi system. Smith
shortened the length of the sound
waves, and though he appeared to be
sending out calls for the Leipzig no
vessel could pick up the message.
The German operator spent three
nights and three days trying to call
up the Leipzig. Smith returned later,
and then occasionally called up the
German cruiser, putting the wireless In
order to allay suspicious. but the wire.
less was always out Of gear when the
German operator tried to use 1t. AT
La Paz, Smith forwarded a message
to the admiral on the American cruiser
California.
Some Of the officers threatened to
shoot Smith and throw him overheard
IL he did not send a code message to
the German cruiser, ana he then pre-
tended to send 1t.
The only thing that Smith sent te
the Leipzig was an inquiry as to where
she was, which brought forth the re
ply that she was hanging AROUND
waiting for the Edna. Finally the Ed
ma was Communicated by the Mexican
government, which put an officer oil
board. and Smith said that "after tina
things were more comfortable"