Jasper County Democrat, Volume 17, Number 95, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 6 March 1915 — OVERCOME MANY DIFFICULTIES [ARTICLE]

OVERCOME MANY DIFFICULTIES

To Reach Jasper County, Ind., by German Couple in Leaving ' . China. /

Mr. and Mrs. John Eilts arrived here Monday from China, where he has been located for several years, to visit his brothers, Rinehold and Edward Eilts of north of Rensselaer! Both Mr. and Mrs, Eilts are natives of German*-, and when the present European conflict broke out they decided to make for the United States, and after many months succeeded in reaching this country. An account of their experience in getting out of China was published Is the Honolulu Commercial Advertiser of Feb. 16, and follows:

John Eilts, a civil engineer and architect of Tsingtau, who is a through passenger aboard the Tenvo Mani, accompanied by his wife, en route to San Francisco, said last night that the British authorities in the Orient were making it almost impossible for Germans to leave China for either the United States or Europe. Mr. and Mrs. Eilts and a number of prominent members of the local German colony were the guests of Rudolph Heydeurich at the Rathskellar last night. When the war broke out in Europe, Mr. and Mrs. Eilts were in Harman, in the southern part of China. Owing to his large property interests in Tsingtau, Mr. Eilts made Immediate preparations to leave the Chinese province for his home m north China.

“The fifrst obstacle I encounterer,” Said Mr. Eilts,“was when I was told by the British consul at Haiman that I could not leave the country until permission was granted from Hongkong. A letter was written to the authorities in Hongkong asking for this permission, which was not answered for a whole month. Telegrams were exchangee for another week and finally cablegrams were sent to London.

“For three months we were held in Haiman waiting for the unraveling of official red tape and finally my wife and I slipped out of the port one night in a Chinese junk. For two weeks we were on this strange craft and after many thrilling adventures with French officers at Hoi-How we finally made the port of Kong-Moon, which is within seven hours of Canton by rail. ‘‘We were four weeks making the journey from Canton to Nanking, and upon our arrival in Shanghai we found that we had another month’s delay in getting! a steamer out.pf there for the United States, owing to the fact that all ships from the Orient at that time Were carrying large numbers of refugees from Tsingtau, We finally secured passage on the Tenvo Ma.ru and without anv further difficulty I expect to land in the United States safely within the Hext week.

“Our experience has been a trying one and at times very- thrilling. 1 will say-, however, that the British, with the assistance of the Japanese, are going to convince the German residents of China that the Flowery Kingdom is a good country to stayin.’’